A rollercoaster week that saw her ride a pair of winning doubles while coping with the loss of a beloved family member has made for a mixed start to the new year for top jockey Lisa Allpress.
After picking up a brace of wins at the Tauherenikau meeting at the end of December, Allpress was back in winning action again at Awapuni on January 8 where she guided the Kevin Gray-trained sprinter Stumpy to victory in race three before repeating the dose aboard the Lisa Latta-trained Wild Moose in race 5.
The win on Wild Moose in a race named in honour of thoroughbred enthusiast Kelvin Woodmass, who passed away in 2018, held special significance for Allpress after losing her husband Karl's grandfather Stan during the week.
"It has been a pretty tough week as Karl's granddad Stan passed away. I wore a black armband for all my rides on Saturday and I was thrilled to win the race named in honour of Kelvin Woodmass as his children went to school with mine and we know the family well. His wife Mel sent me a lovely message afterwards which was very special."
Allpress believes that Wild Moose has plenty more wins in store for his trainer and connections after producing a tenacious effort to take out the open 1600m contest.