 | RACING HISTORY |
YEAR: 2001
FEATURE RACE COMMENT
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Barry Purdon had one eye on the road and one ear on the radio as he drove into Addington Raceway last Friday afternoon. With the second wave of his stable's Show Day runners in tow, Purdon was just arriving when Lord Vicolo contested the $25,000 Avon City Ford Mobile. To him his 3-year-old's victory sounded good, but it looked even better.
As expected, Tricky Vic sped out from the ace and led, with Lord Vicolo following him through from his second-line draw to settle in the trail. Punters who patted themselves on the back for their 'brilliant' pre-race deduction were soon biting their fingernails though, because at the 1800m point Croker pressed to the lead before he too handed up, to Galleons Treasure, leaving Lord Vicolo snookered four-deep. Driver Tony Herlihy managed to work off the tight spot passing the 1000m pole, but nothing carted Lord Vicolo into the race all the way down the back straight and come the home turn it was time to move. With big strides he powered down the stretch, picking up the leaders in grand style as he hit the line a half-neck in front. Lord Vicolo's time for the 2600m mobile event was a super 3:12.5. "I wish you wouldn't make me so nervous like that," quipped Purdon to Herlihy as he greeted them back at the stabling area.
It was a continuation of some superb for for the striking black son of Il Vicolo, who narrowly failed to capture the Sires' Stakes Final three days earlier after winning his previous three outings. "Brains," Purdon said, casting an adoring eye over his gelding as he helped to ungear him, the one-word sentence typifying every-thing he liked about Lord Vicolo. "He has always been a nice horse. He was the best yearling I had a couple of years ago; he could run a half in 60 around my track - and that is good. But he got a real bad cold late that season and never really got over it."
Finishing fourth on debut in December last year, Lord Vicolo won next-up at Alexandra Park before his 2-year-old season came to an abrupt halt after he finished fourth to Jack Cade at Cambridge. "He stood on a shoe and tripped up during a workout so we had to stop with him. It has been a blessing in disguise though because during his spell he grew a lot and really blossomed," Purdon said.
Having won two trials prior to resuming this season, Lord Vicolo was expected to resume on a bold note at Cambridge in September where he finished fourth in Elect To Live's 1:55.5 mile. "I was a little bit disappointed with that run, but Tony came back in and said that he hit the wheels of his cart and panicked. So now he races in the same cart that Pic Me Pockets and Mountain Gold use, a Challenger quick hitch sulky - but on the longest setting. He has got an enormous stride," Purdon said. Lord Vicolo's sire was the same in this respect. Il Vicolo used a sulky that had to be made especially for him which was about three inches longer.
"I will take him home now and give him a freshen-up before the Great Northern Derby," Purdon said. "Australia is a possibility later on , at this stage we will look at everything. On what he has done today I would expect him to go a long way."
Lord Vicolo is raced by Purdon and Kevin Riseley, who owns a chain of panelbeating shops in Melbourne. Riseley managed to fly across for the gelding's race on Cup Day, but work commitments dragged him home again before Show day's event.
Credit: John Robinson writing in HRWeekly 21Nov01