Ex-NZ mare boss in Sydney Cup
with it.’’ Stirling, who joined Vance on the walk along with several friends and CatWalk representative Pip McCarroll, says she was impressed with how Vance tackled the challenge. ‘‘She was so determined that I
worried, I knew she would do it one way or the other.
‘‘I went with her, I wouldn’t have wanted her to do it on her own. It’s my job as her physio to make sure that she achieves her goals, but she is safe.’’
There was another person that was supposed to join the expedition. Glynn.
Glynn Brick, the trainer of Zedsational, had promised to join Vance on her climb up the Mount. He had been there
Maija Vance
throughout Vance’s recovery, regularly making the drive up from Cambridge to Auckland to visit her in hospital.
He stayed with her too, on that fateful day in Rotorua when Vance was carted away by ambulance with a grim prognosis.
One week before Vance was due to do her walk, Brick died in a car accident on the outskirts of Cambridge.
Vance had heard the sirens scream past her house on the Sunday night. She didn’t learn until the next day they were attending to Brick.
‘‘It was such a shock. devastated,’’ says Vance.
‘‘Glynn was the absolute best. From one of the worst days of my
I was life he was right by my side and my biggest supporter. I don’t think anyone was happier than him when I started walking. I’ll never forget everything he has done for me and how lucky I was to have him cheering me on the whole way.’’
Vance had considered not going through with the walk after the tragic news. But, after farewelling Brick on Friday, she decided he would have wanted her to do it.
Several of the group, including prominent members of the racing community Kylie and Noel Harris and Zedsational’s owner, Mandy Good, wore black armbands in honour of Brick.
‘‘He was definitely still a big part of the day,’’ said Vance.
Brick’s passing has given Vance the inspiration for her next goal.
Following the accident, Zedsational was retired from racing.
‘‘We were going to bring him back, but the emotions involved were just too high,’’ Brick said last year.
The ghostly grey is now down in the Central Districts and has been entered in show-jumping events.
‘‘I thought a cool thing to do once the lockdown is over is if I went down there one day and did some showjumping on him,’’ Vance said.
‘‘Everyone has seen the fall, and how horrible it was. And also a lot of people were worried about whether the horse was going to be okay.
‘‘So I think it would be cool if I were to get a video of me jumping him again, just to show that we’re both okay.’’
Jockey Glen Boss considered her his best longshot ride in a Group One race and former Kiwi mare Etah James has proven him right, upsetting her more-fancied rivals to win the $NZ1.3m Sydney Cup at Randwick.
Making her debut for cotrainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace yesterday, the welltravelled mare has spent most of her career in Victoria with Matt Cumani, before a brief stint with part-owner and New Zealand trainer Mark Lupton.
Transferred for a Sydney Cup campaign, Etah James ($14) proved the superior stayer in the stamina-testing edition of the 3200m race.
The victory gave Boss back-toback G1 wins after he took out the Australian Oaks (2400m) on Colette, with Kiwi hope Probabeel well back, and while he feared English visitor and favourite Young Rascal, he had genuine confidence in Etah James.
‘‘I’ve been riding her in work and I trialled her here in a very fast trial and I said, ‘this is just flying this thing’,’’ Boss said.
The win ended a 16-year Sydney Cup drought for Boss, who last won it in 2004 aboard champion stayer Makybe Diva.
Etah James ran her last 600m in a dour 38.66sec to score by a long head over the Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman-trained Kiwi stayer The Chosen One ($18).
Etah James is part-owned and bred by Matamata horseman
‘‘I was mostly pretty surprised with how my body coped with it.’’
Lupton, who trained the sevenyear-old mare to run third in the Avondale Cup (2400m) and fourth in the Auckland Cup (3200m).
Celebrations are in-house for the time being, but Lupton was overwhelmed with the volume of messages he has already received.
‘‘I think the local Italian eatery might be getting booked out at some stage and there might be a fair old party.’’
■ KIWI mare Verry Elleegant took her earnings past $3m with a game second to British raider Addeybb in the $2.3m QEII Stakes.
Part-owned in New Zealand, she unwound strongly to grab second, just ahead of Danon Premium. Matamata stablemates Te Akau Shark and Melody Belle were game in fourth and fifth.
“I am sure the Melbourne Cup [November] is where she is going and it would be bloody beautiful if the internationals didn’t come,” said breeder and part-owner Don Goodwin.