KEY POINTS:
Mark Sanders begins a training partnership with his father Graeme next month and he is hopeful a prelude to its success is on show at today's Waipa meeting at Te Awamutu.
The start of the new racing season on August 1 will see the formation of Mark and
Graeme Sanders as training partners.
Mark Sanders replaces his sister Debbie Sweeney. She has trained in partnership with her father for the last eight seasons.
A few months ago Sweeney became a mother for the first time and her husband Mark resumed his successful career as a jockey after being sidelined for two years with injury.
Mark Sanders, 29, has worked for his father for the last five years, of which the last two have been as stable foreman.
But he has not always been directly involved with horses. He completed an apprenticeship as a builder and for a short time was self-employed.
Sanders said he wanted to have a trade behind him before he made a commitment to horse training.
"I always wanted to do it [horse training]," Sanders said yesterday. "I just wanted to get something behind me first."
Sanders was assisting his father when he found it started to compromise his work as a builder.
"Dad got busy and while I was helping him I ended up having to turn down [building] work," he said.
"I made a decision to take up the horses for a while to see how I go and I haven't been back."
Today's meeting at Te Awamutu is a local one for the Sanders' stable and it is usually one worth following.
The stable has seven horses entered and Mark Sanders said there are several good chances among them, including Our Mavourneen who is part-owned and will be ridden by Mark Sweeney in the $25,000 open class sprint over 1150m.
The 5-year-old mare has the promising record of five wins from 19 starts. Three of the wins have been on heavy tracks, which are the likely conditions for today.
Il Bacaro, who is in race seven, was another form runner for the stable. Il Bacaro won his first two starts of his present campaign and next time out was second at Hastings last Saturday when having his first start over 2000m.
"I would have to say Il Bacaro should be hard [to beat]. He's really fit at the moment and he probably looks the best in the stable," Sanders said.
He also had high hopes for Dankashay in race 10. The Danske 3-year-old gelding made a winning debut at Te Awamutu last month.
The horse Sanders would personally like to see do well is Arukas in race six.
He owns Arukas in partnership with his father. They purchased the Sakura Seeking 3-year-old gelding for $15,000 and the horse ran his best race in five starts when second at Te Awamutu on June 17 over 2000m, the same distance he will race today.
- NZPA