Henry’s Jackpot For Life! | Sporting Post
They say promises and cake bases are made to be broken.
But a passionate horse racer, who was visiting his former home of Australia at Hollywoodbets Durban July on Saturday, shared a story about how he won a big jackpot and ended up keeping his word by getting the winning numbers tattooed on his backside.
At the age of 67, the exuberant Kevin “Henry” Kroeger has come a long way since his days at Alexandra High School in Pietermaritzburg.
As a student at the University of Pietermaritzburg, his first job was as a draftsman for a bookmaker in a time without computers.
He was also a “passionate and dedicated” bartender in the ownership and coaching division of Hollywoodbets Scottsville.
Kevin “Henry” Kroeger – he has fun and loves the game
With that glittering background, Kevin was probably ready for a career in horse racing, but his wits won out and he ended up in what we call a textbook career – the far more mundane pursuit of educational publishing.
Kevin told him Sporting contribution that he emigrated to Down Under about 22 years ago and now lives in Perth.
He owns interests in a few racehorses, but the origins of his cheeky tattoo go back three years to the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Race Round, independently dubbed Australia’s biggest party.
The blurb for “one of the largest, most colorful and successful racing carnivals ever staged in Australia” states that it is steeped in history and has been the scene of some of the most incredible events both on and off the circuit and for many people it has left memories that last a lifetime.
Kevin “Henry” Kroeger took that literally, and that’s when the trouble started.
Kalgoorlie – Scene of tattoo history
He and four friends hit the last leg of the jackpot – they call it “Quaddie”. He absorbs the story.
“We got a bit inked and enjoyed the day as one always does in Kalgoorlie. We had five horses in the final leg and the sixth horse was a 33-1 shot called Stop The Friar. He was clearly our best result but hopeless in every way. I said if this wins I’ll get the jackpot winning numbers tattooed on my butt. The guys rejoiced in the big but unlikely victory and all agreed to join the pledge. Guess what? Stop The Friar charged out and got up to secure the win down the line. We won A$30,000! The boys loved it and we partied late into the night.”
Kevin immediately set out to get his first tattoo at the age of 64, and the amazed artist who was probably used to spending days creating intricate images of spiders, flowers and the insignia of Marilyn Manson and Guns ‘n Drawing for dedicated fans, Roses seemed amused when he was instructed to emboss the Kalgoorlie Jackpot “9-1-2-6” on the old man’s left cheek.
The dream jackpot!
“The other guys were all younger than me and I felt I had to show them the old-school values we were taught and keep my promise. Unfortunately, the rest of the winning community has yet to get tattooed. I didn’t tell my wife about my new seal of honor, and when she saw it three weeks later, she rolled her eyes and muttered worlds like “childish, incredible, etc.” We’ve been married a long time and she’s seen the funny side of it ever since!”
When asked where the pseudonym ‘Henry’ came from, he says it was a silly name given to him years ago when friends introduced him to people at a racetrack.
“I’ve always felt comfortable with my Christian name Kevin – but my friends thought ‘Henry’ was very funny. It has become my name for the circuit. It will probably be on my tombstone one day!”
Kevin says they thoroughly enjoyed the Hollywoodbets Durban July Day and shaking hands with major race winner Kabelo Matsunyane was a moment he would cherish forever.
A fantastic day! (Image – Candies Lenferna)
“Thanks to Owen Heffer and his team. They know how to provide first class hospitality and we were welcomed like royalty. We spend a couple of weeks here doing touristy things like wildlife sanctuaries and things like that. South Africa is still a beautiful country and your racing spirit at KZN is incredible!” he added.
And we suggested that the strength of the Australian dollar must make it a cheap holiday?
“For us, food and drink is cheap, cheap, cheap. Can you imagine what we will look like when we get home?”
As a farewell, we had to ask Kevin or Henry what would happen if he won a big Pick 6 in the future.
“I’m getting older, you know? I really need to think about where I want to get those six numbers tattooed!”