FILLY FACTOR: Grant Cullen with Savvy Dreams who has been nominated for the NZ oaks in March. PHOTO/Paul Taylor
SHE was a "local" on debut and Savvy Dreams was coming off her only trial with a victory.
The filly didn't disappoint Hastings co-trainers Guy Lowry and Grant Cullen when she stormed home with a 2.5 lengths victory in the 1200m Best Travel 3YO race 3 of the New Year's Day meeting yesterday.
It was only a $7000 race and, although the Hawke's Bay racecourse was teeming with predominantly New Year revellers who probably knew nothing about horses, the co-trainers and multiple owners will savour the moment of bigger times on the horizon.
"Very [excited]. She's a filly with a lot of upside [and] a lot of class, I think," said a composed Cullen before the stable hands loaded the horse into the truck.
"It's obviously her first start but she won with a lot of authority and will now probably go on with it," he said of Savvy Dreams, who was sired by Elusive Dreams (US) out of Savabeel (Australia).
With jockey Masa Tanaka riding the winner, veteran Robert Hannam guided Dazzle Street to second place and fourth-year apprentice Jasmine Fawcett on Zavistic was half a head shy in third place.
Cullen said they would settle down with Savvy Dreams for a couple of quiet weeks but the long-term aim for Savvy Dreams was the New Zealand Oaks in March.
"It's a fair way away but we'll try to pick a course as good as possible that suits her."
Cullen said he and Lowry were always expecting a solid run from Savvy Dreams yesterday.
"She had won at the trials so we weren't surprised."
While Tanaka rode her well he said it was too early to commit him for the NZ Oaks.
Cullen said Lowry traditionally went away with his family to camp during the Christmas holidays so he hadn't heard from him yesterday.
It was a good day for the co-trainers with another Savabeel offspring, Chic (jockey Dylan Turner), a brown 4-year-old mare with a Lowry, Bridgman and syndicate ownership, coming in second behind the John Bary-trained Notionannagins (Hannam) by a nose in the 1600m Trinity Hill Mile.
Said Cullen: "She may go to Trentham in a couple of weeks in a rating 65 mile so we don't have anything major with her."
The feature race, the 1300m Russell Roads City of Hastings Cup - Fasttrack 5k, went to the Tom Perry-trained Morse Code.
In just a field of six, it turned out to be a battle of apprentices as second-year Timothy Johnson upstaged more experienced riders Hannam on Mae West and Hayden Tinsley on the Lowry/Cullen-trained Adventador .
First-year apprentice Leah Hemi was second by half a head on La Fille En Jeu and fourth-year apprentice Jasmine fawcett rode Clovelly Park to third place.
"We saw the potential for her to win it," said Johnson of 4-year-old brown mare Morse Code. "Normally she just goes to the front and runs but Mr Perry wanted me to settle it today."
The 19-year-old, who had a couple of placings yesterday, said it was the first time for Morse Code "to be amongst it" so she would learn from the experience.
Morse Code, he said, was an honest horse although she tended to get "a little bit hot on the toes but she'll settle down with more racing".
Johnson said he couldn't wait to come out of his apprenticeship "for some good times ahead".
Bary had to settle for fourth on Mae West.
"She got rushed off her feet a little but she's done well so she'll go and play in a black-type race in two weeks in Wellington," said the Hastings trainer of the 6-year-old brown mare.
He was pleased for the owners of Notionannagins and the horse but wasn't too sure what was in store for the 6-year-old.
"We'll just let the dust settle ... she's a good, honest mare but we'll have to wait to find out where her level is, really," said Bary who had a couple of other horses who ran "all right and another couple who were disappointing".