Waipukurau's Simon Wilson pulled off an outstanding training feat when he produced Dez to win fresh up on his home track last week after the horse had not raced for more than two and a half years.
The Zed 6-year-old lined up in a Rating 75 race over 1600m and, despite carrying topweight of 59kg, proved too strong for his rivals to get home by a long neck from Ophelia Lee, with Pincanto a further two lengths back in third.
Dez was having just his fourth career start. He showed tremendous potential when successful in his first two races, over 1400m and 1600m, in the winter of 2015 before an unlucky fourth over 1600m at Trentham two months later.
He then suffered a tendon injury to his nearside foreleg which meant he was sidelined for a few years.
"The injury wasn't that bad but I decided I would give him two years out to let him recover properly," Wilson said this week.
"He's actually been in work since September last year but I've just been hacking him around the farm at home.
"Sam Lennox, who is one of the part-owners, has got a treadmill and the horse also spent a couple of months there which has been a great help and the vets gave us a programme which we have followed.
"It's been a combination of a few things but mainly working and trotting around the farm that has brought him right. I do take him into the Waipukurau track for faster work occasionally but he spends most of his time on the farm."
Dez showed he was ready for a return to the racetrack when recording a decisive length win in a 1200m jumpout at Hastings on April 16.
Wilson said the horse will probably start next in a Rating 75 race over 1600m at Whanganui on June 2.
He races Dez in partnership with close friends Sam Lennox (Waverley) and Paul Mitchell (Patea) after buying the horse as an unraced 2-year-old from two of his Waipukurau neighbours, Doug and Carol Isaacson.
Wilson, who has been one of New Zealand's most accomplished equestrian competitors, has four horses in work at the moment.
"I've got a couple of Zed 3-year-olds that are unraced and a Burgundy 2-year-old filly that shows a bit of promise."
The Burgundy filly created a big impression when winning a jumpout at Hastings earlier this season.
Well-bred filly prevails
Hastings-trained Vickezzmoet went a long way towards living up to her excellent breeding with a game debut win at last week's Waipukurau meeting.
The 3-year-old filly, prepared by Guy Lowry and Grant Cullen, capped off two recent wins in jumpouts at Hastings and Waipukurau, with a half-length victory over Rock Island Line in a 1200m maiden.
Jockey Masa Tanaka hunted the filly out from the number one barrier and had her trailing the race favourite Darci Palmer and Classy Lane until the home turn. He then drove her through an inside gap to take a clear lead 300m from the finish and the filly withstood a late charge from Rock Island Line.
The winner was overlooked by the punters, returning a dividend of $23.50 for a win and $3.90 for a place.
"I was surprised she paid so much considering she has won a jumpout at Hastings and one at Waipukurau in the past month," co-trainer Guy Lowry said.
Vickezzmoet is a daughter of the now deceased stallion O'Reilly out of the Don Eduardo mare Vickezzchardonnay.
Cambridge-based Murray Baker was training in partnership with his son Bjorn when they had Vickezzchardonnay in their stable.
The mare was the winner of five races and filled a first five placing 21 times from 29 starts. She won the Group 3 Taranaki Cup (2000m) and was runner-up in the Listed Warstep Stakes (2000m) at Riccarton and fourth in the 2009 Group 1 Auckland Cup. She was also third behind Hoorang and Young Centaur in the 2008 Group 2 New Zealand Cup (3200m) at Riccarton and fourth in the following year's Group 2 Wellington Cup (3200m).
Vickezzchardonnay was raced by Cambridge-based Tony Rider. He is also the breeder and owner of Vickezzmoet and a long-time supporter of the Lowry/Cullen stable.
Vickezzchardonnay has also left the winner Splendido and has since produced a yearling filly and a weanling filly, both by Sacred Falls.
Overdue hurdle success
Hastings trainer Paul Nelson breathed a sigh of relief when his jumper Perry Mason finally broke through for a maiden hurdle win at last Saturday's Waikato meeting at Te Rapa.
The Zed 8-year-old was having his 12th jumping start, with his previous best placings being three thirds over hurdles.
"We actually thought he would win a jumping race earlier on but it has taken him a couple of seasons," Nelson said.
"He's always shown us plenty as a jumper but I think he'll make a better steeplechaser than a hurdler in time."
Former Hastings-based jockey Aaron Kuru partnered Perry Mason to victory in the 2800m maiden event. He settled the Zed 8-year-old in fourth place in the early stages but had a life when the horse hit the top of the fence with 800m to run and momentarily lost contact with the first three.
To Perry Mason's credit he recovered quickly and ranged up to join the leaders coming to the second-to-last jump before taking a clear lead soon after.
He didn't negotiate the last jump that well but had enough in reserve to win by half a length from Cashel, with a gap of 5-1/2 lengths back to third placed Justnametheprice.
Perry Mason had recorded three previous wins on the flat, the most recent being over 2200m at Rotorua in July 2016. He was formerly owned and trained by Levin couple Sylvia and Paddy Kay but is now raced by the I See Red Syndicate, a large group of racing enthusiasts that have raced a number of horses from the Nelson stable over many years.
Redshaw name to the fore
The memory of one of Hawke's Bay racing's stalwarts, Laurence Redshaw, was brought to the fore again when Elle Eye Are was successful in a 1400m maiden race at Matamata on Wednesday of last week.
Redshaw, who died in May 2016, was a prominent Hawke's Bay thoroughbred owner-breeder as well as a long-time racing administrator of Hawke's Bay Racing.
Elle Eye Are was named after his initials and was one of the last horses Cambridge trainer Murray Baker bought on his behalf, paying $42,500 for the filly at the select session of the 2016 Karaka yearling sales.
Elle Eye Are is by Rip Van Winkle out of the Singspiel mare Bella Rosalia and is a half-sister to the Darci Brahma mare Strolling Vagabond, who has recorded six wins, five seconds and four thirds from the Opaki stable of Gerald Innes.
Elle Eye Are is now raced by the estate of Laurence Redshaw in partnership with Napier couple Alister and Jeannette Cameron and Gisborne's Geoff Candy.
The filly was resuming from a spell last week after her three previous starts this season had resulted in a third, a sixth and a seventh.
"She is not a very big filly and Murray Baker always said she would be a horse that would need time but hopefully she can go on with it now," Alister Cameron said this week.
Elle Eye Are certainly showed great potential with her victory as she was well back off the pace on the home turn and had to weave a passage through the field before responding to a hard ride from jockey Jonathan Riddell to get up and win by a length.
Jumping star in the making
Zentangle, a horse part-owned by Hawke's Bay's Jason Donnelly, indicated he is in for a successful jumping campaign when winning a 2500m open hurdle race at Riverton on Wednesday of last week.
The big Chinese Dragon 6-year-old was having just his second start back from a spell after finishing third over 1950m on the flat at Blenheim on April 27.
Zentangle is trained by Whanganui-based Kevin Myers, who is one of the country's masters at conditioning and preparing jumpers. He gave the horse two hurdle starts last year for a win over 3000m at Timaru and a fifth over the same distance at Whanganui before putting him aside and waiting for him to strengthen a bit more.
Ridden by Shaun Fannin, Zentangle was always in control in last week's race. After taking an early lead he raced clear over the final stages to score by 2-1/4 lengths.
Zentangle is raced by Jason Donnelly together with the estate of his late father Jim, Kevin Myers and former jumps jockey Charlie Gestro, who has worked in the Myers stable for many years.