Ricky Allen practises his trotting horse at Waimarama Beach with son Ben. PHOTO/FILE
Ricky Allen practises his trotting horse at Waimarama Beach with son Ben. PHOTO/FILE
RICKY ALLEN has traded one island (North) for another (South) in New Zealand but not at the expense of losing his penchant for living in paradise.
The former Hawke's Bay Magpie midfielder and harness racing enthusiast lives with wife Brenda at a property overlooking a 6km stretch of Katiki Beach along State Highway 1, sandwiched between Palmerston and Hampden, south of Oamaru.
"That's my life. I'm living my dream in paradise," says the 62-year-old harness racing owner-trainer of his 14-hectare coastal property "where the southern highway meets the surf".
Allen, a second five-eighth or centre who also represented Canterbury, is indebted to his wife, a nurse at Oamaru Hospital, for supporting him in pursuing his dream life in a breathtaking part of New Zealand.
He likens the area to the highway stretch skirting Kaikoura, teeming with wildlife and where dolphins frolic in full view of travellers.
"Brenda's missing the boys tremendously," says Allen of their four sons.
Former Magpie Ben, 31, who is Taradale RSA manager, was an adroit rugby player who made the Crusaders' wider squad and also held the New Zealand age-group U18 secondary schools' triple-jump record as well as the NZ Open U18 110m hurdles record fleetingly.
James, 30, is a police sergeant in Christchurch and was an elite road cyclist, while Sebastian, 21, is an apprentice diesel mechanic in Waimarama "who could have been a sportsperson but 'tractor' was his first word", although he excelled in high jump at high school.
Sam, 18, is studying carpentry at the Eastern Institute of Technology in Taradale and "is one of the best skateboarders in New Zealand".
Ricky Allen built his career on the hospitality industry in the Bay as manager at Taradale RSA and Angus Inn in Hastings, among other hotels, and hopes son Ben is keeping the family flame alive.
Ricky Allen (left) with Kevin Parish in his heyday at Taradale RSA.
He was behind staging trotting at the Hawke's Bay Showgrounds in Hastings, with the late Cr Ivan Wilson, who was tied up with the Kiwi Surf Lifesaving Club, also instrumental.
"Amateurs were thriving [in running the spectacular] and then the professionals took over so it died in the end, after taking off.
"The racing people [gallops] didn't want to know us so when we went to the showgrounds they said to us to come on over," recalls Allen, mindful the showground pavilion's proximity to the action drew hordes of fans to harness meetings, which survived for more than a decade.
In fact, his preference to train harness horses at his beach property stems from his time grooming horses at Waimarama Beach with former owner/training partner Robert MacDonald.
"I'm always looking for an edge. The rugby training is part of the programme the horses have been served up and it's working."
Born and bred in Christchurch, Allen's first visit to the Bay was in 1970 at age 18 after he befriended MacDonald at Canterbury University.
"I went to the Bay and worked at the [now defunct] Tomoana freezing works during the holidays," he says, adding MacDonald is the godfather of all his children.
The nephew of ex-All Black captain/coach Sir Fred "the Needle" Allen, of Oamaru, recalls training horses for the late Kel Tremain, who bought into syndicates with Tony Small, Sir Russell Pettigrew and Sir Fred.
"It's in the blood a wee bit. Somewhere along the way I had a passion for the [Trotting] Cup Week in Canterbury," says Allen. He reveals his father, the late Alexander Arthur Allen, often "had a flutter" so took his mother, the late Joan Diane Florence (nee Shellock), and the children to the races in Christchurch amid a picnic-like atmosphere.
Allen lists Rua Kenana as one of his top horses, trained at Waimarama Beach. It was champion 4-year-old trotter in 1989 after 11 wins, including Addington, as well as other group races.
Allen's recent accomplished horse was Zachary Smith, who won three of his last four races before being offloaded to a Perth buyer.
Starlight Starbright is coming along just fine in his stable as a 3-year-old who has three victories but has a way to go to emulate the feats of rival and an older Speedy Spur.
Allen has plans for the rising star late next month at the Harness Jewel in Ashburton.
He played for Canterbury in 1975 but two years later yearned for the Bay climate and friends.
Allen, who met and married Bay-born Brenda (nee Singer) in the Bay, went to ply his trade in Italy in the off-season before returning to Christchurch to play for Canterbury A.
The Bay beckoned again so he made the decision to finish his National Provincial Rugby (NPC) career with the Magpies.
He retired after the Magpies v British Lions clash at McLean Park on July 7, 1983, scoring a four-point try before hobbling off.
"I ruptured my cruciate ligament in the knee and never returned to rugby," he says. He couldn't get his preferred centre position with the Cantabrians but did with the Magpies.
"We were leading when I left the field," he says of a 25-19 loss but hastens to add the Magpies versus Lions 13-11 loss in 1977 was "a great game".
"We could have won it and should have won it if the kicker [Murray Tocker] hadn't had an off-day.
"Murray, who was from Wellington, couldn't take a trick that day to land one."
Allen's father, he understands, returned from the war and preferred not to play beyond club rugger for Sunnyside Hospital, where he was a psychopaedic nurse.
In fact his father had a penchant for picking players who wanted to work at the Christchurch hospital in what Allen believes were the first signs of professionalism in New Zealand rugby.
"I heard somewhere he [his father] was the better of the two boys [compared with The Needle] but then you always hear things like that - you know, the better horse in the stable who didn't get to race."
Sir Fred, who died on April 28, 2012, of leukaemia in Auckland, played six tests as a pivot and led the ABs to all 14 match victories as mentor in 1966-69 to become the most successful ABs coach.
Allen says Sir Fred's wife, Norma, who died in September 2009, was a model and the couple had settled in Auckland to run a women's garment business.
"He used to come down [to Christchurch] every six to 12 months between winter and summer with his wife to visit clients and often came to see us, too," he says, revealing his uncle sometimes gave him tips "but it was never anything scathing".
"He helped open up a few opportunities," says Allen of Sir Fred who got his nickname because of his ability to "needle players in the team".
"He knew how to wind people up to motivate them."
Allen doesn't harbour any regrets about not playing for the All Blacks but points out in those days there was little difference between a club player and an All Black.
Not likely to become an AB, he decided it was time to retire to make way for young blood.
"I would have liked 100 first-class games but I managed to get 80 or 90."
