Fun in the sun
SUNHATS replaced fascinators as the favourite at Dunedin’s annual big day at the races this year.
A light breeze, a lot of sunshine and a temperature of 18degC greeted smaller crowds at the annual Melbourne Cup Day at Wingatui yesterday afternoon at Wingatui Racecourse.
Without the Fashion in the Field competition — a casualty due to planning for the event amid a global pandemic — sixtime attendee Eve Aitken, of Dunedin, noted the number of fascinators in the field was down from previous years.
The day had been quiet so far, without as much of the ‘‘fun stuff’’ as in past years, she said.
But she was enjoying the day out and hoping for some good results on the track.
‘‘It’s nice to have a nice sunny day,’’ she said. ‘‘
Otago Racing committee member Sharyn Anderton hosted the 200person capacity soldout marquee on the lawn.
Because the day had been organised in such a way that it could have gone ahead under Alert Level 2 conditions if required, there had been changes to the event’s layout this year.
Gone was the ‘‘village concept’’ of smaller marquees on the lawn but its big marquee replacement had been ‘‘brilliant’’, Mrs Anderton said.
Cup day featured the standard nine races, followed by the live broadcast of the Melbourne Cup on large screens.
A police spokeswoman said two males were arrested for streaking and received precharge warnings.
They were trespassed from Wingatui Racecourse for a period of two years.
GALLANT BOY — yes he is.
The 10yrold gelding cruised to a third consecutive win in the open handicap at the Melbourne Cup Day meeting at Wingatui.
The son of Gallant Guru and Mega Babe won the race in 2018 and again last year.
He completed the hat trick yesterday with an impressive run in the 1400m feature race.
He rounded the corner in fourth place and in a nice position to strike.
Gallant Boy surged to the lead with a degree of comfort and won by just under half a length from Quintuple Twins. Kilowatt was a further length or so back.
It was a tremendous effort. He was carrying the most weight at 62kg, and had not raced since February.
Trainers Shane and Brian Anderton did a great job keeping the horse in top condition.
‘‘He’s been a great old horse over the years,’’ Shane Anderton said.
‘‘I couldn’t be happier with him.’’
Gallant Boy, who was ridden by Rahul Beeharry, now has 14 career wins and has won more than $350,000 in prize money.
‘‘He has always had a big heart and has been competitive all his life.’’
That competitive spirit made preparing the horse relatively easy, Anderton said.
‘‘He still has more in him if we pick the right races. He is not quite up with the top level any more, but White Robe is probably a good run for him.’’
Prominent jockey Chris Johnson had a successful day as well.
The 56yearold collected four wins to lift his career tally to 2447. He is now just four wins short of the country’s most successful domestic jockey, David Walsh.
One of his better rides was on board Secret Sound. The 5yrold bay mare produced a terrific finish to edge Mint Julep.
She emerged from the heavy traffic with a perfectly timed run to the line.
Trainer and part owner Terry Kennedy was very satisfied with the race.
‘‘She would have been unlucky to be beaten. She got held up a bit down the home straight but Chris managed to get her out of a tight gap for the win.
‘‘It helps having Chris. He can see things coming before they get there and he took a couple of strides before getting her out.’’
Secret Sound’s next assignment shapes as the Boxing Day races at Wingatui.
Kennedy is confident she will ‘‘go through the grades’’ and has more to give.
Leading apprentice Kozzi Asano had a decent day as well. He started with a win in race 1 on The Gift and did a good job of getting Club Spirit to the lead at the right time in the 1200m race 5 as well.