Silent Force wins the Queen Of The Sand in runaway fashion (JC Photos)
Trainer Mike De Kock saddled a first stakes winner for his wife Diane when the 25 to 1 longshot Silent Force made a mockery of the handicapper to run out an easy winner of the R150 000 Listed Queen Of The Sand run over a mile on the Vaal sand on Tuesday.
The race was also a big one for the winning rider, young apprentice Akash Aucharuz, who made it a memorable double after winning on Rivulet for Diane Stenger in 2013.
Silent Force is a 3yo daughter of Horse Chestnut and has a mind of her own. But she sure can run when on song and showed that she might have needed her last run after improving lengths and capitalising on a poor showing from the favourite.
In a true family affair, Silent Force was saddled by the couple’s son Matthew.
With the joint topweight Jackodore going off a well supported favourite and St John Gray’s eleven time winner Formation also in the line up, the prospects of the one time winner from the De Kock yard looked rather dismal.
Mike and Diane De Kock
But after tracking Tomorrow’s Miss for much of the trip and then drifting to the outside rail in the home straight, Silent Force still found enough to resist the late challenge of Formation.
Despite being in under sufferance and hanging out badly in the final 200m, Silent Force galloped on well and held the game Formation to four lengths in a time of 100,61 secs.
In a day of well stretched margins, the rest were frankly missing in action, with the pacemaking Tomorrow’s Miss a further four lengths in arrears in third.
The favourite Jackodore ran a rare poor race to finish 17,50 lengths behind the winner and downfield after flickering briefly in the run for home.
Silent Force is a Rosedene Stud bred daughter of Horse Chestnut. She is out of the six time winning Goldkeeper mare, Hialeah.
She was sold for R110 000 on the National Yearling Sale and took her earnings to R190 750 with this second victory from 10 starts, with consistency reflected in the 5 places registered.
Silent Force looks lengths better on sand than turf and should pay to follow.
It will be interesting to see her in a pressured finish though, with her hanging antics likely to be her undoing.
