IN his popular column, ‘SILKS & SADDLES,’ published by the NORTH QUEENSLAND REGISTER, respected racing writer TERRY BUTTS reports that top Gold Coast jockey Chris Whiteley believes the Strathayr track at Mackay is the best he has ridden on.
Butts also tells of a good outcome when a dead-heat was declared to a controversial finish in the wet at the Mackay meeting last week and questions why the stewards would get involved.
He also has items on a star Central Queensland youngster that could be tackling a feature in Townsville and the loss of a promising youngster in the Peter Moody stable that was owned by the Huddy family of Mt Isa.
Here is the Butts column:
TOP JOCKEY DECLARES MACKAY STRATHAYR BEST HE HAS RIDDEN ON
TOP JOCKEY Chris Whiteley reckons the StrathAyr track at Mackay is the best he has ever ridden on.
And the Gold Coast-based jockey has ridden on a few all around the country so he is well qualified to make a judgment.
But he, like many others, is convinced that Ooralea is the best there is and if there were any doubters prior to last week’s meeting there certainly are none now.
“It is just amazing,” said the much experienced jockey who took a stroll down the track after the last race to reaffirm his contention that it was not affected by the heavy rain that fell for most of the day.
“No other track in the country could have raced in this weather – and this track remains virtually untouched,” Whiteley told on-course commentator Russell Leonard.
Mackay had five inches of rain leading up to race day. It poured rain all day and the track after the last event was hardly marked.
It was so good in fact that jockey Ian Toward rode without goggles in the last race, box-seated behind two leaders and raced away in the straight to win easily on the favorite Solidify.
DEAD-HEAT THE BEST RESULT AFTER CONTROVERSIAL FINISH AT MACKAY
IT was a different story in the previous race however when Ian Toward dead-heated on Baramul Bullet.
“My goggles fogged up and I just couldn’t see for the rain,” he said.
“I was blinded and didn’t see Sari getting up on my inside near the line.”
Actually the finish of that race is still being talked about.
Five minutes after the race the judge announced he was calling for stewards to help determine the winner, because the photo finish wasn’t working.
Why the stewards?
The judge, in this case a Racing Queensland employee, is paid to declare the place-getters in each race – with or without the assistance of the photo finish electric camera.
The camera is a tool to assist him or to confirm his placings nor to determine the result. At least that was the idea when these were first introduced.
How could the stewards possibly decide who had won?
So they said: “Toward you ran second.”
The quick-thinking reply will be long remembered: “Like….hell – my horse won by half a head”.
That was the end of it.
A dead-heat was semaphored and I am sure the favorite backers shared a sigh of some relief.
The rider of the co-winner Sari (Trinity Bannon) apparently gave her views on that redoubtable social communicator Facebook. I am told it was a different opinion to that expressed by Toward.
But in the end really it was probably the right result – if not the only result that the stewards could declare under the circumstances.
MYTHOLOGIST MAY NOW HEAD NORTH FOR THE GREAT NORTHERN
TRAINER Lyle Rowe will decide next week whether his brilliant Capricornia Stakes winner Mythologist will head north for the Great Northern in Townsville on June 1.
“We will decide on the Great Northern or I will keep him home for carnival races here,” said Rowe.
Mythologist stamped himself without doubt the best baby in Central Queensland with an authoritative all-the-way win on Saturday.
He was so impressive the Gollan stable were encouraged to buy his half brother (by Muzdaher) at Sunday’s Capricorn Yearling Sales for $40,000.
He was the top priced yearling by a sire once trained by John Manzelmann which, after a season at stud, was sold to China last year for a reported $7,000.
Rowe bid early on the youngster but dropped out when bids reached the mid-thirties.
While he has high regard for the horse, the trainer is not yet convinced he will reach the heights of his star sprinter Kilwinning Option.
Oddly Kilwinning Option, when trained at Longreach, ran only 12th in the Capricornia three years ago before joining the Rowe stable and developing into the top Central Queensland sprinter.
ORGANIZERS of the Rockhampton sale were ecstatic with the response with buyers from all over the State – and at least one from Adelaide.
“The average was two thousand more than the recent Brisbane Bloodstock sale.
We couldn’t be happier,” said sales spokesman Jeff Lever.
STRONG MT ISA TEAM HEADING TO THE RED CENTRE ANNUALS
A strong Mt Isa contingent is heading over the Barkley and down to Alice Springs for the Red Centre Annuals that actually began last weekend.
Outstandingly, a much-travelled and well performed sprinter has been set for the Pioneer Sprint on Saturday week and the stayer Just a Touch will contest the Cup on the Labour Day Monday.
Former Townsville university student, Jacqui Brown, now attached to the Jay stable will ride the Saunders-owned horses in their Alice engagements.
PETER MOODY LOSES PROMISING YOUNGSTER OWNED IN NORTH WEST
IT was very much a case of the agony and the ecstasy for trainer Peter Moody on Saturday.
The ecstasy was of course the overwhelming sense of achievement he was entitled to enjoy by the win of Black Caviar, arguably her best performance yet.
But only hours before he suffered one of his genuine all-time lows on a racetrack when youngster So Man Up broke a pelvis and had to be euthanized before the massive Randwick crowd.
Moody had told a close friend early in the day that So Man Up, a son of High Chaparral, was potentially the best horse in his all-conquering stable.
A winner at his only start, So Man Up was backed at good odds to beat the Golden Slipper winner Overreach in his debut Sydney start. But Luke Nolen eased him out of the race on the turn, the horse in obvious distress.
To lose one so good and in the circumstances is a massive blow.
So Man Up was in the familiar silks of the Huddy family, the great racing stalwarts of Mt Isa.
The same colors are carried by Shoot Out and all of the Huddy runners in the north and north-west of the State.
INGHAM GETS SUNDAY FIXTURE TO REPLACE ONE THAT WAS WASHED OUT
RACING Queensland has approved a Sunday June 2 date for the Ingham meeting that was washed out last month.
It is good news for the club which will promote it as a family day.
The six race program will feature a $10,000 Country Series feature and will be run the day after the $100,000 Great Northern Two-Year-Old race at Cluden.
COLUMN COURTESY OF TERRY BUTTS AND THE NORTH QUEENSLAND REGISTER, one of Australia's leading rural newspapers.
TERRY BUTTS can be contacted by e-mailing: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.