OFF THE RECORD #44

From Daggakraal to the Winner’s Circle
Amos Nkosi’s Racing Journey

Above: Amos Nkosi in the winner's enclosure

When Amos Nkosi was 14 years old, he huddled in his family’s mud hut on a dusty road in the old Daggakraal township near Amersfoort, Mpumalanga, listening to a live broadcast of the 1984 Rothmans Durban July on a transistor radio. He was captivated by the excitement of the race and the call, performed by Ernie Duffield.

Amos has a remarkable memory. More than 40 years later, he remembers that the race was won by Devon Air, trained by Terrance Millard and ridden by Felix Coetzee. Robbie Hill finished second on Versailles and Jeff Lloyd was third on Bodrum. Amos was hooked on horseracing from that day, and describes the sport as his lifelong ‘vessel’ for survival and hope.

Years of nurturing his dream to own a racehorse himself culminated in a moment of triumph last week. Amos finally stood in the winner’s box at the Vaal after his three-year-old filly, Palace Dancer (Potala Palace), claimed an impressive victory in a Maiden Plate over 1200m. He shares ownership of Palace Dancer with trainer Tony Peter.

Amos's journey to his first win as a racehorse owner was paved with hard work and countless memorable racecourse experiences. He moved to Johannesburg in 1989, where he initially found a job on a construction site, pushing wheelbarrows. He also spent a few years as a labourer in the flour mills at Premier Milling. A chance encounter with an executive from Lancet Laboratories in 1996 opened the door to a ground-level position. Over time, Amos worked his way up to their administrative department, where he remains a respected and well-liked veteran of the company. “I was able to take the day off when Palace Dancer ran second on her debut and again when she won,” he says.

His father took him racing in the days when the grandstands were packed and the crowd participation was similar to what we see at rugby test matches today. Entry fees were charged to areas like the ‘lawn enclosure’ near the winning post and the adjacent ‘paddock enclosure’ where the bookmakers had their ring. ‘Day Members’ to the various Highveld tracks gained access at a low fee, but had to fight for a seat among thousands sitting on the stands opposite the 200m-mark.

Amos attended his first meeting at Gosforth Park and fondly recalls the match race between sprinting stars Divine Act and Brainteaser in front of a capacity crowd at the Germiston track in July 1990. He said: “Charlie van Booma rode Divine Act and Piere Strydom was on Brainteaser. Striker was a young jockey, he’d finished his apprenticeship and was riding everyone to sleep. He didn’t win on Brainteaser that day, but won all six legs of the Pick 6.”

Gosforth Park was his favourite racetrack, Amos says, because it was smaller than the other tracks and the atmosphere was amazing. “It was an intimate track where you could get close to the action. The parade ring was quite small and right next to the Jockeys Room and the winner’s box. One could stand at the fence and see the jockeys up close and hear what they had to say to each other. I loved to go there.”

Amos said he has missed almost no Saturday race meetings in Gauteng since 1990, and he is trackside on public holidays too. He was on course for the final meetings at Gosforth Park and Newmarket and, in 1994, had a chance to attend his first, and so far only, Durban July. “Surfing Home won the race, but there was an objection lodged on behalf of Pas De Quoi, who finished fifth. It was upheld and the race was awarded to Space Walk. There was big excitement and drama and thousands of colourful people, I will never forget the experience.”

He met Paul Peter at Turffontein in 1994 and told: “Paul was just a racegoer back then, an ordinary punter. I vividly recall that we watched Strydom on Special Preview and Glynn Schofield on Casey’s Honour going stride-for-stride in a feature sprint. Special Preview won by a neck and we were jumping around in happiness. Tony was still a baby. We kept in touch. They knew about my wish to own a horse and I am so grateful that they invited me to share in Palace Dancer and to have it racing in my chosen silks.”

Above: Palace Dancer wins her maiden in the Nkosi silks (pic: JC Photos)

Having manifested his original dream, Amos says he is now putting his focus on having a runner on Durban July day. “I think we have a filly here capable of running in the graded Juvenile race at next year’s July. There is a long time to go and she has to show she can do it, but I believe she can. She is very good, she was just green first time out and should’ve won that race too.”

Paul Peter bought the Sandown-bred Palace Dancer for R60,000 at the 2023 KZN Yearling Sale. Interestingly, the stable has already won three races with her half-sister Where’s The Party. Tony Peter said: “My dad fell in love with Palace Dancer at the sale and we got her for a good price. Where’s The Party came to us from Cape Town much later, it is purely co-incidental that they are related. Palace Dancer is a high-class filly and we are delighted for Amos, who is a true gentleman with racing running through his veins.”

He was also complimentary of work rider Phenisile Mongqawa, who rode Palace Dancer to victory. This was his sixth winner from his last seven rides – three for the Peter stable, two for Weichong Marwing and one for Fabian Habib. Tony said: “Phenisile is a top rider and a good judge and his work ethic is admirable. He rides up to 40 horses every morning for us, Weichong and Robyn Klaasen. He’s a rider we can entrust our top horses to, with confidence.”

Above: The connections congratulate Phenisile (pic: JC Photos)

Mongqawa (33) has an extraordinary life story. His mother, Alice, worked for the Peter family in Johannesburg and lived in a back room on their property. She fell pregnant and prematurely gave birth to Phenisile,  with Paul himself delivering the child. Tony told: “Phenisile was born at six months and had to spend four months in an incubator. Perhaps that stunted his growth, because his brothers are all giants. Alice still works for us.”

Phenisile was educated in the Eastern Cape, and visited the Peters during school holidays. When Paul started training at James Maree’s Eikenhof establishment, Phenisile took an interest in riding. He’d never sat on a horse before and was taken under James Maree’s wing at the Work Riders Academy. He learnt his skills alongside Francis Simela and Jackson Feni, with veteran Sam Mosia also lending a helping hand.

Maree commented: “It’s good to see how Phenisile has developed as a rider. He is competent and getting better. I want him to use his stick a bit less, he can get over-excited. But we are proud of him, he is doing well!”