Tasmanian Harness Highlights – Wednesday, 30 May

30 May 2018 | Duncan Dornauf
Logo

It’s all about the ‘Young Guns’ of Tasmanian harness racing at present.

Last week it was the state’s best bred three-year-old’s on display in the 6tyo Bandbox which was won by Nostra Beach and the Roberts Equine Supplies Globe Derby Stakes which was won brilliantly by Izaha.

Both horses will be more than competitive in feature three-year-old races across Bass Straight in the final few months of the season.

This week sees the “Young Guns” of the human variety in the spotlight with the first two heats of the 6tyo Youngbloods Challenge being held in Devonport on Friday evening before heats three and four in Hobart on Sunday night.

The Stars

Emma Stewart and Chris Alford – Victoria’s leading trainer and driver combined for five (including two track records) of the 11 winners in Launceston on Friday evening. It was the third time this season and the 11th time in his career that Alford has achieved the feat. It was the ninth time in Emma Stewart’s training career that she has prepared five winners on the one program.

Nostra Beach – star three-year-old filly who easily won the Group 3 Bandbox. The daughter of Somebeachsomewhere will be expecting her first foal this season by top sire American Ideal, after an embryo transfer took place during the past breeding season.

Izaha (inside) holding of Feelin Dusty in the 2018 Globe Derby Final on Friday.

Izaha – the Todd Rattray trained and driven pacer followed in the footsteps of his older half-brother Harjeet when he added the Group 3 Globe Derby Final to his resume. The son of Roll With Joe now boosts an impressive record of six wins from 11 starts.

Mark Yole – told tasracing.com.au’s Live Stream audience that he was confident that he would hold the lead on Rocknrollhighlight and that the mare would be very hard to rundown. Yole’s plan paid off and the viewers that invested on the local tote would have been more than happy with the $20 starting price.

Ricky Duggan – after driving four winners in Hobart the previous week, the master driver continued his brilliant form in Launceston with a driving double.

Hannah Van dongen – warmed up for this week’s 6tyo Youngbloods Challenge with a win aboard Long Ago which now gives Van dongen a one-win lead in the states female drivers premiership.

Multiple Winners

Launceston – Friday

Emma Stewart – five training wins and Chris Alford five driving wins; Ride High, Nostra Beach, Shes Magnetic, Another Safari and Perfect Major.

Ricky Duggan – driving double; Falcon Harry and Mi Ju Dan.

Ben Yole – training double; Rocknrollhighlight and Long Ago.

Calculated Sectional Standouts

Quickest last halves (800m) from last week’s action in Launceston on Friday.
Nostra Bech 56.10, Ride High 56.70, Ideal Bliss 56.94, Feelin Dusty 56.99 and Shes Magnetic 57.01.

View all Tasmanian Sectional Data here.

Tasracing Official Price

Launceston
Hit’s: Izaha $2.60 into $2.00, Shes Magnetic $2.10 into $1.85 and Perfect Major $1.40 into $1.28.
Defied The Drift: Rocknroll Highlights $13 out to $15, Another Safari $1.85 out to $2.50, Long Ago $7 out to $8 and Falcon Harry $4.40 out to $5.00
Missed: Scooterwillrev $3.20 into $2.80 and Regal Ashes $12 into $9.50.

Black Booker

Blossom Grant

Debutant from the Scott Woods stable who has featured in the Trial File in previous weeks was a brave third on Friday evening. Driver Brady Woods positioned the daughter of Art Major one-out and one-back before making up good ground during the back straight quarter where she was recorded by the Tasracing Calculated Sectionals in 28.79secs. She battled on well in the home straight with her last quarter clocked in 29.12sec and was only defeated by a half head for second position by Karalta Moondance.

Watch the replay here.

Trial File

Hobart on Monday

Four-year-old entire Jaks Teller recorded an impressive 2:00.1 mile rate when winning the first trial of the night off a 40-meter handicap for the 2090-metre journey.

The Juanita McKenzie trained pacer defeated Streetside Classic by 2 metres in a 59.5 last half mile.

Other winners at the Hobart trials included; Resurgent Storm (2:01.6), Pezzamystic (2:09.2), Albayzin (2:02.9), Boris Bananas (2:05.7) and Dasher Houli (2:01.9).

Devonport on Monday

The Ben Yole trained Another Swinger resumed from a month away from the race track with a 2-metre win in a C2-C9 class trial. The mile rate 2:03.9 for the 2297-metre trip was clearly the quickest mile rate across the four trials held.

The remaining three trial winners were; Hez The One (2:05.0), Smokey Mac (2:09.7) and Mister Last (2:07.9).

Week Ahead

The first two rounds of heats of the 6tyo Youngbloods Challenge will be held this weekend for the state’s best up and coming drivers.

The first two heats will open the seven race card in Devonport on Friday evening.

The drivers selected are Dylan Ford, Taylor Ford, Samantha Gangell, Matthew Howlett, Braden Howlett, Samantha Freeman, Wade Rattray (emergency), Hannah Van dongen, Brady Woods, Charlie Castles and Germain Boisrame.

Boisrame is a 21-year-old driver who drove eight winners in his home country of France before moving out to Australia earlier this year where he has taken up employment with trainer-driver Todd Rattray.

Alreadyy nicknamed “The French Man” amongst participants, Boisrame has been allocated the drive on the Craig Hayes trained Semowillrev in the opening heat. The talented three-year-old pacer has won seven races from 10 career starts and goes into Friday’s race off a last-start third in the Tasmanian Derby.

Boisrame will drive the Kate MacLeod-trained Rattlenhum in Heat Two, who looks to be amongst the winning chances after the pacers top three placings in his last three starts.

A further two heats of the 6tyo Youngbloods Challenge will be held on Sunday night in Hobart.

The eyes of many harness racing fans will be tuned into the final race of the Hobart card to see the current star of Tasmanian harness racing, Harjeet, who is resuming to the race track for the first time since winning the Group 3 Raider Stakes in early May.

The Todd Rattray trained and driven gelding is being aimed at the Vicbred Series which commences in late June.

Rattray’s partner Lyrae Graham, owns star three-year-old Iganatius who will commence his NSW Breeders Challenge mission when he lines up in a heat at Penrith on Thursday evening. The James Rattray-trained and driven pacer has drawn barrier 2 on the second row in the eight-horse field that is due to start at 18:49.

Havea look at horses with Tasmanian interest that are racing at metropolitan venues this weekend:

Melton – Saturday night
Race 2 – 12. Fowsands*
Race 9 – 2. Isaac

Menangle – Saturday night
Race 6 – 4. Pachacuti* and 7. Blue Pointer*
Race 8 – 6. Rykov Leis*

*donates Tasbred horses.

 

Related News

29 March 2024
Gibson family honoured in more ways than one at Bathurst Carnival
SINCE the inception of the Bathurst Gold Crown in 1987, the Gibson family and their Success Stud have positively contributed to shaping the hugely-successful juvenile carnival. Originally based in Queensland before relocating to the idyllic Young region, the late John Gibson initially operated Success...
29 March 2024
Group 1 mares add star power to Riverina Championships
Four Group 1 winning mares - including two currently considered to be among the nation’s best - will clash in an intriguing battle at the Riverina Championships finals program at Wagga on Sunday. The meeting features two $100,000 finals for four and five year-old pacers - one each for the boys...
29 March 2024
Ford looking for Gold on Good Friday
The combined harness and greyhound meeting on Good Friday night in Hobart is fast becoming a Tassie racing tradition, and it’s back again with eight greyhound races and six harness events making up this year’s 14-race program. Driver Dylan Ford will be out to continue his excellent start...
28 March 2024
New HRV chair Adam Kilgour on challenges, opportunities
Newly appointed Harness Racing Victoria chair Adam Kilgour says his passion for a challenge and the people in racing drives his desire to strengthen the industry. Kilgour was yesterday announced to replace Dale Monteith as the head of the board, on which he has served since 2018, and said he was eager...
28 March 2024
La sun of a gun emerges as Blackbook zeros in on breeding line
La Machane won 20 of her 61 starts and more than $330,000 for connections in Ross and Greg Sugars' care and the mare's making just as big an impression in the breeding barn. Having given us La Puddie ($137,179) and La Captain ($182,020), the Bettors Delight mare has another nice type in Benbullan, who...
Click for more