All Things Bright and Beautiful

Mr Brightside wins the 2023 All Star Mile

When heading off to the races you never really know how the afternoon will play out, the weather, along with the racing action, making the experience unexpected.

Last Saturday the weather was pretty awful, overcast for the main with gusty winds, making it unpleasant for this contact lens wearer.

Anyway, it was All Star Mile Day at Moonee Valley and I had a ticket, so forth I went on the trusty 510 Bus, arriving around 2.00 pm.

Surprisingly it wasn’t all that crowded, so it was easy to get a good position on the fence from which to take photos of the action.

I tested the camera in Race 4 and noticed that the light was not ideal.

Race 4 charge up the straight – winner Bel Air is furthest left

I gave Race 5 a miss, and hung around in the stalls area for awhile before deciding I needed more photo practice before the main event.

Race 6 was the Listed Abell Stakes run over 1200 metres, so I returned to the fence and managed to get better photos of the action. I saw the fall of Florescent Star from a distance, and was dismayed to see the green screen go up, as she was euthanised.

She’s All Class won from In The Boat and Mileva.

Race 6 – She’s All Class is furthest left in olive green silks

As the All Star Mile was up next, I stayed where I was on the fence. The fall in the previous race delayed the start by over half an hour. The sun briefly emerged from the cloud cover, but didn’t hang around for the feature event.

A bit of pomp and circumstance  in the form of girls marching out on to the track with flags signalled that the race was not far off.

Here are photos of some of the contenders as they made their way to the barriers.

Alligator Blood

Alenquer

Keats

Mr Brightside

My Oberon

Pounding

The Inevitable

Sheeza Belter

So Si Bon

As All Star Mile fields go, it wasn’t the most interesting by any means, but the race itself was worth waiting for.

No doubt the Hayes brothers were delighted with Mr Brightside’s victory.  Cascadian finished second and Tassie champ The Inevitable ran third, just ahead of Alligator Blood.

Another photo of Mr Brightside winning the All Star Mile

And so ended another All Star Mile, after which I headed home.

With the delay in proceedings at Moonee Valley, I did manage to see the Sydney races on the Big Screen, where Anamoe won the George Ryder Stakes and Shinzo was victorious in the Golden Slipper,  giving trainer Chris Waller his first Golden Slipper trophy.

Next Saturday is the last Group 1 meeting of the Melbourne Autumn Carnival and is at Flemington, where the Australian Cup is the feature event.

Down Home at the Valley – Feehan Stakes Day Review

Homesman burns down the straight to win the Feehan Stakes

It certainly wasn’t ideal, weather wise, to spend an afternoon at the races, but I braved the cold and rainy conditions to attend the Feehan Stakes meeting at Moonee Valley last Saturday.

I’ve been going to this raceday for over 15 years and have witnessed some of the greats of the Australian turf competing.

Still in my proud possession is the race book for the 2001 Feehan Stakes, where Sunline and Northerly clashed for the first time.

Sunline at the time was six years old and in the twilight years of her illustrious racing career, and Northerly, a year younger, was very much the up and comer from West Australia, nicknamed "the fighting tiger” for his tenacity and will to win.

The 2001 Feehan Stakes resulted in Northerly winning by a nose from Sunline.

They would meet again in the 2001 Cox Plate which yielded a similar result and a sensational three way protest that was dismissed.

Back to this year’s edition of the race, I got to Moonee Valley in time to watch the fourth race, where I was interested in seeing the Chris Waller trained mare, Haut Brion Her, who had won her last three races and was the starting favourite.

Haut Brion Her in the pre-parade ring

Haut Brion Her raced on the speed behind race leader Working From Home, then wobbled around the turn into the straight where she was challenged by Tofane. They fought out the finish and hit the line together, Tofane the victor by a head. They left the rest of the field 3 lengths behind them. Mystery Love ran third.

Tofane (gold cap) & Haut Brion Her head to head down the straight

Tofane returns to scale

Haut Brion Her on her way to the starting gates

Though it was cold and windy, fortunately when it rained, it was passing and light, and the sun occasionally emerged from the clouds to brighten the track.

The races resulted in a variety of close fought finishes or dominant winners.

Exhilarates, last seen winning the Quezette Stakes, started as favourite for the Atlantic Jewel Stakes, race 5 on the program - a race for three year old fillies over 1200 metres, and proved her superiority winning by ¾ length from Sassy Salitage with St Edward’s Crown running third.

Exhilarates wins the Atlantic Jewel Stakes

Exhilarates returns to scale with jockey Craig Williams signaling his pleasure at winning

Sassy Salitage on her way to the barriers

St Edward’s Crown on her way to the barriers

Tasmanian training was once again to the fore in Race 6, the Strathmore Community Bendigo Bank Stakes, where the pocket rocket The Inevitable won by a sensational 4 lengths, from Deprive. He’s a neat little fellow who looks very like his sire Dundeel (It’s A Dundeel), with the same crooked blaze and four white socks.

The Inevitable in the walking ring earlier in the afternoon

The Inevitable in full flight down the straight

The Inevitable returns to scale

The first of the Group 2 feature races was the McEwen Stakes. Sunlight and Nature Strip were originally nominated for this race, but contested the Concorde Stakes at Randwick , where both failed to run a place, the race being won by the resurgent Redzel with Pierata and Graff filling the minor places.

Anyway, the McEwen Stakes still had a pretty good field. Eduardo was the race favourite and leader, but the globe trotting Faatinah proved his class, winning by a short margin from Bons Away with Eduardo hanging on for third.

McEwen Stakes finish – Faatinah (blue & white) is the widest

Faatinah on his way to the barriers

The afternoon was drawing in when the feature Feehan Stakes was set to run. It was an open field with no real standouts, so it was hardly a surprise that the Lloyd Williams owned Homesman earned himself a free ticket to the Cox Plate by winning the race by 2.5 lengths from Mahamedies and Best of Days.

Homesman in full flight

It was pleasant being back at Moonee Valley for a day meeting, but I won’t be returning there until the Cox Plate.

Next week  Group 1 racing returns to Flemington, the feature race being the Makybe Diva Stakes, where super Tassie mare Mystic Journey will be aiming for her 8th consecutive win.

A Princess of Tasmania & The Queen of the World

Mystic Journey wins the Australian Guineas

Girl power was to the fore again last Saturday with Queen of the Turf, Winx, winning her 31st consecutive race, and also achieving 23 Group 1 wins - a world record.

At Flemington, Tasmanian filly Mystic Journey won the feature Australian Guineas, becoming only the 5th filly to win the race and the first Tasmanian trained horse to win a Group 1 on the mainland.

Because of the extreme heat, the races at Flemington were brought forward by two hours, so the last race on the card was at 3.20pm.

And hot it was, though it deterred the crowds making it easy to find a seat in the shade between races.

I reached Flemington earlier than I originally planned, shortly before midday, in time to watch race 3, the Bob Hoysted Handicap, a sprint over 1000 metres.

It was won by She’s So High by a length from veteran Thermal Current with I Am Someone running third.

She’s so High returns to scale

I decided to give race 4 a miss and go and check out the stalls. Not many of the star horses had arrived, so I didn’t get any stall photos, and besides the rampant rose hedges made getting clear shots very difficult.

Returning to my favourite spot on at the access gate, I retrieved my step from behind the rose hedge and pretty well stayed there for the rest of the afternoon.

The roses were out in abundance…

Rose hedge next to access gate, with my step ready to stand on

Race 5 was the not very interesting Seppelt Wines Plate, a handicap race for three year olds over 1400 metres.

Age of Chivalry, last seen running second to The Inevitable in the C S Hayes Stakes was the favourite, but he was beaten by a nose by 14/1 shot Mr Quickie, with Brilliant Choice a short distance back, running third.

Seppelts Wine Plate finish – Mr Quickie, Age of Chivalry & Brilliant Choice cross the finish line together

Mr Quickie returns to scale

Age of Chivalry on his way to the barriers

The next three races were of more interest and race 6, the Group 3 Shaftesbury Avenue Handicap also resulted in a long shot winner. Violate stole the prize from Streets of Avalon and Zebulon.

Violate & Streets of Avalon cross the finish line together

Violate returns to scale

Streets of Avalon on his way to the barriers

Zebulon on his way to the barriers

The David Hayes trained Fifty Stars, So Si Bon and Cool Chap ran the trifecta in race 7, the Group 2 Blamey Stakes.  2017 Melbourne Cup runner up Johannes Vermeer, having his first start since that race, finished fourth.

Blamey Stakes finish – Fifty Stars leads with So Si Bon on his outside

Fifty Stars on his way to the barriers

So Si Bon on his way to the barriers

Cool Chap on his way to the barriers

Johannes Vermeer on his way to the barriers

Due to the heat, the interval between races was reduced to 35 minutes rather than the usual 40 minutes, so it wasn’t long to wait for the feature Group 1 Australian Guineas, scheduled to run at 2.45pm.

Amphitrite was the starting favourite with Mystic Journey being second choice.

I got some nice photos of the field as they headed to the starting gates…

Amphitrite

Extra Brut

Long Leaf

Stars of Carrum

Ringerdingding

The Inevitable

Mystic Journey

Hawkshot

The talented Tasmanian filly had drawn barrier 1, either a blessing or a curse, so Mystic Journey raced close to the speed inside Amphitrite in about fifth place. Hawkshot, who had drawn a wide barrier took the lead shortly after the start and led throughout until Mystic Journey broke through close to the finish line to go on and win by over two lengths. Hawkshot held on to finish second ahead of Amphitrite (third) and Ringerdingding (fourth).

Mystic Journey travelled to Melbourne by boat, aboard the Spirit of Tasmania, the ferry that crosses Bass Strait from Devonport to Melboune.

A former ferry across the Bass Strait was the Princess of Tasmania which operated from 1959 to 1972, hence the title of this post. I travelled on it in 1971 with my boyfriend of the time and remember the adventures we had hitchhiking from Devonport to Hobart, then up the East Coast on the return journey.

We’ll next see Mystic Journey in the All Star Mile on 16 March at Flemington. She was chosen as one of the wild card entries yesterday along with Hawkshot and Hartnell. She is building up an impressive picket fence having won her last six races.

The last race on the card was the Group 3 Frances Tressady Stakes,  an interesting race for fillies and mares over 1400 metres. 

As the afternoon was still young I stayed for it and tarried another ten minutes at the track to watch the Chipping Norton Stakes on the big screen.

Oregon’s Day denied race favourite Clarice Cliffs victory in the Frances Tressady  Stakes, registering her first win for almost a year.  The 2018 Victorian Oaks winner Aristia finished third.

Approaching the finishing post in the Frances Tressady Stakes

Oregon’s Day returns to scale

Clarice Cliffs on her way to the barriers

Aristia on her way to the barriers

What more can be said about Winx other than a quote from the Bard:

Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale her infinite variety.

In the Chipping Norton Stakes, Happy Clapper issued a challenge to the mighty mare, sprinting  away from the start and leading throughout, increasing the distance between himself and Winx by a wider and wider margin.  For a brief moment we all thought she could get beaten. But no, she overtook Happy Clapper close to the finish and won by over a length, setting a new course record into the bargain.

Winx has only two more races to contest before she retires, but she could easily have returned in Spring for another campaign as she appears to be just as good as she ever was.

As mentioned before, Flemington was not crowded at all. The Kid Zone was at the far end of the west lawn and the theme was Enchanted Forest. I didn’t bother going to investigate it, but two stilt walkers dressed as ladybirds stalked around the public lawn at intervals.

When they saw me focussing my camera on them, they adopted the following pose. They must have been boiling in their costumes!

Stilt walkers

Next week is Super Saturday, again at Flemington, featuring the Group 1 Australian Cup and Newmarket Handicap.

I’m looking forward to seeing Sunlight again, who is running in the Newmarket, and keen to get a glimpse of 2017 Melbourne Cup winner Rekindling in the Australian Cup.