Blitzthemcalder ran brilliant time in his Prince Of Speed victory back in March and he will be out to do it again Sunday.
If you’d seen Blitzthemcalder thump his rivals on Great Southern Star night, or even the night he lost any chance in his Vicbred Super Series as a juvenile then picked himself up off the deck and charged late, you’d think you’ve seen it all.
Maybe it was even his slashing Great Northern Derby win that stands out as the highlight of a squaregaiting career that includes the Trotter Of The Year award as a two-year-old.
For his owner however, that moment hasn’t yet come to pass.
Because, for Rick Burchell and everything he has come to know about his superstar colt, this Sunday could well be the defining day of his racetrack career.
In fact, there was a quiver in his voice as he spoke of the weekend. There is no doubt in his mind the horse has never been as well as he is now and for all he has already done, it’s a pretty scary thought.
“The horse is sensational. He’s primed, ready to go and Ross (Payne, trainer) has got him screwed right down. I think it may be the race of his life,” Burchell said.
It’s not your average tale either; Blitzthemcalder comes from a mix and match of bloodlines that have been carefully planned by the Mount Duneed breeder.
When the three-year-old’s granddam, Maoris Dream was matched with one of the most notable trotting stallions in America – Balanced Image – Like A Calder was born, providing the building blocks for Burchell’s plan.
It’s certainly paying dividends with Blitzthemcalder already a genuine star of the sport and the warning is there are more to come.
“I thought the cross between the Maori line and the Balanced Image line from America just makes a real foundation for the future of breeding,” Burchell said.
“I have one out of a sister to Like A Calder called Lightning Calder and I’ve seen it for my own eyes, I believe it could be anything and so does Ross (Payne).
“We took him to the trials at Geelong a few weeks back which he won. He probably lost 50 or 100 metres at the beginning then 100 metres before home he tripped up and broke but still won the trial.”
For now there is only one thing on the mind of connections however, and that will be the task of bringing Spidergirl, Our Dreamlover and the Glenferrie pair undone, something he can already lay claim to doing in the Victoria Trotters Derby at Maryborough a month ago.
Drawn six (five with the emergency out), he will have time to find his feet early before turning it on mid-race, as has become customary.
Burchell has no qualms about the barrier either.
“Six is probably not too bad because we’re on the front. With the emergency in five we should end up there and I’d be satisfied with that draw,” he said.
“I think he’s proven to Australia and the world that if he behaves he may be one of the best trotting horses in Australia for being a three-year-old. We believe and we feel through his work that he’s only improving week by week.”
Post the Breeders Crown mayhem, trainer Ross Payne will be taking up a post as stable foreman for Mark Purdon in New Zealand.
That begs the inevitable question of where Blitzthemcalder will head following Sunday.
The immediate answer is that there is no answer.
“I’ll leave the decision on a trainer until after the Breeders Crown to see how he goes and then we’ll work it out but there hasn’t been any decision as yet. There is still a possibility that he could go overseas but at this moment I’m leaning to staying in Victoria.” Burchell said.
That possibility has to have any trotting fan intrigued.
New Zealand is of course overseas however there would no doubt be other possibilities swirling around given the lure of a northern hemisphere sojourn may become impossible to refuse.
Particularly given the lengths that Burchell will go to in order to create success, evidenced by the fact he purchased an old mobile from the Geelong club when his headline horse was struggling to trot off the arm.
After sharing a drink with a trotting friend he became aware of the opportunity to invest in the vehicle and after it was fixed up, it headed out to help Ross Payne get their star right.
Talk of any sale which was rumoured earlier in the year has gone by the wayside too as Burchell is preferring to enjoy his squaregaiter on the track rather than at stud.
It’s an admirable sentiment and something we rarely see in this day an age of precious juvenile racing.
“I’ve taken all ideas of selling him off the market now. I want to keep racing him while he is racing well,” he said.
“If he continues racing well we will look at stud in four or five years but at the moment we just want to enjoy him as a racehorse. From what Ross (Payne) and Chris (Alford, driver) tell me, he is just improving all the time which is pretty amazing.”
