As she is Northern Hemisphere-bred, you could argue she is now only really seven and not eight, her official age in Australia, but either way the Golden Grannies have rarely had it so good, with major-race cameos last season from Deny Knowledge (Might And Power Stakes Group 1) and Pride Of Jenni.
La Crique may be seven but she has only had 26 starts and has trialled like a three-year-old in two public outings this campaign.
“She has been very good,” says co-trainer Simon Alexander.
“Michael [McNab, jockey] has come back in after both trials and said she feels better than ever.
“She has had those hoof issues in the past, which aren’t bothering her now obviously, and she seems a really happy horse.”
La Crique heads to the $400,000 Proisir Plate at Ellerslie on September 6 looking to become a very rare seven-year-old mare winning a weight-for-age Group 1 in New Zealand in recent years.
“Maybe the 1400m will be a little too short for her but you wouldn’t think it the way she has been trialling,” says Alexander, who trains La Crique with wife Katrina.
“What she does in the Proisir will tell us whether we stick around for the other two legs of the Triple Crown.”
There are plenty of younger mares standing between La Crique and the Ellerslie winner’s circle, though, with Grail Seeker (five-year-old), Legarto (six) and Tomodachi (five) ahead of her in the market.
Grail Seeker is the equal $4 favourite and one of four reps trainers Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott are aiming at the Proisir.
“At this stage the intention is for them all to be there,” O’Sullivan told the Herald.
“Waitak will go straight to the race after his trial at Taupō but we will give Grail Seeker, Tomodachi and Checkmate an outing somewhere this week.
“The first option is for all three of them to trial at Te Awamutu on Tuesday but if the track comes up too wet there, they will all go to Ellerslie for the open trackwork they have there this Thursday.”
Legarto galloped between races early at Te Rapa on Saturday so she heads straight to the Proisir, while her stablemate Alabama Lass has pleased co-trainer Ken Kelso and won’t need another public outing before she goes to Melbourne next week.
She is one of the favourites for the A$750,000 ($829,000) Moir Stakes at Group 1 level at The Valley on September 6, to be run just an hour or two after the Proisir Plate.
“I am happy with both of our mares and since she is only going 1000m fresh up, she is ready enough,” says Kelso.
Michael Guerin wrote his first nationally published racing articles while still in school and started writing about horse racing and the gambling industry for the Herald as a 20-year-old in 1990. He became the Herald’s Racing Editor in 1995 and covers the world’s biggest horse racing carnivals.
