Ooee was a runaway winner at Trentham on Saturday for Paul Nelson. Photo / Race Images
Ooee was a runaway winner at Trentham on Saturday for Paul Nelson. Photo / Race Images
Paul Nelson's hopes of winning a feature jumping event on his home patch next month were boosted at Trentham on Saturday.
The Hastings trainer produced Ooee for a runaway victory in the Rural Trading Post Hurdle with the six-year-old now in peak form to take on the country's best.
"Ihad in the back of my mind that we would run in the Hawke's Bay Hurdles and we'll be sticking with that now," said Nelson, who races Ooee with his wife Carol.
"That was a very, very encouraging run and he's continuing to improve."
Ooee finished third in his hurdle debut three runs back at Te Rapa before he returned to the Hamilton track last month to break his maiden.
"He put them away tidily there," regular rider Aaron Kuru said. "I'm very lucky that Paul throws all the rides my way."
On Saturday, Ooee raced in second spot until the 1000 metre mark where he took control after the tearaway leader Share The Blame threw the towel in.
Although he chanced the final flight, the gelded son of Ruff Nipper was far too good for Venerate, whose stablemate Justa Charlie won the opening event on the card. "I didn't expect him to handle the ground that well and next time out he will be even better," Kuru said.
Meanwhile, the Kevin Myers-trained pair of The Big Opal and Crash Bandicoot drew further attention when they quinellaed the Grant Plumbing Steeplechase.
"The going is a lot better on the inside than on the course proper so I knew he would be hard to beat if I got a break on them," successful rider Shaun Fannin said.
The Big Opal, a likely Grand National Steeplechase starter, led all the way to account for the Great Northern Steeplechase contender Crash Bandicoot, who finished strongly.
