Hawke's Bay-bred Surf Patrol added to her consistent form line with another game win at Saturday's Wanganui meeting, her seventh success.
The Towkay 6-year-old mare boosted her stake earnings to more than $91,000 when taking out a $15,000 Rating 75 race over 2040m.
Jockey Kelly Myers settled the mare back off the pace in the early stages and then sent her forward approaching the home turn. She finished strongly down the centre of the track to beat Our Zeby by half a neck, with Don'tlikemonday just half a head behind in third place.
Surf Patrol, who is trained at Awapuni by Mike Breslin, has also recorded seven seconds and four thirds from her 46 starts. She was bred by Pourerere's Sue Harty who races the mare in partnership with other clients of the Breslin stable.
Surf Patrol is out of the Justice Prevails mare Out On Bail, who was the winner of three races for Harty and has been one of her most successful broodmares. Her first four foals to race have now won 28 races between them, with Ocean Storm (four wins), Parole (eight wins), Acquit (nine wins) and Surf Patrol (seven wins).
Harty now has a yearling filly by Patapan out of Out On Bail and the mare is back in foal to Per Incanto. She says that the mare's progeny have all been very tough horses with a great will to win.
Back to his best
Hawke's Bay-owned Bar Keeper bounced back to his best form with an all-the-way victory in a $12,500 Rating 65 1600m race at Saturday's Wanganui meeting.
The big Keeper 6-year-old, with Robert Hannam in the saddle, was allowed to dictate his own rules in front and kicked clear in the home straight to win by 1 and one-half lengths. It was his first win since he took out a Rating 65 1400m event at Awapuni in July but he had indicated he was close to another success when finishing a close second over 1600m at Otaki last month. Bar Keeper is trained at Awapuni by Lisa Latta and was bred by Te Aute-based couple Steve Brougham and Jenni Tomlins. They race the gelding in partnership with another Hawke's Bay couple, John and Annette Millmine.
Standing at more than 17 hands high, Bar Keeper is out of the Whiskey Road mare Hangover Street, who had previously left the good performers My Hangover (five wins) and Special Reserve (eight wins). Brougham and Tomlins have sold the mare to owners in the South Island and she has since produced a filly by My Halo and is due to foal to Edenwold.
Promising stayer
Hermosa Novia, bred and owned by Hawke's Bay couple Elliot and Mary Cooper, chalked up her third win from just 11 starts with a strong staying performance in a $20,000 Rating 65 2100m event at last Friday's Levin premier meeting at Otaki.
The Handsome Ransom mare was forced to cover plenty of extra ground in middle stages of the race but still managed to outstay her rivals for a comfortable win.
Hermosa Novia is trained at Awapuni by Ashley Meadows and the 4-year-old is out of the O'Reilly mare O'Reilly's Bride, who is a daughter of the Centaine mare Centabride and from a family that traces back to the very good racemare Bridesmaid.
Two HB race days
The Hawke's Bay region will stage two days of racing within the next eight days, with the annual Waipukurau Jockey Club's Christmas meeting on the Waipukurau track this Sunday and a Hawke's Bay Racing twilight meeting at Hastings the following Thursday.
The Waipukurau meeting will feature the running of the $10,000 Summer Cup, a Rating 75 race over 2200m and a a $12,000 bonus stake race for maiden fillies and mares over 1200m.
Tomorrow week's Hawke's Bay meeting has a quick-fire programme, with the first race timed for 3.08pm and the last at 7.15pm.