ROB'S SHOUT - A FRUSTRATING TWENTY-FOUR HOURS BUT WE LIVE TO FIGHT ANOTHER DAY

By Robert Heathcote | Thursday, April 25, 2013

Robert Heathcote is the leading racehorse trainer in Brisbane. 'Rob's Shout' - the personal blog of the multi-premiership and Group 1 winning trainer will appear every Thursday on HRO, workload permitting.

Hello again,

How ironic was last Saturday! After about three months of incessant rain and wet tracks in Brisbane, I flew to Sydney to watch Solzhenitsyn and She’s A Danica compete on the big stage at Randwick and the heavens opened up and produced a deluge causing my two runners to be late scratching’s.

Back home in Brisbane it was a glorious day with a rapidly improving race track …

It sure was a frustrating day which involved early morning track work, a rushed flight to Sydney, the subsequent late scratching’s and then the return flight back to Brisbane, all in the space of a few hours.

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The flight touched down in Sydney around 11 am and my phone immediately got busy.

The knowledge that there had been plenty of rain and the track was already down to a heavy 9 was enough for me to seriously consider the merits of running my two horses.

I immediately spoke with Paul Willetts, the managing owner of Solzhenitsyn, and Melissa, my foreman and the decision was made to pull him out of the Doncaster.

It was a brave call from the owners but I have no doubt it was the right call which I hope to prove in the coming weeks.

A quick visit by Melissa to the Stewards room seeking permission to scratch and then a call from Greg Rudolph from the stewards’ room confirming our intention to scratch and I was back at the Qantas desk changing the return flight back home.

The two year old scratching was also a no brainer really being first up over 1200 and with no trial under her belt. She is now back home also and racing at Caloundra on Sunday for $6.5 grand instead of $80 grand … now that is sad!

Our jockey, Damian Browne and his wife Kim decided to stay for the day at Randwick but my wife and I caught the noon flight back to Brisbane. I didn’t feel the need to spend the day at a sodden, jam-packed Randwick trying to get a drink and something to eat … Eagle Farm looked far more appealing to me.( Incidentally, Damian and Kim spent about one hour at the track and then adjourned to the Doncaster pub for the day. Ha, I was right)

As we landed in Brisbane, I was in touch with Mikey (stable Foreman) who talked me through the good win of Volkhere so finally there was something to brighten up the day after a couple of close second placing’s in the first two races at Eagle Farm.

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There is no point in dwelling on what might have been at Randwick and there were plenty to give me advice.

The connections of both Solzhenitsyn and the two-year-old filly were disappointed not to race but the future and the well-being of the animals had to take priority.

It certainly has not helped with the preparation of Solzhenitsyn to get him up for his next two races over a bit of ground. He will now be third-up going into the Weight –For-Age Hollindale stakes next week at the Gold Coast. It will be a challenge to have him hard and fit enough for that gruelling assignment.

I am confident enough that he will be right for that race after the BRC put on a 1200m grass jump-out for us on the Tuesday at Doomben and Solzhenisyn had a good blow out in that winning it by eight lengths.

Perhaps my biggest fear to be honest is overcoming my hoodoo at the Gold Coast Coast track! Mind you, he is a Group 1 winner so this race may finally allay my fears about the track.

After the Hollindale, it will then be onto what, for me anyway. has been his primary objective and that is the Group 1 Doomben Cup.

Until they successfully do it, there are obvious doubts over the horse’s ability get the distance in his next two races over 1800 and 2020m, but my gut feeling is he will.

There is also the possibility after the Hollindale of aborting that plan and coming back to the Stradbroke distance but that is a decision we can look at later?

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I may have missed the win of Volkhere last Saturday but it did give me immense pleasure.

This chestnut son of Dehere has done a tremendous job this prep and he now gets his opportunity to step onto the big stage in the Tails Listed Handicap this Saturday at Doomben.

I always thought this lad would make a tidy middle distance stayer but fair to say he’s come further this prep than I imagined he would.

He has been up a while now so it will be this one … and maybe one more … and then he will have a well-earned break.

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Although this Saturday is not the official start of the winter carnival, it is for me as we have the return to racing of another of our stable stars.

Buffering is attempting to make it three Victory Stakes in a row although that won’t be official with the race canned last year and another lesser race taking its place. Still, it was at WFA and over 1200 and he won it so that was good enough for me.

It is only a small field again this year but plenty of quality with the likes of Ready To Rip and the two Boom horses from Tony Gollan.

Buffering did have a minor setback recently but he is well over that and I am confident he will line up not far off his peak. He has an excellent first-up record of five from six with his only miss a third placing behind two champions in Black Caviar and Hay List.

Only a small field but no doubt it will be an intriguing little tactical affair.

My bloke is a front running leader but no doubt Cassidy on the third of the Gollan runners in Listen Son would like to upset our plans as much as he can. I have had a long talk with Damian Browne and I am confident we can thwart whatever tactics are used against us.

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I will be disappointed if Buffering cannot win this race but I have also been around long enough to expect the unexpected and move on pretty quickly whatever happens.

I am tremendously excited about the upcoming winter, especially for Buffering in the hope that he can indeed shed his Group 1 maiden tag!

To think it will be easy to win a Group 1 would be foolish. Moody and Snowden already have runners here and Waller and Waterhouse and O’ Shea etc will be close behind. It is what the Winter Carnival is all about. Good strong competitive racing and whilst the great mare may be missing, I am sure there will still be plenty of excitement.

My stable has enjoyed plenty of successes the past few years with last year being especially good. I am not as optimistic about that happening this year but we will certainly be giving it our best shot.

My stable does not have the depth of previous carnivals but there are a couple I am hopeful can take the next step up.

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Sad but understandable to see the recent retirement of a number of turf stars. I know a little bit about that first hand because we recently retired my first Group 1 winner in Woorim.

Whilst he was not the biggest star compared to the feats of Black Caviar and Pierro and the soon to be retired All Too Hard, he was a champion to me and he will be missed by our stable team.

The same will happen one day with Solzhenitsyn and of course Buffering. Some will naturally reach the end of their time on the track. For others there will be a fight or two they have to win if they are to get through to that stage.

Fillydelphia is currently a case in point. She has been a great mare for our stable and she is currently at the Manly Road vet hospital fighting off a fungal eye infection so her carnival may be over this year before it starts and her career may be in doubt.

So there are some wonderful highs in racing but assuredly, always plenty of lows to go with it!

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I have no doubt that there will be other stars to come along and replace the present stars of the turf … .I just hope one or two of them are in my stable!

I can still remember just like it was yesterday … .the first runs of Buffering and Woorim and Solzhenitsyn, and even Fillydelphia and Funtantes, and they have all gone on to be fantastic for my stable.

I did not expect all of them to achieve what they have in their careers to date and I have been blessed to have them.

There is always a huge gap left when horses of this quality leave any stable let alone the likes of a Moody or a Waterhouse or a Hawkes yard such as the case with Black Caviar, Pierro and All Too Hard.

Australian Racing needs a pin up horse to hang their hat on so we will all now be eagerly awaiting the emergence of the next champion.

The beauty of racing is we don’t know when, we don’t know from which trainer or who will own it … but it will happen!

Best regards and good health.

Robert

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