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Even with after sustaining such a massive injury he went on to become one of the most consistent of Aintree runners. He started running in the National in 1985, and his record in the race was first, fourth twice, second and tenth. Sired by Gala Performance out of Astryl (who had been sired by Vulgan), West Tip shared the same sire as Greasepaint who came second in both the 1983 and 1984 Nationals, and Monksfield who was a Champion Hurdle winner. West Tip was bought as a foal for 850 guineas, and then sold on at the same sales at Ballsbridge as a yearling for 5,400 guineas. As of yet he was still unraced under Rules but was bought when he was five by Worcestershire trainer Michael Oliver for £1,700 on behalf of Peter Luff. All that Luff knew of him at the time of purchase was his name, which in fact was a misspelling of West Tipp, an abbreviation of West Tipperary. In 1982, before he had even made a racing debut, and just after his arrival at Oliver's stables, the accident occurred when West Tip was at the tail of the string, spinning around when overtaken by a lorry. A hook sticking from the lorry tore into his hindquarters leaving a deep one foot long triangular hole. Upon seeing the wound the first thought was to put him down but he had a miraculous recovery following a three hour operation and nusrsing back to care. His racecourse debut eventually occurred in December 1982 where he won a two-mile novices chase, which he quickly succeeded with another win at Chepstow. He kept proving himself to be extremely consistent finishing in the first four in his next seven races and coming third in the SunAlliance Novice's Hurdle at Cheltenham.
The 1983-84 season saw him being put over fences and it was obvious that he was a natural from the outset. Richard Dunwoody was as up and coming as he was and rode him to four consecutive victories the following season including two prolific races at Sandown and the Cheltenham Festival. His National debut saw him as 13-2 joint favourite with Greasepaint. While West Tip jumped and generally performed well, it was an unpredictable race, and he fell after being hit from behind by a loose horse. Dunwoody wasn't disappointed and stated afterwards: 'We'll be back next year and win'. A truer word was never spoken. Trainer Oliver had West Tip peaking at just the right time the following season with a win in a handicap chase at Newbury just two weeks before the National, and despite being raised ten pounds in the weights he went off as 15-2 second favourite.
West Tip held a prominent position on the second circuit, and went into sixth place at the second Becher's. Young Driver was in the lead by a length until the very last but couldn't hold up to Dunwoody's well-timed last minute attack, going on to win by two lengths. West Tip proved to be a rare example of a horse winning the national after being a casualty of the same race the previous year.
For more on amazing Grand National horses and stories about the Aintree race check out our blog. You'll find great guides to picking winners and learn what a magical event the English Grand National is.
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