Seeing Stars

Mystic Journey winning the 2019 All Star Mile

This coming Saturday I’m looking forward to attending the All Star Mile meeting at Flemington, and hopefully getting better photos than I  managed on Super Saturday last weekend.

Imagine my horror when I viewed my photos last week and discovered that most, if not all of them, were blurred and unfixable, but such was the case.

Roch ‘n’ Horse – 100/1  shot winner of the 2022 Newmarket Handicap

After much thought on what may have caused this problem, I finally realised that the Auto Focus button on my lens was turned off. I must admit I was puzzled when looking at the settings on my camera that the Auto Focus options were greyed out and inaccessible, but thought little of it at the time as my photos on the camera screen seemed to be OK.

Anyway it was a waste of a sunny day and a salutary lesson I won’t forget in a hurry.

Goodness knows how the Auto Focus button came to be turned off as I always leave those buttons well alone. An inadvertent slip of the finger perhaps resulted in this grievous error.

This year will be the fourth running of the All Star Mile, and I’ve attended all but one – in 2020 Covid restrictions prevented public attendance at the event.

Last year the All Star Mile was run at Moonee Valley and it was a miserable rainy day, so hopefully the weather will be kinder this year; forecast to be partly cloudy and a dry 26°C.

A field of 15 runners will be contesting the race, headed by star performers Zaaki and Inspirational Girl who clashed in the Blamey Stakes recently with Inspirational Girl proving the winner on that occasion. Also in the mix are Group 1 winners such as I’m Thunderstruck , Tofane and Sierra Sue, as well several three year olds – Captivant, Lightsaber and Pinstriped.  Alas Hitotsu’s connections did not accept his  wild card nomination.

The rest of the card is bit ho hum, but at least will afford an opportunity for photography practice.

I’m pleased to see that the All Star Mile will be run mid afternoon at 3.40 pm, so it won’t be a terribly long day trackside.

It’s Golden Slipper Day at Rosehill this Saturday, so it will break up the afternoon pleasantly watching the Sydney racing action on the big screen.

Stayin’ Alive

Bingo keeping watch on the front veranda

As years go, 2020 has turned into an annus horribilius. We’ve had drought, fires, floods and now pestilence- apocalypse now!

It’s hard to believe that we are now living through a Science Fiction dystopia, though I can’t recall that in any of the SF dystopic novels I’ve read, toilet paper (the lack thereof)  becoming such a big issue as it is in these crazy days.

Being retired there’s no problem maintaining a social distance as I’m not obliged to get up every morning and go to work and mingle with the general populace. I’ve hardly stirred from home for weeks, my only outings have been to the Victoria Market on Thursdays and going to the Super Market every so often for supplies.

Two concerts I was to attend in March have been postponed or cancelled, and forget heading off to the Museum and National Gallery for an art or cultural fix, they’re closed. That also goes for Saturday afternoons at the track.

I was disappointed that fans were banned from attending  the All Star Mile meeting at Caulfield last weekend, but would have felt apprehensive about attending anyway. Alligator Blood ended up unplaced and Western Australian gallopers Regal Power and Superstorm ran the quinella. Melody Belle ran third.

Being in the age group most vulnerable to infection by Covid19, I feel paranoid travelling on public transport, and have become hyper alert about keeping my distance from other commuters and avoiding contact with surfaces likely to be infected.

By chance I happened to be in Chemist Warehouse earlier this week when some hand sanitiser was put on the shelf. It didn't last long, but I managed to grab two containers, which eased my anxiety when travelling to the market yesterday as I could sanitise my hands on the go.

This time last year I travelled to Sydney to see Winx in her penultimate appearance at the track.  I returned with a nasty cold, so I had no desire to attend the Golden Slipper meeting at Rosehill this year. Even if I did I wouldn’t have got into the racecourse; the ATC has banned public attendance.

Who knows how long the racing industry will be able to keep the races going. Sydney’s big Autumn carnival is just starting, Golden Slipper Day kicking it off tomorrow in fine fashion with five Group 1 races on the program.

2019 Golden Slipper Trophy

The first of these is the Ranvet Stakes, run over 2000 metres. It was won by Avilius last year and he will be aiming to win it again this year. So far this season he has been disappointing, failing to run a place in three starts. Irish horse AddeyBB having his first start in Australia looks a very classy horse considering the quality of opposition he has raced against in the UK and may blitz the local mob.  Verry Elleegant ran a narrow second to Te Akau Shark in the Chipping Norton Stakes recently and is highly fancied to win.

Winx won the past four George Ryder Stakes, so another galloper has an opportunity to win it this year. Top chances are Te Akau Shark, The Bostonian, Alizee and Super Seth.

Shadow Hero, winner of the Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes and more recently the Randwick Guineas, is understandably the favourite for the Rosehill Guineas. His main threats are New Zealander Sherwood Forest, Victorian Derby winner Warning, Prince Fawaz, Chenier and Castelvecchio who was disappointing last start.

The Golden Slipper is always a fascinating race. I was fortunate to witness the last two editions in person. Fillies Estijaab (2018) and Kiamichi (2019) won those. So who will win the richest two year old race this year?

Of the boys, the top picks are Tagaloa (Blue Diamond Stakes winner) Hanseatic (Blue Diamond Stakes runner up) Farnan (Todman Stakes winner) and Prague. Fancied fillies are Away Game, Dame Giselle, Hungry Heart and Minhaaj.

The final Group 1 of the afternoon is the Galaxy, a sprint over 1100 metres, won by Nature Strip last year.  Pierata narrow runner up to Nature Strip last year appears the top chance in this year’s edition. Others worthy of consideration are In Her Time with a great first up record, the in form Savatiano, and Kementari , who was a failure at stud and is back racing after a year’s absence, and gelded to boot.

Tonight at Moonee Valley the final Group 1 of Melbourne’s Autumn racing season, the William Reid Stakes, is scheduled to run at 8.30pm. Mystic Journey, whose Autumn season was stymied by a leg infection. makes her first appearance since the Cox Plate in this race. It’s a bit short for her, but it will be interesting to see how she runs in it.

Newmarket Handicap winner Bivouac is the favourite, but he faces a classy field that includes along with Mystic Journey, Loving Gaby, Gytrash, Exceedance and Pippie.

Even though I will be maintaining a social distance at home (pretty normal for me) there are still things to enjoy, such as the racing on TV.

There are  also books to read – I’m currently rereading Hilary Mantel’s first two Cromwell books, preparatory to reading the last book, The Mirror and the Light which I have acquired in a lovely signed hardcover first edition.

Also I have a backlog of purchased computer games I mean to get through over the next few months, waiting for Covid19 to pass. Above all I hope to still be alive at the end of it.

Sydney & Winx Invincible 32

Winx in full flight after winning the George Ryder Stakes

It has taken some time to settle down and write an account of my venture to Sydney for the Golden Slipper meeting at Rosehill, but various distractions, not mention the cold I managed to bring back from Sydney, have made me disinclined to post.

I’m also discouraged by having to use the clunky Blogger editor for composing posts since Open Live Writer, the nifty software I’ve been using to create blog posts, has not been updated to cope with Google’s new photo application. I can post text from Open Live Writer but not images. I’ve been using Open Live Writer and its predecessor Windows Live Writer since 2006 and it has simply been the best WYSIWYG blog editor around.

Anyway on to Sydney…

There were no transport issues this time, planes leaving pretty much on time, and trains easy to catch from Central Station and running limited express to Rosehill Racecourse and back again.

As I’d arrived on Friday evening I was up early and after breakfasting, I headed out to Rosehill and got there before the first race, so I had time to look around Rosehill in more detail. Looking at the Rosehill racecourse map, I was curious about a building called the Grand Pavilion situated next to the Members Stand beyond the winning post that appeared to have a grassed area in front of it.

So heading off that way I came across the Golden Slipper Trophy…

Golden Slipper Trophy

…and Todman’s statue in a little courtyard, with a wreath of flowers around his neck.

Todman Statue

Though there appeared to be a corporate event in the lower part of the Grand Pavilion, there was access to the lawn at the top end of the straight.  The only people present were track workers who didn’t object to me occupying the space and nobody showed any inclination to turf me out.

It wasn’t a bad spot for taking photographs, as for every race all the horses passed by on their way to the starting gates, and returned to scale the same way after the race. The light was excellent.

The early part of the day was hot, humid and sunny, though it grew overcast later in the day, affording some relief from the sun. The track was a heavy 8 even so.

I tested photography conditions in the first race of the day, the Birthday Card Stakes, a race for fillies and mares over 1200 metres. New Zealand filly Avantage, beat Resin and Star Reflection.

Avantage returns to scale

In between races I sought the shade close the Grand Pavilion ground floor entrance, where there were a few chairs to sit on. I liberated one of the chairs to stand on for the next race, to overcome issues with rails intruding on shots.

Melbourne filly Krone was victorious in race 2, the Darby Munro Stakes. She defeated Wild Planet and race favourite, Classique Legend.

Krone returns to scale

Wild Planet returns to scale

Classique Legend returns to scale

After race 2, I wandered back to the main section of the course to get a bottle of water and also check out the stalls area. Though Winx had not yet arrived at the course there was a large crowd of Winx fans surrounding her stall.

Winx fans surround her stall waiting for her arrival

This was quite a change from last year, where there was hardly anyone in the stalls area.  But as her winning streak grows ever longer, Winx’s popularity has expanded exponentially.

The race meeting was practically a sell out and the grandstands were packed to the rafters.

Crowded Grandstands

Back on the Grand Pavilion lawn, race 3, the Group 3 N E Manion Cup was next to run. For Sydney Cup  bound stayers it’s a race over 2400 metres.

The Lloyd Williams stayer, British import Midterm won from Big Duke and Shraaoh.

Midterm returns to scale

Big Duke returns to scale

Shraaoh returns to scale

One of the good things about being up the Grand Pavilion end of the course was that for 2000 metre races, the starting gates were placed just next to the lawn on a track extension.

As the next race was the Rosehill Guineas (2000 metres), starring The Autumn Sun,  I had an excellent view of the start.

Rosehill Guineas start

The Autumn Sun and Arrogant fought out the finish up the straight, with The Autumn Sun prevailing to win by  a narrow margin. Chapada finished third  2½ lengths behind.

The Autumn Sun & Arrogant still head to head past the finish line

The Autumn Sun returns to scale

Arrogant returns to scale

Chapada returns to scale

Of course I was missing out on the electric atmosphere that infects a racecourse when Winx is running, but knowing the propensity of today’s young racegoers to use their iPhones for photos, I was glad to be out of the scrum on the fence near the mounting yard, which would have been very difficult for decent photos.

Winx in the mounting yard

As ever, I was hoping for the perfect shot, and though I did get some good photos of Winx, the fact that she raced on the widest part of the track meant that a lot of them are head on shots.

Winx on her way to the starting gates

Winx returns to scale

Winx heading back to scale - iPhones at my end of the track

Winx naturally won her 4th successive George Ryder Stakes and 32nd consecutive race by 3½ lengths from Brutal with Dreamforce a further 3 lengths behind in third.

In the Group 1 Ranvet Stakes, Avilius returned to form registering a two length win over He’s Eminent and New Zealand mare Danzdanzdance.

Ranvet Stakes finish

Avilius returns to scale

He's Eminent returning to scale

Danzdanzdance heading back to scale

The feature race of the day was of course the Golden Slipper Stakes and it was next on the program.

The royal blue silks of Godolphin were prominent in the Golden Slipper finish, with Kiamichi, Microphone and Lyre running the trifecta with Bart’s grandson James Cummings training the first two.

Golden Slipper finish just past the post

Kiamichi returning to scale

Microphone returns to scale

Lyre returns to scale

After the Slipper I decided to move back to the main area of the course to be closer to the exit for trains. A lot of people had departed after the Golden Slipper, so it was easy to get a position on the fence near the mounting yard to watch the final Group 1 race of the afternoon.

This was the Galaxy and  Nature Strip started as favourite.  He led for most of the race and looked to have it won as he approached finish line, until challenged by a flying Pierata. It looked like a dead heat between Nature Strip and Pierata, with Nature Strip in the end being declared the winner.

Nature Strip leaves the mounting yard for the track

James McDonald celebrates Nature Strip's narrow victory in the Galaxy

James McDonald commiserates with Tommy Berry on Pierata

As by this time I’d been at Rosehill for five hours, I didn’t stay for the last race or the free Jimmie Barnes concert that was happening afterwards.

On Friday night I watched the running of the Group 1 Willaim Reid Stakes on my iPad and was delighted by Sunlight’s commanding win, where she led from the start to the finish to beat a fast finishing Spright and Ellicazoom by three quarters of a length.

Sydney Bound Again

Winx on her way to winning the 2018 George Ryder Stakes

I’m off to Sydney tomorrow afternoon to attend the super race meeting at Rosehill Racecourse on Saturday where wonder mare Winx will be running her second last race before retirement.

In my past two trips to Sydney I flew up on the Saturday, but this year decided to take the less stressful option of staying an extra night in Sydney to avoid the inevitable flight delays that result in fret and worry about arriving in time to get to the races.

So I can take it easy this year, staying overnight and being pretty well assured of an early arrival at Rosehill Racecourse.

Last year I was astounded by how easy it was to get a good position on the fence to photograph the races. This year I suspect it will be more crowded with Winx fans jostling for position. Anyway I’ll play it as it lays and hope for the perfect spot and good photographs.

As it has rained heavily in Sydney this week, the track is sure to be on the soggy side. This won’t faze Winx – she loves it wet.

There are five Group 1 races on the program and the first to run is the Rosehill Guineas, where I’m looking forward to seeing The Autumn Sun in action again.  He faces 12 rivals, the most threatening being New Zealand colts Madison County, Crown Prosecutor and Surely Sacred.

Winx will be gunning for her 32nd consecutive win in the Group 1 George Ryder Stakes, a race she has won easily three times already.  Six other runners will be vying for second place; the formerly Darren Weir trained Land of Plenty, So Si Bon and colts Ringerdingding and Brutal.

In the Ranvet Stakes Avilius will be out to redeem his reputation after his poor showing in the Australian Cup. Also in the picture are Chris Waller mares Egg Tart, Unforgotten & Shillelagh and classy New Zealand mare Danzdanzdance who has excellent wet form.

The Golden Slipper is a conundrum with no particular stand out performers, the field comprised of six colts and ten fillies. Top colts are Microphone, Yes Yes Yes and Cosmic Force whilst the top filly chances are Blue Diamond Stakes winner Lyre,  recent winners Tenley, Pin Sec, Exhilarates and Kiamichi.

I’m looking forward to seeing Nature Strip again in the final Group 1 of the afternoon, the Galaxy. Can he redeem his reputation after his dismal failure in the Oakleigh Plate?  He’ll have to beat a classy field that includes double Everest winner Redzel who loves the wet.

On Friday night Sunlight will be aiming for another Group 1 win in the William Reid Stakes. At her only other start at Moonee Valley under lights, she ended unplaced for the only time in her career, though had excuses when she missed the jump and was then blocked for running room.  She has drawn the widest barrier this time, but with Shoals and Champagne Cuddles scratched she faces only seven rivals, most of whom she has beaten in the past.

Planes, Trains & Winx

Winx overtakes Happy Clapper on her way to winning the George Ryder Stakes

Unlike the last time I went to Sydney for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, on this occasion the only travel hitch was the plane from Melbourne to Sydney, which took off a hour after the scheduled departure time.

So I got to Sydney around 12.30pm, but everything proceeded smoothly from then on. Stowing my carry on case at a storage facility at Central Station took only a few minutes, so I was on a train to Rosehill by 12.40 pm.

As it’s quite a long trip out to Rosehill, it was fortunate the train was a limited express, and took approximately half an hour to reach Clyde, where you were obliged to change to a train heading to Rosehill. It was not a long wait between trains and I arrived at Rosehill shortly before the running of Race 3, the N E Manion Cup, a Group 3 race for stayers run over 2400 metres. After purchasing racebooks and Golden Slipper pins, I headed trackside and easily found a spot on the fence near the mounting yard to practice photography.

The mounting yard view is limited for general admission patrons, so I concentrated on getting photos of horses leaving the yard and proceeding under the Yellow Rose Arch to the track, and action shots of the races, as the fence is quite low and you can get rail free shots.

 
Alward (who ran second) heading to the track from the mounting yard.

The race was won by the Darren Weir trained Master of Arts, with Alward a narrow second and race leader Peribsen hanging on for third.

Master of Arts leads the field to the finish line

Master of Arts returns to scale

I killed time until the next race by visiting the stalls area, and found Winx there. As usual there was a crowd outside her stall, but nothing like the throngs that surrounded her stall at Moonee Valley on Cox Plate day last year.

Winx in her stall

Nearby was star three year old colt Kementari, a beautiful black son of Lonhro, who is  said to be the spitting image of his famous sire.

Kementari in his stall

The first of the Group 1 races was up next, the Ranvet Stakes, and the Darren Weir trained Gailo Chop was the starting favourite and didn’t disappoint, winning the Ranvet by three lengths from the game Single Gaze, with Prized Icon running third.

 

Gailo Chop streets ahead charging to the finish line

Prized Icon (red silks) and Single Gaze neck and neck in pursuit of Gailo Chop

Gailo Chop returns to scale

Single Gaze returns to scale

Prized Icon returns to scale

As the George Ryder Stakes was next to run, I stayed where I was to be sure of getting a good spot to watch Winx. A lot of other people had the same idea and soon fence positions were scarce. Winx flags fluttered from hands along the fence and an air of sharp anticipation rippled through the course.

The small field proceeded along the path to the mounting yard, but everyone had eyes only for the star attraction.

Happy Clapper on his way to the mounting yard

Crack Me Up

Invincible Gem

Kementari

Winx – masked

Here’s some more photos of the main contenders leaving the mounting yard

Happy Clapper

Kementari

Winx- unmasked

Winx on her way to the barriers – glowing with health

Any race Winx contests is always of the utmost interest, and even though you expect her to win, there’s the question of how she will accomplish it and by how much of a margin to the second horse. Winx’s first race this autumn saw her win by 7 lengths. This time she had a fight on her hooves with Happy Clapper putting up a challenge down the straight. Winx ran the fastest last 600 metres section of the day and prevailed over Happy Clapper by almost a length. Kementari did well to run third 1.5 lengths behind.

Winx has now won 24 consecutive races and a record breaking 17 at Group 1 level. She is set to equal Black Caviar’s unbeaten winning sequence of 25 in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes on 14 April and will possibly surpass the great sprinting mare’s tally either overseas (now thankfully off the agenda), or next Spring, which will hopefully include a 4th Cox Plate.

If we lived in extraordinary times during Black Caviar’s racing career, racing fans are now enjoying  an even more awesome champion of the turf in Winx, perhaps the best ever.

Winx returns to scale

Rosehill is a pleasant little race course, much the same size as Moonee Valley, and I was glad to be back there again. There were obviously no restrictions on taking photos or the focal size of lenses. There were several other amateur photographers near where I was standing, including a guy with an enormous lens that blocked everyone else’s views.

After the Ryder Stakes I decided to go and get a drink from the nearest bar in the JR Fleming Stand, which meant standing in a queue for quite a while before being served.  I visited the stalls after that to see if Chris Waller was around and willing to sign my racebook. There was no sign of him, but Winx was resting in her stall, looking bright and beautiful despite just running a race.

As a consequence of all this dillying and dallying I missed the Rosehill Guineas and arrived back trackside as the winner, D’Argento, was returning to scale, an elated Hugh Bowman on his back. Hugh had reason to be cheerful having just won a Group 1  double.

D’Argento  returns to scale

Hugh Bowman being uncharacteristically exhuberant

As the Golden Slipper Stakes was up next, I figured it was time to peg out a spot on the fence to watch it.  Unlike Moonee Valley on Cox Plate day last year, where we had to guard our spot on the fence for over four hours, at Rosehill it was amazingly easy to find a good position. The Rosehill outdoor public area is tiered, with several steps going up from ground level, so just about everyone gets a good view of the racing action.

This was the first time I had attended a Golden Slipper meeting and watched the famous (and richest) race for two year olds in person, though I have religiously watched it over the years on TV. So it was a bit of thrill to be at Rosehill for the 2018 edition.

I was particulary keen to get photos of Sunlight, the winner of the Magic Millions Two Year Classic, and I got quite few, such as the one below

Sunlight leaves the mounting yard for the track

The best looking colt was Blue Diamond Stakes winner Written By.

Written By

Anyway before the race was run, there was a bit of pomp and ceremony, starting with a line of 16 girls bearing name banners for each horse in the race. They marched up the path to the mounting yard, and stood around colourfully while the Golden Slipper jockeys were introduced one by one.

Banner girls

Then the field started assembling in the mounting yard, and shortly afterwards proceeding to the track.

The weather looked threatening with a dark cloud moving over the course, but the rain held off until after the race was run and won.

Unfortunately my photos of the race finish turned out too dark to use, but I got lots of photographs of Estijaab returning to scale after her thrilling victory. She led from the start to the finish, and had enough in the tank to hold off Oohood who finished second, and Sunlight who ran third. So it was a fillies trifecta, with Written By officially fourth.

Estijaab returns to scale

Oohood head shot

Sunlight head shot

Though the final Group 1, the Galaxy was yet to run, I decided to call it quits after the Golden Slipper and head back to the city, as I was feeling weary after a long day on my feet.

On the train back to the city a couple of guys were sitting near me all dressed up and ready to party. They obliged me by posing for the following photograph – Sydney personified!

Guys on train

Once back in the CBD I collected my bag from the storage place and headed for my hotel, where I dined in the Bistro and retired early to my room.

I had to get up at 5.00 am the next morning to catch a 7.00 am plane to Melbourne. This flight departed only ten minutes late and I got back to Melbourne well before midday after an uneventful flight.

By the time I finally made it home, I had travelled by train to Sydney airport, by plane to Melbourne airport, by bus to Southern Cross station, from where I caught a train to Clifton Hill, then a bus to Ivanhoe Station and walked the rest of the way.

So that was my weekend.

Though tiring, it was worth the effort and I’d do it again, now that I’ve sorted out all the contingencies involved.