DOOM MAR 31 - SEEK AND FIND ROMPS IN

By Graham Potter | Thursday, April 1, 2010

Doomben, March 31, 2010.
Track - Dead 4. Rail - out 6.5m
Maiden Handicap - 1030m. Time: 59.82. (Carrying 54.5kg).
1 Seek And Find; 2 Holding The Fort; 3 Sweet Magic.

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Kelso Wood: “We thought the horse would win his first start (back in May 2009), but he jumped in the air and he was just very green in the running.” (Seek And Find finished fourth on debut, 4.70 lengths behind Impulsive Dream).

“Then he developed a bit of a muscle problem and we had to turn him out ... just a pulled muscle in the hind-quarter. He was out for a long time (ten months).

“When he came back, his first-up run was at the Gold Coast and the track was really heavy that day. It was a very, very heavy track and he just never handled it (when finishing 4.50 lengths behind Brave Queen).

“With a better track and just natural improvement he was good enough to get the result today.”

Apprentice jockey Michael Hellyer: “I’ve never done that before (looking around to see where the opposition was 100m from home).

“Mate, I was that confident on that horse today. I’ve only just recently moved to (trainer) Kelso (Wood). I’ve ridden the horse in a couple of gallops. He galloped with the horse that just got beat in the second race (Dancing Duo). When I saw she only just got beat I was confident for all the world.

“I’m very confident again that you will see this horse ... maybe not this prep ... but you’ll see him go to Saturday meetings. I don’t know what the time was but he did it so well.

“He’s got an abscess in his mouth and he wanted to hang out the whole way. He was on one rein the entire trip but, I tell you what, he’s got plenty of class about him. He’s got plenty left to learn but, like I say, it wouldn’t surprise me if we see him here on a Saturday.

Hellyer also confirmed that he is now officially on loan (from trainer Pat Duff) to the Kelso Wood stable.

“I’m on loan to Kelso Wood now. It was just a bit hard there (at the Duff stable) at the moment. I had a good word with Pat (Duff) and we had a sit down and thought ... you know Kelso’s really given me a go like with Zero Rock and a couple of other good horses that he’s thrown me on... and I thought if I come on loan to Kelso, I’d only do two or three horses in the morning for him ... maybe four or five ... and then I can go off and I could spread myself around to a lot of trainers, you know.

“I’ve been riding work for a lot of trainers here (in town). You know, I’m coming towards the end of my apprenticeships so I need to build some contacts to get rides. I think riding work is one way to earn them.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Seek And Find): 3.50 out to 4.40.
Favourite (Baroque Pearl): 2.00 out to 2.20. Finished sixth.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Do Or Die (W. Clasohm) shifted in at the start and hampered Azzura Bay (B. Stewart). Double Lines (J. Wood) jumped awkwardly, shifted in and brushed Holding The Fort (L. Cassidy), and then shifted out abruptly across the heels of Rosseau (D. Griffin).

Sweet Magic (J. Byrne) raced very greenly in the early stages.

Near the 800m Seek And Find (M. Hellyer) commenced to over-race and, when being restrained off the heels of Forest Redgum (S. Katsidis), shifted out taking Sweet Magic wider on the track.

Rosseau over-raced in the early stages and after passing the 800m shifted in resulting in Holding The Fort being momentarily inconvenienced.

Sweet Magic, Star Valerie (M. Heagney) and Hallside Magic (K. Wharton) raced wide throughout.

Rounding the home turn and in the early part of the home straight Azzura Bay was held up on the heels of Baroque Pearl (C. Munce), which was tiring.

C. Munce, the rider of Baroque Pearl, which performed below expectations, explained that the filly travelled well in the lead until rounding the home turn where, once he applied pressure, Baroque Pearl failed to respond to his riding and weakened from that point.

Trainer T. Gollan explained that Baroque Pearl had worked well leading into today's race and he was unable to explain the filly's disappointing performance. Mr Gollan undertook to report in the coming days anything that may have contributed to today's performance.

A post-race veterinary examination of Baroque Pearl revealed the filly to have a poor post-race recovery rate and a routine swab sample was taken.