PE Paddock Power in Cape

Paddock Power - Grant Paddock, a PE trainer enjoyed first Cape winner.

Cape racing in the winter is tricky but the triple feature bill on Saturday 25 June brightened things up considerably. The supposedly important draw factor down the straight was a non-event with everybody seemingly having an equal chance. The first leg of the jackpot provided the only real blow in the exotics with something rather strange happening at the start.

We wonder what actually happened to the fancied Uncle Tommy in the fifth race. The horse,  sold at the Beck Dispersal Sale and whose career has been revived at the Hodgson yard, lost a few lengths at the start and appeared to have been impeded by a handler.  Word has it that the Stipes would have declared him a non-runner if he had run unplaced but left him in as he ran fourth. No, it doesn’t make too much sense to us either. Watch this space for more on this.

The race went to the 20-1 former Basil Marcus horse Exploration who came forward late on the middle outside to soar clear in the capable hands of Bernard Fayd’Herbe.. The backed mudlark Copa De La Rey ran on well under new 2,5kg claimer Teague Gould to grab second in an exacting exacta – and they are both trained in Noordhoek by Mike Stewart. The irritating thing for punters about both of these two horses is their inconsistency. They both appear to be medical cases who benefit from the seawater treatment out at The Dunes  and they love the winter conditions.  Guesswork,  but the sharp punters would have found them.

The Port Elizabeth raider  Jella Loochee gave  trainer Grant Paddock his first ever winner in the Western Cape when he made hacks of the opposition in the second race, a Juvenile Plate over 1000m. He showed cracking pace throughout and then  geared up late to win with ease under Muzi Yeni. He was winning his third race from four starts – having only been beaten by the boom Gavin Smith two year old,  In A Rush.

Trainer Dean Kannemeyer prepared the Cheveley Stud –bred Badger’s Drift gelding I Am What I Am for himself and Gauteng-based  patron Warren Laird to win the first leg of the Pick Six, a Maiden Plate over 1600m. A great buy at R30 000 and tribute to Kannemeyer’s astute eye, this classy fellow should prefer 2000m but came away from his field to win with authority. Royal Bloodline flew late after encountering traffic problems and he should not be long in winning.

The first of the three feature races on the day, the R115 000 Asics Listed Winter Oaks run over 2200m, went to the Snaith-trained Caesour filly Cause To Believe, who ran away from her field after Una Aura had ensured a steady gallop throughout. With the Varsfontein-bred filly winning it, the result went largely to form with Approach Me running on late for second. A very fit recent winner Mary Hinge, plugged on into third, with the Var filly Varsity Belle, fourth .

In black and white! Nysean Bolt wins the Gr3 Winter Derby.

Trainer Greg ‘Genuine’ Ennion celebrated a feature win in his own silks in the R184 000 Gr3 Tekkie Town Winter Derby where the flashy Nysaean gelding Nysean Bolt stayed on best under Grant Van Niekerk. The Winter Classic winner and odds-on favourite Chesalon came from last and wide out but had no chance with the winner. Ennion is known as a guy with an educated eye for selecting cut-price horses who can run, and this part-time  musician must be wondering why he has starved his smart three year old of serious ground.  It was a third win from twelve starts for the Klawervlei bred and Ennion has trained the likes of Dramdor and Sangria Girl,  and knows how to programme  a solid stayer.

The R115 000 Listed Ladies Mile was the third and final feature event of the afternoon. The pacemaking Summerley screamed to the outside as they came for home and then fell in a hole as A Daughters Legacy and Ocean Of Time came forward to dispute matters. The latter provided Justin Snaith and Felix Coetzee with a welcome feature race double as she powered away to win well. Joy and Rodney Dunn’s Tassie Belle came back to herself with a flying third while Joey Ramsden’s Maxixe motored down the middle to just miss the money.

The jockey score on the day: Felix Coetzee – 3:  Bernard Fayd’Herbe – 2 .

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