Ready for Battle! Felix, Ebony and Groomsman Patrick Zolani Xhamle.
The big girl is up and flying! The picturesque rural simplicity of Durbanville racecourse buzzed with anticipation and electric excitement on 15 October as Justin Snaith’s Ebony Flyer turned up for a rousing grass gallop – to win the Gr3 Diana Stakes in facile fashion and take her next step to fame and fortune.
One hopes that Gold Circle will sit up and take note. Nothing pique’s public interest levels quite like the presence of a champion and the country course welcomed a fair crowd on an eight race programme that frankly looked rather threadbare beyond the much trumped seasonal debut of the star. And she did not disappoint anybody that took the trouble to show their support.
In days gone by, top horses like Empress Club and National Currency have appeared at and utilised the Durbanville track as a springboard to better things. Like them, Ebony Flyer came, she saw, and she conquered-and it is difficult to envisage her ever showing her face for official duties there again. But that matters not.
Trainer Justin Snaith looked extremely relieved afterwards and declared that the outing had shown him one thing – that his charge was a lot unfitter than he had reckoned after her ten month break. The jury was also out on the success of her wind operation, which looks to have worked. One just gets the impression though that she could have won this running backwards and holding her breath, and she was never put under any form of pressure at any stage.
First Lady. Gaynor Rupert was at Durbanville.
A measure of Ebony’s stature and the enormity and significance of the occasion was the rare presence of her part owner, Gaynor Rupert, at the country course. Mrs Rupert owns the champion in partnership with Barry Irwin’s Team Valor International and Vanashree and Anant Singh. Drakenstein Stud’s first lady was all smiles as she received the winner’s trophy on behalf of her partners and thanked her trainer Justin Snaith for a job well done. While it is early days yet, the Rupert’s beautiful Franschhoek stud stands the magnificent Trippi, and one can only imagine and speculate on the outcome of a dream pairing of the huge filly and the champion stallion. The mind boggles but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
The withdrawal of Leeward and Emerald Cove added to the reality that this was not a vintage Diana Stakes field by any means, and the cynics will inevitably argue and debate the virtues of what appeared to be a rather disappointgly average Gr3 sextet, beyond the former Charles Laird trained Hollywoodboulevard. It was left to the high-riding Sabine Plattner Racing’s Barcelona Winter, to give the most cheek in a rather uneventful race. The start was delayed by the grey In Like Flynn and Barcelona Winter breaking through their gates but Andrew Fortune had the Plattner filly quickly into her stride as Ebony Flyer tracked her into the turn. The leader slowed things up quite dramatically and Felix Coetzee took over going into the turn as Karl Neisius, riding Hollywoodboulevard, tried to keep him a little tight. But Felix and his girl dwarfed the whole damn lot and hardly noticed the opposition. They turned for home and were never headed thereafter.
Pace work. Ebony Flyer may lack fitness, but this was easy.
The real test now for the Snaiths will be getting the daughter of Jet Master match fit for the bigger contests that are just around the corner. They have been there with big horses before and one cannot see a state of panic setting in. The purpose of this race was to guage the state of play and determine exactly where they are at. They are now under no false illusions and rushing and rash decisions will cost them dearly. But they know that and Justin has the experience of Dad, Chris, in the background.
Joey Ramsden’s Good Hope Racing machine is now in top gear and the yard recorded three winners on the day with Dean Kannemeyer grabbing a double. Ramsden’s Silver Haven was his most impressive winner and while the Drakenstein Stud product beat a motley crew, including a maiden, he looks a Guineas sort in the making. And the Silvano colt looks particularly well bought at R170 000 at this stage!
Kannemeyer sent out the Victory Moon colt Equitoria to win the MR72 Handicap over 2000m in great style. Besides the fact that it was his post-maiden effort, the long striding colt will prefer Kenilworth and may well be a Derby horse- even though Jooste racing manager Derek Brugmann seemed to think he may not be quite ready by then.
Kannemeyer and Ramsden should each have a three-way coupling in the Guineas at this stage and their resurgent dominance followed the same trend of Wednesday’s meeting. Together with Justin Snaith, these three strings appear to be the locals to be with this year. A snap assessment of the Group winning prospects of the top Cape yards is an interesting exercise on its own.
Out of Pocket? Mike Bass looks to have a quiet season ahead.
Ramsden, Kannemeyer and Snaith have multiple options in their arsenals on all fronts, while the Mike Bass yard have not yet exposed anything of note. Bass is still languishing in the post Pocket Power and River Jetez era and that is a void that will not be filled overnight. He has taken over a few Jooste horses from Charles Laird and while we are yet to see the undefeated Delago Deluxe, the others that he has raced have not impressed, and may need some racing. The yard appears to be at the bottom of a cycle that all trainers go through at some time.
Much like the Bass’, the Glen Kotzen yard are going through a quiet stage but have the excitingly undisputed SA champion three year old filly Princess Victoria heading their team. The brilliant daughter of Victory Moon is scheduled to make her eagerly awaited seasonal debut in the Gr2 Western Cape Fillies Championship over 1400m in the first week of November.
So all told, a happy day for Justin Snaith and some serious short-term planning lies ahead. These are the decisions that make or break careers!
