Racing: Mind clear to celebrate double

Bruce Herd really has something to celebrate at Ellerslie, reports MIKE DILLON.

A few years ago chief stipe Noel McCutcheon stood Bruce Herd down from riding on Kelt Capital Stakes day at Hastings and suspended him for arriving at the track drunk.

Herd admitted at the time that he had consumed the best part of a bottle of whisky.

After winning the two feature races at Ellerslie on Saturday, the 30-year did not remember the occasion.

But that's not surprising - Herd does not remember much of his more than 10 years as an alcoholic.

Which makes his talented horsemanship today so impressive. And his openness.

Herd is frank about the lost years of his life and of his riding career, which had many hiccups because of his drinking.

"I knew I had a drinking problem when I was 17," he said after winning the $100,000 Lion Red Stakes on Armstrong on Saturday.

"I was always the last to leave.

"One drink was too many and 100 was never enough."

Herd decided he needed help after crashing his car coming home from a Wanganui race meeting a little more than two and a half years ago.

He admits he has fallen off the wagon a couple of times since, but has not had a drink of any description for 18 months.

"It's part of the process, falling off the wagon. But you work through it.

"When I first started the recovery, I couldn't come to terms with the fact I would never have another drink.

"Racing is a social game and for the first 18 months I didn't go out at all. Now I socialise a fair bit and I find I'm the designated driver an awful lot.

"It's a progressive disease and to get over it, it's a one-day-at-a-time job.

"When you're an alcoholic, you're an alcoholic for the rest of your life."

Herd cannot quantify how much his riding suffered during his heavy drinking days.

"But anyone who was drinking what I was drinking is on a road to nowhere."

Herd's weight has dropped dramatically since he stopped drinking.

"The weight did not drop off immediately, but after 18 months it came down from barely being able to ride at 55kg."

Herd says he is extremely grateful to his partner Lisa Latta.

Two races before the Lion Red Stakes Herd won the $100,000 Fayette Park Championship on Sixty Seconds with a fine piece of horsemanship.

Trainer Roger James asked Herd to travel north from his Central Districts base to ride Sixty Seconds and he landed the Armstrong ride simply because he was at Ellerslie.

"Roger has never worried about offering me a top ride when the opportunity suits," said Herd.

James said: "I've always liked Bruce's riding, I was never concerned about having him on Sixty Seconds."

These days Herd can savour much better his great moments on the track.

"At least now I can remember what happened the day and night before."

* Roger James is confident Sixty Seconds will remain in his stable next season, despite her almost certain sale to prominent English breeder Gerald Lee this week.

Sixty Seconds went into Saturday's race with a contract on her and James said there was little to tidy up for the sale from Queensland owner Jon Haseler.

"It's for big money," said James, but he would not be drawn into whether it was the biggest sale he had been involved in.

James admitted he had been worried, with plenty of justification, when Sixty Seconds was camped at the back of the field on a slow pace, which guaranteed a fast sprint from the 500m.

But Herd said he was never concerned Sixty Seconds would pick up Vapour Trail, who was ideally placed for the final sprint after sitting outside the pacemaking Venus Was Her Name.

"She's got a terrific sprint and I knew I had Vapour Trail well covered."

Sixty Seconds has remarkable athleticism for a very big filly.

And James is in love with the filly's temperament, which he says will be a huge plus when he takes her to Australia now for the $A400,000 Arrowfield Stud Stakes at Rosehill and the $A700,000 AJC Oaks. Brian York has been engaged to ride her in Australia.

Lance O'Sullivan felt the slightly shifting track took away some of Vapour Trail's ability to sprint hard in the finish.

"She needs a firm track," he said.

Trainer Donna Logan said Vapour Trail had come out of the race well and was in great shape yesterday morning.

"Bruce Sherwin, Peter Vela and I have to sit down and have a talk about where we go from here," she said.

Payments for several of the Australian options have to be made today.

With the scratching of Blackrock College Saturday morning because of track conditions, Vapour Trail was unchallenged as winner of the NZ Bloodstock Filly Of The Year series.