The French tank

Some horses just make everybody, their owners, trainer, driver as well as the racing fans, go through the full spectrum of emotions. Few horses have done this more so than the French tank, Rapide Lebel. The gelding would occasionally trot away like his opponents weren’t there and was simply unstoppable at his best. However, on occasion the trotting public got to see the nutty side of the star.

Rapide Lebel was no childhood star. Sold at the yearling auction in Caen by the breeders Alain Lerévérend, and Yves Bellec, the future star only cost €3,800. Those who saw him said he was nothing special to look at, not too big and his hock was described as not perfect. He would grow into his body though, often being called the “French tank”, a very solidly built horse with an extremely powerful stride. He qualified early in June as a two-year-old but did not make his debut until February the following year. Owned by Jean-Pierre and Cedric Megissier, Rapide Lebel did not win until his 9th start. He made breaks and was very inconsistent – and not always well-adjusted around other horses – but did show ability.

Winning a race in the spring of 2009 as a 4-year-old, one of those that saw potential was Alexandre Provost who figured that this was a horse who could easily make a couple of hundred thousands if he could just get the right person to train him and make him blossom. With his friend Andre Battal he bought the gelding for €120,000 that summer – a sizeable sum in itself and at that time Rapide only had career earnings of slightly less than €50,000.

A horse with many quirks

The gelding was immediately moved to Sebastien Guarato. He quickly understood he had a huge talent on his hands, but also realized it was a very difficult horse. It wouldn’t be long, however, until Guarato declared that he had never trained a horse of this caliber, and new driver Eric Raffin also stated that he had never driven such a good horse. But despite his fantastic abilities it was also very clear that not everything was as it should be upstairs. He was not always too controllable – not mean in any way but definitely on the nutty and unpredictable side. Described by Guarato as too nervous to be trained every day, his trainer quickly got used to Rapide Lebel clearly telling and showing him when he was not happy with things. Anybody who has seen Rapide Lebel in a slow jog in the warm up will have seen him tossing his head, jumping around and being a difficult case. Rapide Lebel is the happiest when he is allowed to run at full speed and going slow is certainly not to his liking. Guarato once remarked in an interview with ATG that “the faster he goes, the less stupidity he is likely to come up with.” The gelding was not suited to a regular box, nor did he function too well with too many other horses close, so instead he was given a pasture of two hectares at Guarato’s farm – all to himself.

But for all his quirks, Guarato seemingly got the best out of him and Rapide Lebel won his first 5 races for his new trainer – quickly established himself as one of the best aged horses in France. But being a gelding he is not eligible to the biggest races in France as geldings are not allowed in any of the group 1 races such as Prix d’Amerique, so Rapide Lebel would often try his luck abroad. The horse became one of the most well-travelled French trotters, and wound up winning races in Belgium, Sweden and Finland over the years.

Impressive performances

2010, his 5-year-old season, saw 8 wins and 2 second places in 11 starts, the only failure coming in Finland where a trip to the Finlandia Ajo produced a sixth-place finish: Rapide Lebel had taken the lead but set too high a pace and for once he faded slightly in the final stretch. Back in France he continued his winning ways and in his final race of the year, the final of the Grand National du Trot, he won impressively in 1.14,7 over 2850 meters (2:00.1 over slightly longer than 1 3/4 miles) on a slow and sloppy track. The GNT win was only a forewarning of what was to come. In his first race of 2011, he won the Prix du Luxembourg in 1.10,8 (1:54 over 1 5/16 mile), a new race record.

A harsh Elitlopp loss

After a few more wins in the spring, the gelding got a deserved invite to the Elitlopp. Rapide Lebel’s performance in the 2011 Elitlopp was nothing but spectacular. In the elimination heat, Brioni was forced into a murderous first half by Define the World and Paul MacDonell, while Rapide Lebel took it easy from the start and sat last with a lap to go. After going third over in the last turn he showed true class, winning comfortably in 1.10,3 (1:53.1f).

In the final disaster struck. Rapide Lebel broke stride briefly in the beginning, struggled with his gait and had to be guided carefully for a few seconds. Although he found his footing and was back to normal fairly soon, Rapide Lebel still found himself at the back of the field with a lap to go. But this time the pace had been much more manageable and when Raffin attacked at the half the others had a lot more to drive with. Staying three wide the last half, Rapide Lebel really had to work for it but eventually wore the rest down of the field – that is, all but Brioni, who raced off cover and attacked with 1/8 to go and then barely, just barely, managed to beat Rapide Lebel by less than an inch… But the way Rapide Lebel did everything himself, both in the elimination and final, impressed everybody.

Even more impressive

Being inconsistent means highs and lows. One high came in July in the St Michel Ajo, at the very fast Mikkeli track in Finland, where he trotted 1.09,4 (1:51.4f) in extremely impressive fashion. He occasionally struggled gait-wise from the start, he did the same in Oslo and Forus, for example, and lost valuable ground at both times. Back in Sweden for the Åby Stora Pris later that year he got his revenge, winning both heats in impressive fashion. The win in the first heat was particularly impressive, being three-wide in the first turn and then parked outside the rest of the race, his 1.09,9 (1:52.2f) win had the word “superiority” written all over it. Going over to Canada to contest the Breeders Crown, the French tank narrowly lost to San Pail despite being parked outside yet again.

At 5 and 6, Rapide Lebel was generally very impressive and although there were some immature displays, the gelding seemed to have matured. True, he was still a bit uncontrollable at time, he could still go offstride for no apparent reason, especially very early in the races, but he gave the impression of a juvenile delinquent seemingly maturing into a generally well-behaved gentleman with just a few odd quirks. Appearances were deceiving, though: he hadn’t matured one iota.

Nuttiness on display

2012 would really showcase highs and lows – and yes, the nutty – but more than anything inconsistencies. Heaven and hell were never far apart. In his first race after the Breeders Crown, the Prix de l’Union Europeenne, at Vincennes on May 3, 2012, Rapide Lebel took off in his own tempo – and there was nothing leisurely about it! Increasing the lead with every step, in the end he won by around 25 lengths in the end at the end of the 3000 meter (1 7/8 miles) race.

Everything seemed perfect but a few frustrating months were to follow. A trip to Finlandia Ajo ended in failure and a start in Caen the following month also produced nothing. Something was clearly wrong, but Solvalla still took the chance and invited him to the Elitlopp. The Ginger Somolli-son was not at the level he had been one year prior, but managed to get to the final where he finished fifth. The next start in Copenhagen ended with a disqualification after he broke stride three times.

Three weeks later, on June 30, he was back to his best – and his worst – and would put in another memorable performance in Prix de Washington at Enghien. Going to the lead right away, he again set off in at a crazy tempo, the first kilometer in a 1.07,7 tempo (5/8 mile in a 1:49 rate). But just as people though all was good again, he started showing yet another nutty side of himself. The gelding would start to drift out in the final stretch. Not a little, but a lot. The track at Enghien is wide and that a horse moves a little wide down the final stretch is no concern, but even the commentator started to worry when Rapide Lebel moved right … and right … and right … and getting closer and closer to the grass on the other side! But Raffin managed to get him to stay on the track, recording an impressive 1:09.4 (1:51.4) win – a new track and race record.

The gelding would continue with this nonsense for the rest of his career… Guarato experimented with equipment and other things, but had mixed success and could not rid him of this behavior. Even though there was worry about the superstar’s new habit of drifting out, especially since the veterinarians didn’t find any problems, Guarato and Raffin was even more happy that the seven-year-old was again a winner. “See, Rapide Lebel is not dead”, Raffin said after the race.

Not that long after he finally got his meeting with Ready Cash in the Grand Prix de Wallonie at Mons, Belgium. While Rapide Lebel took the lead and held a high tempo, Ready Cash just sat quietly behind him and when Rapide Lebel started drifting out Ready Cash just ran by him on the inside for an impressive 1.10,3 win over 2300 meters (1:53.1 over 1 7/16 mile) on a track that is nowhere near the fastest. For some of Rapide Lebel’s fans it was a disappointment, but the tank could hold his head high: he had done all the work and allowed the track and race records to be shattered. In comparison, the previous race record belonged to Ilaria Jet who had won in 1.12,8 (1:57.1) three years prior.

A monte star

Eventually it was decided to try Rapide Lebel in the monte discipline. and after a two month absence the gelding returned to the track on October 31 in the Prix Reynolds. He still drifted to the right in the final stretch but still won comfortably, equaling the French monte record of 1.10,8 over a distance of 2175 meters (1:54 over roughly 1 1/3 mile). Passing the mile marker in slightly less than 1.09,7 (1:52.1), had the race been a mile long it would have been the fastest monte race ever, the monte world record at the time standing at 1.10,0 (1:53.2).

“It’s useless to insist”

In his next race, the Prix Paul Buquet, he finished third, still drifted to the right in the final turn but something was clearly wrong this time. When returning to the stables after the race, Rapide Lebel was clearly lame. Hurrying him to the clinic at Grosbois, they found a fracture in his right front hoof. What should have been a three month recovery time got stretched to 15 months because of a few setbacks and misfortunes, and Rapide Lebel did not return until March 2014 when he won in Mons, Belgium. But three more starts did not result in anything and after a sixth place on Enghien on Aug 8 it was no secret anymore: Rapide Lebel would be retired. In his three lasts starts he had not shown his brilliance nor any fighting spirit. Guarato and Raffin both saw the writing on the wall. According to Sébastien Guarato, “It is useless to insist. He does not want to”, while Raffin summed it up with the simple truth “we must know when to stop.”

Today Rapide Lebel is just enjoying his well deserved retirement with one of his breeders back in Turqueville. Though he’s gone from the track, he is by no means forgotten. When he was shown off at the in Cherbourg in 2018, a huge crowd turned out to see their old favorite again. The French tank mesmerized the public, he made people shake their head in disbelief and frustration. He was brilliant, he was odd, he was amazing, he was downright fruity, all in a fantastic mix. He was simply Rapide Lebel.

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