Maurice Thomas, a life of farming, hunting and point-to-pointing

Maurice Thomas, a passionate follower of the sport who became a well-known owner, particularly in the South Midlands, has died at the age of 87.

He enjoyed a double on his final visit to a point-to-point when the Alan Hill-trained pair of I K Brunel and Normofthenorth, in which he was a co-owner, won at Kingston Blount on the season’s concluding weekend.

Hill said: “Maurice was a local farmer and a great supporter of hunting and point-to-pointing. He became a fan of the sport before Sunday racing was introduced and would be at every Saturday meeting he could attend. He loved a bet and being around the bookies, and enjoyed one or two good gambles. That’s how he got into it.”

Born and raised in Oxfordshire, Thomas was not averse to heading to meetings outside of his local area and became a regular attendee at the season’s Umberleigh finale where his picnics became legendary, always featuring a joint of beef and a big smile from the man providing the feast – “He loved entertaining,” said Hill, while a small syndicate which Thomas headed was called The Back Of The Car Club.

His involvement in racehorse ownership started in the West Country with Carol Handel, but was subsequently moved closer to his Oxfordshire home.

Hill said: “Maurice was great friends with his neighbours, Lynn and Willie Redman, and it was Lynn, to her credit, who took his interest forward. Gradually he invested in more and better horses and placed them with a number of trainers, including the Redmans, myself, the Ellises, Laura Horsfall and under rules with Ben Case and Charlie Longsdon.”

His interest in rules racing included a dabble on the Flat with one outstanding result. Joining a syndicate called The Woodway 20 Thomas found himself owning a share in Chipotle, a 10,000gns yearling purchase by Eve Johnson Houghton and trained by her to win Royal Ascot’s Windsor Castle Stakes plus Redcar’s valuable Two Year Old Trophy. Chipotle was sold at the end of that season for 210,000gns at Tattersalls’ Autumn Horses-in-Training Sale.

Thomas was involved in Sizzling Sun, whose victory at Hereford’s Piccadilly Hunt Club meeting in 1994 was Lynn Redman’s first winner, although their partnership peaked with Goodnight Vienna, who won seven races. More recently he was involved in the Hill-trained Clondaw Westie, who finished fourth in Aintree’s Randox Foxhunters’ Chase and was then runner-up at Cheltenham’s evening hunters’ chase meeting.

After fighting the effects of cancer for several years Thomas and was not well enough to leave his car when he visited Kingston Blount for the final time, but James King, who rode both winners, went down to the car park to discuss the races with their co-owner.

Hill said: “Maurice was a delightful character, a church warden and a great family man. We will all miss him.”

Thomas was predeceased by his wife Valerie. He leaves behind three daughters, Julia, Alex and Hazel, plus grandchildren and great grandchildren.