Trustworthy! Implicit Trust wins the last under Hoolash.
Trainer Joey Ramsden’s call to his colleagues to render support and run their horses, or face losing races, may be falling on deaf ears. The Durbanville 29 February eight race programme was on the thin side yet again with just 71 horses turning up to provide the so-called entertainment.
Some of the smaller yards may say it is choice for a guy who trains Group winners and horses for some of the bigger name owners to be imploring less well endowed yards to run their horses. But no matter the relative ability to contribute, only a genuine team effort and buy-in by everybody is going to save the day.
Ramsden, riding high at fourth place on the national log after a magnificent season, trained the winner of the final race of a long afternoon at the country course. Implicit Trust was ridden with confidence by 25 year old Mauritian apprentice Reehaze Hoolash to shed her Maiden. She looks quite limited.
Wake-Up Call! Joey Ramsden has called for his colleagues to look in the mirror.
And yes Joey is fortunate to run one of the bigger operations around. But he is no fool and appears deeply concerned with a phenomen he labels as ‘something I struggle to understand.’ His 120 horses at peak drops to around 70 or 80 at best after his regular clear –out and move on of the passengers to lesser racing jurisdictions. So he is one of the major role-players and he has put his money where his mouth is, with his over 600 runners putting even the powerful Snaith yard to shame with their overwhelmingly strong representation in the Eastern Cape.
Racing of the quality we saw at Durbanville today, with the commensurate small fields, is hardly entertainment and amounts to little more than a rickety gambling platform. Phumelela have inherited a fragile bird in local racing and it is caught in high winds and on a frightening downward spiral. It is no secret that Western Cape racing has been in the doldrums for some years now for a variety of reasons, most of which, and despite the general worldwide economic turmoil, must be placed squarely at the door of management. Proactive mercenary measures are not meant to be popular and Phumelela Racing Executive Patrick Davis’ early crack of the whip by medium of his recent communication to the Cape trainers will hopefully elicit some action.
We learn that there are some 1335 horses based in the Cape. This is 100 more than the corresponding period last year. But at the same time the average declarations for January 2012 dropped to 11 as opposed to the 13 per race last year. And that was achieved in the very cauldron of the Cape’s Sizzling Summer Season! Davis points out that the internationally established optimum field size for betting turnover purposes is 12 to 14 runners, but that too many Cape races attract less than 10 runners. Only two of the eight races at Durbanville enjoyed the luxury of 10 runners today.
Crack Of The Whip. Phumelela's Patrick Davis has pleaded with Cape trainers to run their horses.
Davis’ concerns are that the declining trend will continue past the generally quieter February March period into the winter months. He undertakes to review the race programming and suggests that the recent re-introduction of nomination and declaration fees for minor races will help.
He urges trainers to review their contractual obligations in terms of runners per stable required in terms of the lease of their subsidised stables and threatens that Phumelela will be enforcing this requirement.
In a frank discussion with the Sporting Post, Ramsden speaking in his private capacity said that it was time for Cape trainers to stop finding fault with the weather, the track conditions, the track management, the racecourses, the draws and all the other favourite battering rams. He said it was appropriate absolutely immediately that every trainer reflected personally on his situation and role and took responsibility. “ We owe it to our owners and to the racing industry at large to do something. And that something is to start running our horses and filling the fields. Failure to act now will result in the loss of races and will have serious material financial implications for all professional racehorse trainers, ” he said.
Ramsden added that the prospect and knock-on effect of fewer races and earning opportunities was too horrible to contemplate: “ Imagine the Cape becoming a smaller and smaller boutique type racing district? The time is right now for each of us to look into the mirror and start doing something about it, “ he said pensively. He closed by saying that he knew which path he would personally be following.
Big One! La Belle Helene and Grant Van Niekerk are led in by Sally Jourdan.
The Durbanville afternoon was thus not unexpectedly, largely unremarkable with Mike Bass lifting the trainer honours with a double. La Belle Helene won the MR 82 Handicap over 1400m for Lammerskraal Stud, to give Grant Van Niekerk his first victory as a fully fledged jockey. He rode a terrifically powerful finish to hold off a flying Genteel Approach. The Bass’ had the disappointment of seeing their fancied Ice Goddess run out of the money in the first bad race of her four-run career.
Van Niekerk rode the very next race winner for Stephen Page when he kept the obviously moderate Abbey Creek going to withstand all challengers to win the MR 72 Handicap over 1400m. The daughter of Jam Alley led the way from the jump and was always going well – although the pressure came from all around her in the final 100m.
Mike Bass completed his double when Gareth Wright rode a cracker to steal first march in the straight on the four year old Consolidator gelding Peregrine Power to win the highest rated race of the day, the MR 84 Handicap over 2000m. Arboreal had ensured a good pace in this event as Richard Fourie let him stride freely but Wright had apparently ‘begged for the ride’ and was making no mistakes as he skipped clear and looked back with 200m to run. The other Bass runner Satin Silver ran on best for second. Not a bad effort against the males and we note that she was punished ridiculously with her MR being bumped from 73 to 86 for her second placing to Dubai Gina in the Listed Sun Classique in mid January.
