Colin McKenna’s wife Janice reveals emotional final journey for her racing giant husband

Colin McKenna’s wife Janice has spoken for the first time about her legendary husband’s passing after taking him on a “spectacular” final journey.

Janice McKenna with her late husband, racing giant Col McKenna (left) and trainer Ciaron Maher with Colin McKenna after winning the 2016 Caulfield Cup with Jameka, and McKenna (top right).

The sun was shining on the crops, the cows were mooing and the racehorses were standing proudly as if giving an invisible salute.

A day after Col McKenna’s tragic death, he was taken on his final journey through his fields of dreams.

And there was even a detour past his favourite seafood restaurant where waiters used to pencil in his cherished dish of oysters, prawns, crayfish and scampi even before he mentioned it.

There was also a five-minute stop outside the hotel he owned and loved, the Union Station in country Woolsthorpe.

Janice McKenna, the wife of popular and respected racehorse owner and breeder Col who counted Caulfield Cups among his many racing triumphs, has told Racenet about her beloved husband’s final journey on Monday.

Col McKenna, 74, died on Sunday after being diagnosed with a brain tumour just two weeks earlier.

“I promised Colin before he died that I would get him home, the one thing I kept on saying to him was, ‘Darling, I will get you home to the farm’,” Janice McKenna told Racenet.

“Unfortunately, that wasn’t to be because from Sunday week ago, it was just all downhill.

“In his final weeks, I never left his side in hospital, I slept there with him.

“After he passed away, the hearse came and met us in Melbourne with a beautiful coffin with his name on it, he wasn’t coming home in a van.

“We made sure we went past Rubira’s – his favourite meal there was the oysters, the prawns, the crayfish, scampi – that was most Friday afternoons with his mates before a big race day.

“Then family and his farm managers met us in Mortlake and we gave Colin the greatest procession of his life.

Janice McKenna with her late husband, racing giant Col McKenna. Picture: Supplied by Janice McKenna.

“We took him on a tour of all the properties he used to work on when he was a teenager, and now he owns them all.

“We drove him through every one of his farms, then we arrived at home at the Union Station Homestead.

“The sun was shining on the crops, the cows were mooing, and we finished off with his last drive around all his precious horses.

“Standing there was Moudre, he was the first horse that Ciaron Maher took to Melbourne for us.

“There were lots of tears in the car, but it was also very uplifting for us as a family to be able to take him home.

“His final journey was just spectacular.”

• ‘I’ll remember him forever’: Kah pays tribute to Colin McKenna

There has been an outpouring of grief in the racing industry since McKenna’s passing and that has been profoundly felt by Janice and the McKenna family.

In times of tragedy and grief, the racing industry unites like few others.

Janice McKenna says she has over 1500 text messages that she hasn’t yet been able to return and countless missed phone calls.

She is grateful for everyone’s support in the worst days of her life, when her husband of a decade went from diagnosis to death in a shocking two weeks.

Janice McKenna says there were growing signs on a recent family holiday to tropical Port Douglas, in far north Queensland, that there was something not right with Colin’s health.

Initially, doctors had suspected the well-known owner and Warrnambool businessman may be suffering depression and he started to take medication for the condition.

Col McKenna with Gai Waterhouse at Royal Ascot. Picture: Supplied by Janice McKenna

Later, the family feared he could have the early stages of dementia or Parkinson’s disease.

After returning to Victoria from Port Douglas, scans instead revealed a large brain tumour.

In a small mercy, McKenna was not in any pain in the final weeks of his life and even got to watch the horse he part-owned, Duke De Sessa, win the Caulfield Cup from his hospital bed.

“Colin was very tired and we thought it may be the early stages of dementia or perhaps Parkinson’s disease,” Janice McKenna said.

“He was getting a bit confused at times and we had to stop him from driving.

“Then, when he had the holiday in Port Douglas with all the family, we knew something was really not right.

“We got back home and saw a specialist in Melbourne who told Colin that he didn’t think it was depression, there was something else going on.

“He had a brain scan and it showed a large and aggressive brain tumour, when they explained where the tumour was located, I knew that was not good.

“He watched the Caulfield Cup on TV and they brought the trophy up to him after Duke De Sessa won.

“Then on the Sunday evening he started going downhill and by the Monday morning he had gone downhill further.

“He died two weeks after we found out he had this shocking tumour.”

McKenna, who bred and raced multiple Group 1 winners in his green and blue horizontal stripe silks, will be laid to rest next week on the Friday before the final day of the Melbourne Cup carnival.

McKenna (centre) with star jockey Jamie Kah and Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Danny O'Brien. Picture: Supplied by Janice McKenna

In Colin’s final hours, Janice McKenna said she and family members were able to say their final goodbyes.

In hindsight, she believes the short-time frame between the diagnosis of the tumour and death was a blessing.

“I view it as a blessing that he passed so quickly,” she said.

“If they had found it 12 months ago, who knows what that 12 months would have been like.

“Colin was able to mask this condition by how his demeanour was, he would just get out of bed and go to work.

“He would sometimes say to me: “I’m just tired, lovey.”

“He would have two or three really good days and then one bad day and then a good day and then perhaps three bad days.”

One of Colin McKenna’s final interviews before he was diagnosed was with Racenet, saying he believed that racehorse Another Wil was so good that he could potentially be a Cox Plate contender.

Another Wil is named after one of McKenna’s 12 grandkids – 14-year-old Wil John.

The late Col McKenna and his 14-year-old grandson Wil John, who freak horse Another Wil is named after. Picture: Courtesy the McKenna family

Another Wil never made it to the Cox Plate but will race at Flemington on Saturday where emotions will be high.

“I won’t go to the races, although I am sure some family and some of Colin’s friends who are in (the ownership) of Another Wil will go,” McKenna said.

“I am sure that Colin would say that Jameka winning the (2016) Caulfield Cup was his best moment in racing.

“Regina Coeli winning the Grand Annual Steeplechase and Wil John winning the Jericho Cup were also great moments.

“Merchant Navy winning at Royal Ascot was also very special, it was a complete fairytale.

“Colin was drunk for a week after that.”

Originally published as Colin McKenna’s wife Janice reveals emotional final journey for her racing giant husband