Carr’s ace Flyer to step up
QUALITY mare Queenborough Flyer earned the chance to tackle a Group race next month when she scored a resounding win in the $50,000 Cessiah Alice Millinery Lady Lynette over 1100 metres at Elwick on Sunday.
Queenborough Flyer was having only her seventh start but made some of her more seasoned rivals look mediocre, with the win taking her career prizemoney to over $100,000 and on target to tackle the Group 3 Bow Mistress Stakes over 1200m at Elwick on February 10.
The Siggy Carr-trained and ridden four-year-old went into the sprint for fillies and mares having not raced for eight weeks but Carr had the daughter of Alpine Eagle in peak condition for the feature race assignment.
Carr settled the mare fourth and just off the speed set by Jaja Chaboogie ($20) that flew the gates wearing blinkers for the first time with Take the Sit ($8) and Fairy Magic ($9.50) making a line of three nearing the first turn.
Fairy Magic worked a length clear nearing the home turn, but the early effort took its toll, as Jaja Chaboogie regained the outright lead and booted two lengths clear at the top of the home straight.
But when Carr angled her mare three-wide to challenge, the daughter of Alpine Eagle slowly but surely ground the leader down and went on to defeat The Julie Richardstrained mare by a length with
Sirene Stryker a closing third.
Carr struggled to hold back tears of joy as she brought Queenborough Flyer back to the unsaddling enclosure.
“Everyone knows we’ve had a lot of little problems with the mare and to get this result today is amazing,” Carr said. “The owners have been so patient and allowed me to do whatever we had to do to get her to the races and to all my staff who work so hard, I just want to say thank you.”
Carr gave the mare a big hug when she crossed the line and again when she dismounted.
“The mare has always been a bit special to me and she knows it too,” she said.
Queenborough Flyer is set to progress to the $150,000 Group 3 Bow Mistress over 1200m on February 10 at Elwick. “I’m sure she will be even better over 1200 metres, so the Bow Mistress will be her next start and she deserves the chance to win a Group race,” Carr said.
Carr said Queenborough Flyer could end her prep in the Group 3 Vamos Stakes (1400m) on Launceston Cup Day (February 22) but she admitted she isn’t sure the mare is as genuine over 1400m.