By MIKE DILLON
Maurice Paykel loved horses so much he lost his chance to serve in World War II.
The day before he was to go overseas, Paykel had one last ride with his beloved Pakuranga Hunt, crashed heavily when his horse baulked at the last obstacle and broke an arm so badly he could not serve.
The arm, set at 90 degrees, became a feature of the man who established with his good mate, the late Sir Woolf Fisher, the whiteware giant Fisher & Paykel.
Maurice Paykel died this week aged 88 after a battle with cancer.
He became one of New Zealand's foremost industrialists, but horses remained his passion.
As a youngster he was prominent in pony club and was an accomplished point-to-point rider. He later became immersed in horse-racing.
With friend Warren Sandman he raced the Auckland Cup-winning mare Perhaps and from the late Geoff Murphy's Melbourne stable, Savoir won group-rated races.
Earlier he owned 2-year-old filly of the year Bellette and more recently he enjoyed a share in the group one-winning handicapper Greene Street.
When Sir Woolf Fisher became president of the Auckland Racing Club, many felt Paykel's decisive manner would be a wonderful asset to the club, but he gracefully declined many approaches to stand for office.
He preferred instead to become heavily involved in the thoroughbred breeding industry and with Cambridge breeder Bob Morris enjoyed many exciting yearling sales results.
Maurice Paykel's grit was epitomised by his refusal to allow his frozen arm to prevent him playing golf.
Racing: Horses Maurice Paykel's passion
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.