 | RACING HISTORY |
YEAR: 1994
FEATURE RACE COMMENT
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| Bee Bee Cee outfinishes Master Musician in the NZFFA |
The dream continued for Colin and Jeane Calvert when their handsome pacer Bee Bee Cee took the $80,000 Air New Zealand Free-For-All. It has been a magical week for the Calverts who race NZ Cup winner Bee Bee Cee purely for enjoyment. For this reason the Calverts were faced with a difficult decision in whether or not to accept an invitation to contest the $A320,000 Sydney Miracle Mile.
The former Southlanders gained great satisfaction from Bee Bee Cee winning the Invercargill Cup last season and would have loved to return home for a second attempt. Colin Calvert said Bee Bee Cee could not race in both and the change in conditions of the race swayed him towards the Miracle Mile. "If we raced in the Invercargill Cup (Dec 17) we would have to start from at least 30m as the race has changed from a mobile to a two mile stand - in the end I wasn't keen in starting him from that far behind when we can run in mobiles. The other reason for going was winning a race like the Miracle Mile could help him as a stallion," said Calvert.
It may seem an easy decision when looking at a $25,000 race compared to one worth $A320,000 plus speed bonuses. But the Calverts look after Bee Bee Cee first before looking at financial reasons and want him cherry ripe for the Inter-Dominions at Addington next year. A start for him in the Auckland Cup is still undecided. "Money has never been an issue and the welfare of the horse has always been put first," says Calvert.
Bee Bee Cee, Colin Calvert, Master Musician and Bruce Wylie will travel north by truck on Thursday morning. Bee Bee Cee will stay at Dale Cameron's in Waiuku before flying out of Auckland to Sydney on Monday night.
Tactics became an important part of the Free-For-All. Bee Bee Cee took the lead early before driver Jimmy Curtin allowed Blossom Lady to take up the running. Curtin knew all too well that Blossom Lady has a tendancy to run outwards in the straight. Bee Bee Cee, who became the 24th horse to win the NZ Cup-FFA double, did well after the Cup. "He came through the race brilliantly and if anything it sharpened him up for today's race," said Calvert. Bee Bee Cee recorded 2:26.6 for the mobile 2000m with the leaders running their last 800m in 56.7.
The favourite Master Musician was gallant in defeat after facing the breeze over the last 800m and Lento ran on well for third. Blossom Lady faded to fourth just ahead of October Atom. "She received a good run through on the rails," said Lento's driver Clark Barron. "She ran on strongly without threatening the first two."
Credit: Philip O'Connor writing in HRNZ Weekly