Apache Cat – after winning the Australia Stakes – 14 Feb 09
What a shemozzle last Saturday’s races proved to be, especially the Rupert Clark Stakes, where top fancy Gold Salute reared in the stalls as the gates opened and failed to start at all. He, as well as Estee (who was in the neighbouring stall), was designated a non-starter.
However, the Underwood Stakes was run without mishap and resulted in a win for Heart of Dreams at last, relegating Whobegotyou into second place with Predatory Pricer filling third spot. Typhoon Tracy took a leading position, after jumping from her wide barrier, but faded in her run to finish eighth, being swamped by the fast finishing back markers. It is obvious she is not suited to running more than a mile, so the Cox Plate is off her agenda. Her trainer Peter Moody has indicated that she will be freshened and set for mare’s races later in the season.
The Guineas Prelude for colts was won by yet another of Lonhro’s sons, Demerit. He also is a descendant of Foolish Pleasure through his dam side. And in Sydney it was good to see More Joyous back in winning circles. She won the Tea Rose Stakes in a very convincing fashion. More Joyous of course is related to the very classy Tuesday Joy who has now been retired.
Anyway, this coming weekend promises more excitement for the racing fan, with the Group One Manikato Stakes on the program for next Friday night. It has a top field of sprinters and sees my old favourite Apache Cat stepping out for the first time this spring. The Cat loves Moonee Valley and if it is wet, is sure to feature in the finish. Mic Mac, despite his good showing in the Dato Tan Chin Nam stakes over 1600 metres, will be kept for shorter races from now on. He is to run in the Manikato Stakes, as is Nicconi. Also in the field is last Saturday’s long shot winner Turffontein, and Lucky Secret (a Moonee Valley specialist), as well as Sydney sprinters Danleigh and Swift Alliance.
The rest of the races listed for Friday also contain a number of interesting runners, most notably Jolie’s Shinju in the JRA Cup, which is run over the Cox Plate distance - 2080 metres. She has drawn the inside barrier so will probably take the lead, as apparently is her wont.
On Saturday, AFL Grand Final Day here in Melbourne, the horseracing focus shifts to Sydney for the Group One George Main Stakes (1600 metres). It has an excellent field that includes Black Piranha, Racing to Win, Vision & Power, Mentality and Triple Honour.
I’ll be watching the Group Two Stan Fox Stakes too, to see Denman in action once again in a very small field which he should account for easily, his only threat seemingly being the well performed More Than Great.
3 comments:
poor Gold Salute - foaled on 23rd Sept he is a Virgo, and the horoscope at mysticmedusa.com says Virgos hate being caged and this week they will break free.
She has illustrated this information with a photo of a model in a cage. not a horse.
I searched for Austn Stud book to check the foaling date and got my own 2005 comment at Greet The Judge blospot -
"At 2:39 PM, Brownie said...
I know how to pick em: go to the Australian Thoroughbred Stud Book and look up horses actual foaling date, then go to Mystic Medusa.com and look up horseys horoscope. Bet the ranch according to what you discover. I logged my predictions at our Governor General's Sanity Clause blog last November and they proved correct for the melbourne Cup.
Mystic is a lovely person. She said to me 'But aren't all horses born on August 1st?. I told her they just say that so their astrological sign will be LEO - manes? and tails n stuff?.
bwah ha.
Hopefully, this link to Mystic Medusa will take you to the cage thing.
Gold Salute managed to start properly on Sunday and won his race, much to the relief of his connections.
I have an account with Australian Stud Book, so can look up all the birthdays. I don't know how much an astrological sign can relate to a horse's ability or its chances on a particular day.
I do however, cast a horoscope on Melbourne Cup day to see if can point to a winner. I remember the year Brew won, Cancer was very prominent in the horoscope. Brew is a word associated with Cancer. Coincidence?
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