Written by Robbie Dewar.
FRIDAY night’s Alabar Bracelet winner Artemis Belle could be headed for the spelling paddock following her win in the $35,000 feature.
“I don’t want to race her against the colts and she looks like as if she will develop into a nice 3yo,” trainer/driver Aldo Cortopassi said after the win.
Artemis Belle has had a great start to her career winning four of her six starts to date for $111,199 in stakes.
“Barrier 1 helped, but she treated them with contempt tonight, there is race for 2yo fillies in a couple of weeks time but I’ll have to sit down and look at it. She may end up in the paddock,” Cortopassi said.
Winning the start, Artemis Belle dictated terms and was able to run home her last 800 metres in a quick 58.5 seconds on a rain affected track.
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DRIVING home from the trots on Friday night I was trying to put into perspective the performance of Has The Answers after he won the Sutter Hanover 1.50.2 Stakes (1730 metres).
I mean let’s look at the win in its rawest state.
The Tony Svilicich trained 7yo ran a mile rate of 1.54.0 from barrier 8 on a track that clearly had taken some weather.
It was a time that bettered Our Malabar’s track record of 1.54.2 set on December 11 last year.
Gloucester Park track staff do a sensational job to get the track into the magnificent condition that we race on every meeting, but to still run 1.54.0 was an amazing effort by Has The Answers.
Has The Answers has proved to be an iron horse winning 21 races from 42 starts this season and with still six weeks remaining looks likely to significantly add to that total.
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OPPORTUNITY is a great thing and the decision by Greg Bond and his wife Skye to give Michael George the opportunity to run the home stables whilst they were in the Eastern States campaigning with their team paid handsome dividends on Friday night.
George took two horses to Gloucester Park on Friday night for the Bond stable and came home with two winners.
Ohokas Bondy, having his second start in WA since coming from New Zealand, smashed his rivals when he easily won the Art Major 1.48.8 2YO Stakes (2130 metres) .
George had no hesitation in taking the son of Asabella to the front and from there just dictated terms before George opened the after burners and Ohokas Bondy raced away to record an outstanding five length win. Just six days earlier in his first start in WA, Ohokas Bondy blitzed his rivals to win by seven and a half lengths at Narrogin.
Next weeks clash with Go West U Terror in the $125,000 Golden Slipper Stakes should be a beauty.
Mister Odds On won his first race since winning the August Cup last season, when he sat outside the leader Smooth Shift and raced away in the straight to win the Santanna Blue Chip 1.51.6 Pace ( 2503 metres) by a length and a half at odds of $22.00.
Friday nights win took the 5yo’s stake earnings to past the $200,000 mark.
Unfortunately the success on the West Coast couldn’t transplant to the East Coast.
Millwood Meg gallopped 100 metres after the start of the $75,000 Nevele R Stud Australian Oaks (2240 metres) at Melton losing all possible hope.
Speaking from Melbourne Bond was at a loss to explain what happened.
“She didn’t seem to race rough, she may have baulked at a shadow, that’s the only thing we can put it down to,” Bond said.
Meanwhile in Sydney Ima Rocket Star qualified for the $200,000 Chariots Of Fire final on July 30 when finishing a half length second behind Make Mine Cullen in the Hondo Gratton Sprint – a qualifying race for the Chariots Of Fire.
Money Twitch who is trained by Skye finished eighth and will go around again in this coming Friday nights Paleface Adios Sprint in an endeavour to qualify.
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COPPER Beach Girl put up a strong performance on Friday night to win the Ponder 1.48.2 stakes (1730 metres).
Trained by her owner and breeder Mike Howie, Copper Beach Girl was taken on for the early lead and held off the challenges. So emphatic was the early burn that the first 400 metre sectional was carved out in a very quick 28.8 secs before driver Matthew White was able to give the Red Hot Copper five-year-old a “breather” of sorts with the second sectional being run in 30.1 sec and then had to hold off the late charge of Truckers Ruffnut to win by a metre.
Howie bred not only Copper Beach Girls mother but also her grand dam in Copper Strike.
Copper Strike won a Sires Produce Final and Pink Diamond Classic as a two-year-old.
Friday nights win took Copper Beach Girl’s stake earnings to just under $90,000 and one more city class win breaks the magical $100,000 stake earning barrier.
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IS it just me or have I noticed a changing trend in driving tactics at Gloucester Park?
Over the past three to four months I have noticed a preponderance of drivers to take off on leaders at the 400 metre point, open up a substantial lead and either win by large margins or fall in.
Doesn’t matter which it makes for spectacular pacing .
Cases in point on Friday night were Ohokas Bondy and Has The Answers, and Xupan Three and Ice Ice on Saturday night scored by adopting similar tactics.
During the week I attended the funeral of Phil Coulson who used the “death” seat as a tactical weapon, Justin Warwick changed the thinking again in the nineties by going three wide 1200 metres from home and out toughing his rivals.
Could this be just another part of the evolution of tactics that someone has found to gain an edge.
One thing that is common to all of the tactics mentioned is that the horses are superfit to pull of such daring deeds.
The industry benefits as a result.
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DENNIS Morton likes to keep a low profile.
On Friday night he trained his first city winner in 55 years of being involved in the industry when Dellas Jack led throughout to win the Real Desire TT1.48.4 Stakes (1730 metres).
Driven by Shane Butterworth, Dellas Jack was able to hold off the late charge of Nesian Mystic to win by a head.
Morton who is a horse educator in the Collie region came closest to a city success when Copper Dream finished third behind Alberts Fantasy in the 2006 Sales Classic Final behind Alberts Fantasy.
“He was the fastest of the horses I trained but this bloke (Dellas Jack) goes alright too.”
Morton is most proud that he broke in the great Norms Daughter.
“She was born on my property,” Morton said.
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Long priced winners have become more common place in WA harness racing in recent times, just look at the $123.00 about Edna Anne in the Three-Year-Old Sires Fillies Final and Jessie Power winning at $79.90 in the 2YO Fillies Sires Final on the same night.
On Friday night at Gloucester Park four of the last seven winners were at odds of $15.00 or more
Scram Jet won at $15.80, Copper Beach Girl ($32.90), Mister Odds On ($22.00) and Dial A Taxi ($24.60). Even the Quaddie on Friday represented value if you could find it by paying $17,718.20 and that’s with a $1.20 chance Has The Answers winning the final leg.
During the week no one gave Bronski Bomber a chance as he won at SuperTab odds of $113.90 at Northam.
Trained by Wagin preparer Barry Ainsworth the eight-year-old was ably handled by Ainsworth’s son Ashley to win over 2560 metres.
Settling one out one back, Bronski Bomber was taken three wide with 450 metres to travel and went onto win by just over two lengths.
A son of Go Bush Bronski Bomber last won at Wagin back in May 2007, some 25 starts previous.
The Northam win was at only his second start since a 14 month layoff.
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MARK Reed’s reputation as a horseman gained further impetus on Saturday when he trained the winner of the main race at Belmont Park gallops with Peach Tree in the $75,000 Belmont Classic (2200 metres) and then two and a half hours later was at Gloucester Park driving Waiwera South to victory for his father Mike.
Already the trainer of a Kalgoorlie Cup winner in Gondorff and Bunbury Cup winner in Whipsaw in the gallops, Reed has tasted success on the main harness racing stage with Another Party (AG Hunter Cup) and Tricky Vic (Victorian and West Australian Derbies) amongst others and his intuitive driving has been lauded by many.
Despite his success with the thoroughbreds let’s hope we still can be regaled by his driving skills at Gloucester Parl for a long time to come.
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JULY 30 could shape as a big night for WA harness racing , not only will the West have a very live chance in the $200,000 Chariots Of Fire at Sydney’s Menangle Park with Ima Rocket Star and possibly Money Twitch but on the same night we will see the running of the $35,000 john Higgins Memorial Final.
During the past week we have seen the heats conducted with Motu Treasure winning at Narrogin, Bombora Lombo being successfull at Northam and Lombo Navigator triumphing at Bunbury.
The race should be a ripper.
Speaking of which I can’t recall a Winter when we’ve such a lot of racing to look forward to on as weekly basis!
In the past we’ve had what you could call “lull” periods but not this year. Every week there seems to be something to look forward to on the track.
There is nothing wrong with our product here in WA.
