Shelbyrock’n carried the Hawke’s Bay black and white colours in staving off the challengers of Hackshaw Ridge and Soldier Boy to score a narrow win in last Saturday’s $80,000 Interprovincial Championship (1600m) at New Plymouth.
There was probably no more appropriate winner of last Saturday’s $80,000 Interprovincial Championship race at New Plymouth than the Hawke’s Bay-owned Shelbyrock’n.
The 1600m race was established a number of years ago by the Taranaki Racing Club as a gimmick to recognize the respective NPC Rugby Unions in the country, with each horse bearing the respective colours of the 14 different unions.
It makes for interesting watching but can be a bit of a nightmare for race caller Tony Lee, who normally concentrates on what different stable colours relate to different horses when doing his race commentary.
Woodville-trained Shelbyrock’n was representing Hawke’s Bay so her rider, Bridget Grylls, wore the Hawke’s Bay Rugby team’s black and white colours.
The mare’s narrow win was a fitting result as Hawke’s Bay are so far unbeaten after four rounds of this year’s Bunnings NPC Rugby Championship, having scraped home by slender margins each time. The Taranaki rugby team is also unbeaten after four games.
Hawke’s Bay will play their fifth game of the competition today (Saturday) when they take on Auckland in Auckland.
What made last Saturday’s win even more significant is that Shelbyrock’n is owned by Dannevirke couple Jim Small and Lyn Anstis, a pair of racing enthusiasts who have been involved in several horses in recent years, most of them prepared in Hawke’s Bay.
They had a racing share in the talented Guy Lowry and Grant Cullen-trained mare Savvy Dreams, who only won two races but finished third in a Group 1 New Zealand Oaks, second in the Group 3 Lowland Stakes and fourth in both the Group 1 Thorndon Mile and Group 1 Bonecrusher Stakes. The daughter of Savabeel was also placed fourth in the Group 1 South Australian Derby (2500m) in Adelaide.
The couple purchased Shelbyrock’n for $3600 as a weanling, from the online auction site Gavelhourse, and she has now recorded four wins, two seconds and two-thirds from only 15 starts.
Despite her good race record the Rock ‘n’ Pop six-year-old was overlooked by the punters in last Saturday’s race, winning at odds of 19 to one.
The mare was stepping up to 1600m for the first time, which was the cause of some concern for her Woodville trainer Shane Brown. But he was happy when the rain started to fall on the New Plymouth track on the day, as all three of her previous wins had been on heavy tracks.
“The rain loosened the track up a bit and that helped her. She found the track a bit too sticky when ran second at Otaki in her last start,” Brown said this week.
“She was a bit questionable at the distance but I thought she would see it out given her breeding,” he added.
A positive ride by Bridget Grylls saw Shelbyrock’n in or near the lead throughout, taking a clear lead on the point of the home turn. She then waged a war with Soldier Boy for most of the home straight before staving off a late challenge from Hackshaw Ridge to get the decision by a head.
“It was a gutsy win as she was left a bit of a sitting duck,” Brown said.
“I thought they would run past her but she really dug deep so it was a good win.”
Brown said the reason why Shelbyrock’n has only had 15 starts is because she has been such a slow maturer.
“She was a real light mare early on and we couldn’t keep any weight on her but now she is a lot more mature and doing a lot better.
“Her owners have been great. I said to them, when she first arrived, you will have a bit of fun with this horse but you will need to wait.
“She is now a six-year-old having only her 15th start and not many owners would have shown the patience that they have.”
Shelbyrock’n is bred to be good as she is out of the Pins mare Joy and from a strong Waikato Stud family. Her grandam is the stakes performed Celia Leigh and she is out of a full-sister to the well-performed Cazuleigh.
Astute trainer Graeme Rogerson went to $225,000 to buy a Savabeel half-sister to Shelbyrock’n at this year’s Karaka yearling sales.
Brown said Shelbyrock’n’s hard slog in the mud last Saturday took its toll on her and he intended giving her a quiet week before setting her for another race.
“She likes three to four weeks between runs and there is a nice Group 3 mile at Awapuni next month so we might look at that.”
Brown was referring to the $100,000 Hunterville Vet Club Metric Mile (1600m) to be run at Awapuni on September 23.
Mixed day for Nelson/McDougal stable
The Hastings training partnership of Paul Nelson and Corrina McDougal had mixed fortunes at Tuesday’s Rotorua meeting, winning a race with Nedwin but also losing one of their top jumpers.
Shackelton’s Edge, who had recorded two wins, a second and a fourth from four previous steeplechase starts, fell at the fence with 1100m to run in the Rotorua-Bay Of Plenty Hunt Cup and was euthanized after suffering a suspected internal haemorrhage.
Nedwin showed he is on target for today’s $60,000 Bridges Insurance Services Hurdle (3200m) at Te Rapa with a decisive 1-3/4 length win in a Rating 75 highweight over 2200m.
The Niagara nine-year-old settled perfectly in fourth position for jockey Jack Power and improved to second starting the last 600m.
Nedwin then set out after the tearaway leader Tickle Me Almo and managed to collar him inside the last 200m before surging clear close to the line.
It was Nedwin’s 11th win and his sixth on the flat. He has also been a revelation as a jumper, with five wins and two fourths from eight starts.
The Nelson/McDougal stable had two runners in the race and their other representative, stable star The Cossack, also produced a good lead-up for today’s $60,000 Pakuranga Hunt Cup Steeplechase (4800m) when finishing fifth.
The Mastercraftsman 10-year-old sat back at the tail of the field until the last 600m and then steadily made ground in the home straight. He will be looking to record his 13th jumping win today.
Hastings-born jumps jockey Aaron Kuru, now domiciled in Victoria, Australia, has answered the call from Paul Nelson and will renew his association with both Nedwin and The Cossack at Te Rapa today.
“If Paul and Corrina ever get stuck for riders they always give me a call and, if I can come back, I’ll make the effort and ride for them,” Kuru said.
“They were my main supporters in New Zealand and I believe I am where I am because of them, so I’ll continue to make that effort for them for as long as I’m riding.”
Kuru’s last visit to New Zealand was in June and saw him successfully partner up with both horses, with Nedwin winning the Waikato Hurdle (3200m) and The Cossack taking out the Waikato Steeplechase (3900m).
Kuru was aboard the then less-experienced The Cossack when the star jumper took the first of his eight prestige jumping crowns in the 2020 edition of the Great Northern Hurdle (4190m). The horse is using today’s race as a lead-up to this year’s Great Northern Steeplechase at Te Rapa on September 17
Kuru and Nedwin will start as defending champions in today’s feature hurdle race, having won the key lead-up race to the Great Northern Hurdle (4200m) last season, the latter race a target again for the son of Niagara.
Kuru’s New Zealand visit this weekend will be short-lived as he heads back to Melbourne tonight, with riding engagements to fulfil at Ballarat tomorrow including partnering San Remo in the A$350,000 Grand National Steeplechase (4500m).
Gold Trail Stakes function
The Hawke’s Bay/Poverty Bay Thoroughbred Breeders Association will again sponsor the Group 3 $120,000 Gold Trail Stakes (1200m) on the first day of the Colliers Hawke’s Bay Spring carnival on September 9.
Members of the association, as well as members of the Hawke’s Bay Racehorse Owners Association, are invited to attend a special function in the Karamu Lounge at the Hastings racecourse that day for a fun, action-packed day.
Patrons will be treated to a BBQ gourmet buffet lunch, complimentary drink, cash bar, private TAB facilities and a racebook and, to make the day even more exciting, the MC will be auctioneer extraordinaire ad raconteur Steve Davis.
Tickets cost $80 per head and can be purchased by emailing tracy@codenz.com
La Crique on target for Tarzino Trophy
Group 1 winning mare La Crique showed a change in home has done nothing to hinder her spring preparation when she put in an eye-catching runner-up performance in her 1100m heat at the Taupo trials on Wednesday.
The daughter of Vadamos settled off the pace for jockey Craig Grylls, who bided his time before navigating his charge wide at the turn and La Crique showed a good turn of foot to storm home late to just miss catching winner Aromatic by a head.
Trainers Katrina and Simon Alexander, who earlier in the week moved into their new Te Awamutu base, were overjoyed with the mare’s performance.
“I was really rapt with that. More the fact that she settled back nicely, which is the way I would prefer her to do things. It was a nice hit-out,” Katrina Alexander said.
La Crique’s spring preparation last year was hampered by inclement weather, but Alexander is hoping trialling under the sun at Taupo is a sign of things to come ahead of La Crique’s first big target, the Group 1 $400,000 Tarzino Trophy (1400m) at Hastings on September 9.
The black ute has also been seized and police are aiming to speak to the driver.