DOOM FEB 20 - TABULATE EARNS HIS FIFTH SUCCESS

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Doomben, February 20, 2010.
Track - Dead 5. Rail - out 1.5m.
Open Handicap - 2200m. Time: 2-17.26. (Carrying 53kg).
1 Tabulate; 2 Honour Happy List; 3 Regal Castanea.

The Robert Heathcote trained Tabulate landed the fifth win of his career when he outstayed the main fancy Honour Happy List (who was giving the winner 3kg) to win by 1.80 lengths.

Jockey Jim Byrne settled Tabulate in fourth spot in the six-horse field. Tabulate was positioned right behind the his market rival Happy Honour List, who was given the run of the race in third spot along the rail behind the leader Regal Castanea and Kinsmate. Yield Curve and Tripitz followed Tabulate as the runners maintained their positions for the first 1700m of the race.

It was only late in the sweep to the home turn that things started to hot up.

Byrne switched Tabulate out wider on the track and the gelding was up to third, three wide, just two lengths off the front-runner Regal Castanea on straightening. Tabulate had a straight, uninterrupted run to the line and the same opportunity was afforded Honour Happy List on inside running rail when Regal Castanea shifted ground on cornering giving up the rail run to Honour Happy List who, thus didn’t have to go around a horse.

Regal Castanea soon became the meat in the sandwich as Honour Happy List (on his inside) and Tabulate (on his outside) moved forward to dispute the lead in what became a three horse contest as Kinsmate dropped away and Yield Curve and Tripitz failed to do enough from behind to get into contention.

Regal Castanea fought on well enough in the first half of the straight, but he was a spent force with 150m left to run and it took Tabulate another 100m to get the better of Honour Happy List, but he did just that to move away in the concluding stages to win by a comfortable margin.

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Melissa Leitch (spokesperson for the Robert Heathcote stable): “We just left it up to Jimmy (Byrne). We had barrier three. We knew we didn’t have to go back to last. We figured we’d be third or fourth and Larry (Cassidy, on Regal Castanea) would take the speed up ... and, yeah, like I said, we just left it up to Jimmy.

“The horse deserves the win. He’s been very unlucky ... wide alleys and that. No, we are very happy with the win.

“We’re looking towards the Coloundra Cup with him. We think he is a nice Coloundra Cup horse, considering he likes the sting out of the ground too. He doesn’t mind a wet track. He’ll stay all day.

“He won the lead-up race to the Grafton Cup (the Grafton Cup prelude over 2108m) last prep. Then he came fifth (2.50 lengths behind Castle Heights) in the Grafton Cup itself.

“He ran fifth in the Ipswich Cup last year as well (behind the Robert Heathcote trained Our Lukas). All of that was when he was trained by Richard and Chris Otto. We’ve only had him this prep (for the six starts since November 21)."

Jockey Jim Byrne: “Yeah, in his previous runs he had to do too much to try and win his race ... whereas, today, small field you just put him in the race. I probably could have been a bit closer if I needed to be, but he is such a relaxed horse. He likes this sort of track and he has got a good turn of foot.

“The favourite was just in front of me basically on the fence and the other horse Tripitz was back in behind me, so I always had the race pretty much in my keeping. I just had to move at the right time.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Tabulate): 4.00 in to 3.60. Equal favourite.
Equal favourite (Honour Happy List): 2.80 out to 3.60. Finished second.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
L. Cassidy reported that Regal Castanea commenced to hang out leaving the 1600m, which resulted in the horse drifting off the running rail down the back straight. He further added that rounding the home turn when he applied pressure to Regal Castanea, the gelding again hung out and shifted away from the running rail. A post-race veterinary examination of Regal Castanea failed to reveal any significant abnormalities.

S. Seamer, rider of Tripitz, was $200 for striking the horse in a forehand manner six times prior to the 100m.

*Seamer’s fine followed a warning he received at the midweek meeting three days earlier on Wednesday, February 17.

An extract of the stewards’ report for race eight of that day reads: ‘S. Seamer was reprimanded under AR. 137A(5)(a)(ii) for using his whip on six occasions in a forehand manner on Brave The Way prior to the 100m.’

Brave The Way won that race.