WINNING SPIRIT
By Sheila Laxon

Published by Penguin Books

From her earliest days in Wales and then in Kent, England, Sheila Laxon was allied with horses.

As a youngster she had her ponies and graduated into other breeds as life progressed. Her late mother was active in the equine arena and her father was allied with farming and nautical interests.

Sheila was active in the show ring, on the hunting field, and in equestrian sports before an introduction to horse racing, This was to accelerate when she came to New Zealand about 1980.

She was to marry widowered horse trainer Laurie Laxon and became deeply involved in the racing business. In time she had her own licence to train and it was in this arena that she gained legendary status by saddling up Ethereal to complete a notable Caulfield-Melbourne cups double in 2001.

Sheila's background is virtually a travelogue for she travelled extensively to pursue her equine fervour. She had several nasty accidents as a jumps rider and nearly lost her life in a fracas in Australia on December 23, 2002. It took her 12 months walk gingerly again.

Sheila and her new partner John Symons are now ensconsed in Victoria, Australia, where Sheila is resuming her training career.

(Winning Spirit retails for $NZ 39 in New Zealand).

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