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Dick IFrands: From Jeck®y To fHas©r SIu!hSap‘r 77 y try a Cushion-Lif- t chair By ITIacy Long Francis’ heroes are City State and they have the to prove it They may get strung up by the wrists in a tack room Or pummeled with a chair leg Or pitchforked to a stable wall Whatever the punishment they are prepared to persevere to the end In this they are like the author himself Dick Francis’ heroes suffer he says because he’s been through pain and knows all about and a writer challenge should write about what he knows Over 20 years ago Dick Francis now 60 retired from a career as one of England’s top jockeys He quickly managed to extend his winning streak however by Telephone Zip turning Dick Sit or stand at the touch of a button Easily securely without pain or effort No more waiting for help Increased mobility and movement Chairs are helping thousands of people stay independent and enjoy life with less pain Try a Cushion-Li- ft chair in your home no obligation Free color brochure Medicare coverage in most cases Toilet-Li- ft and Bath Chair Lift also available CUSHION-LIFT- " - Call Toll Free: (for ORTHO-KINETIC- representative nearest you) INC S PO Box 2000 fw Waukesha Wl 53187 Wise call collect: Name Address 7 Kodacolor - r FILM DEVELOPED COLOR PRINT FILM DEVELOPED AND PRINTED ON DELUXE KODAK PAPER 110 126 AND 135 - EXPOSURE f&bui' 2'99 thugs and OFFER ENDS $350 36 EXP knowledge of racing into the stuff of successful adventure novels Since 1962 each new Francis thriller — there are 20 in all — has sold more copies than the one before it They have been praised by the critics and translated into 18 languages His latest contender Reflex (Putnam) plunges its readers into the dark side of the racing world an area of shifting ethical boundaries where a great deal of money can be made very quickly — if you pay the price Francis’ novels — all of which have to do with racing — are filled with murder and deception crooked bookies vicious FAILURES CREDITED 20 or 24 EXP 110 126 24 EXP i 35 mm 22882 $550 PO BOX 35116 intimate his CHICAGOIL 60635 J women dangerous blue-bloode- English d gentlemen who do not behave at all like gentlemen “The racing world is not quite so crooked as I portray it” admits the Francis youthful-lookinis there “But always somesoft-spoke- n g Doctors Prove You Can Help Shrink Swelling Of Hemorrhoidal Tissues Due To Inflammation Relieve Pain And Itch Too Gives prompt temporary relief from hemorrhoidal pain and itch in many cases Doctors have found a most effec- tive medication that actually helps shrink painful swelling of hemorrhoidal tissues caused by inflammation In many cases the first applications give prompt relief for hours from such pain and burning itching thing going on” Francis credits the con- tinued popularity of his books to their high level of authenticity which he says extends to all their aspects “For example” he points out “I have been accused of putting too much violence into my books But I don’t think I subject any of my heroes to injuries the likes of 14 FAMILY WEEKLY June 28 1981 which I — or my colleagues — haven’t suffered ourselves in racing In one of my books Knockdown for instance the hero’s arm is pulled out by hanging onto a car — that happened to me just not at quite the same well angle” Francis has also had his collarbone broken 12 times Mother’s First Jockey for four seasons He was riding one of her horses Devon Loch in the 1956 Grand National when he suffered what is still considered perhaps the greatest upset in racing history Devon Loch was leading the field by several lengths when suddenly the roar of the partisan crowd began rolling down from the stands “Thir- - £ N ty yards from the winning post the noise reached crescendo” recalls Francis shifting his body forward as if i he were riding the horse I again “Devon Loch pricked up his ears and for no ap-- 1 parent reason his legs col-- 1 Riding high : Francis has jockeyed his way to fame his nose broken five times and has sustained 10 concussions and a smattering of broken and cracked ribs And in one accident the tendons in his right hand were permanently severed “You see a top steeplechase jockey rides about 300 or 400 races a year” he explains “and of these you will get about one fall per 10 rides You’ve got to be a young man to do it — your bones have got to bend instead of break” Francis wanted to practically from time he could The son of a his earliest haphorse dealer include memories hunting py on horseback He left school at 15 and pressed his parents constantly to allow him to go into racing “My father had been a jockey and had got on well but hadn’t hit any of the highlights” Francis explains “And he knew how difficult it is for the ordinary jockey But you see I had no intention of being ordinary” After six years in the Royal Air Force during World War II Francis began racing competitively in 1945 He rode over 350 winners in his career and was the Queen Dick lapsed beneath him” Shortly afterward both f horse and rider retired and p Francis was invited to write his autobiography He was f uncertain about his ability to do so but his wife Mary en- - Jj couraged him to have a go at I it He wrote the book and soon after it appeared the 1 London Daily Express hired 1 him as its racing columnist In 1 1962 he first tried his hand at f I a novel Francis says he depends I greatly on Mary to whom he’s been married for 33 f years to “put right” his spell- - f I ing and grammar to advise him “endlessly” on his plots ’ and to share in the ex- haustive research which they carry out all over the world For a novel involving the of horses illegal took Francis flying I Mary lessons got her pilot’s license and eventually the Francis family started its own air charter business Francis and his wife live most of the year in Blew-bur- y England where he keeps horses and races whenever possible Although he says he misses the immediate acclaim that a good jockey can get in the winner’s circle he is mindful of the longer-lastinsatisfaction that writing a fine book can bring Francis sums up his com- parison of racing and writing this way: “I rode every horse to win and I want the whole world to read what I’ve written because I’ve put everything I’ve got behind ng j g ! j t it" |