| FEATURE RACE COMMENT |
YEAR: 1987
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| Luxury Liner (outer) prevails in a blanket finish |
Some magnificent racing at Addington on Show Day was capped by the breathtaking finish in which New Zealand Cup runner-up Luxury Liner turned the tables on his victor Lightning Blue in the $100,000 Air New Zealand NZ Free-For-All.
This time honoured race has seldom failed to provide an exciting spectacle; Friday's had the crowd up on its toes and roaring as a dozen crack pacers bore down to the wire in a group that could in the end have been covered by a tarpaulin. The gutsy Lightning Blue had again worked early and sat parked, and this time he had to contend with the spriting abilities of Happy Sunrise, who zoomed around to replace Master Mood in front 1400 metres out. Jim O'Sullivan, Victorian trainer-driver of Lightning Blue, aware of Happy Sunrise's reputation, decided he couldn't let that rival his own way and that he had to apply pressure. When Happy Sunrise shook him off momentarily straightening, it appeared that the Methven wonder - whose sale to Queensland at a reputedly huge but undisclosed price was clinched on the eve of the race - was going to embellish his outstanding local record with another win. But somehow Lightning Blue, under hard driving from O'Sullivan, delivered up more. Nearing the finish it was Lightning Blue in charge again, with Happy Sunrise dying in the hole.
Then, from the centre of the pack, Luxury Liner, who had been three back on the rail most of the way and then all over the place in the run home as Tony Herlihy searched for a split for him, exploded to the wire to take a photo decision by a nose. O'Sullivan couldn't believe it. "You must have caught me in the very last stride," he said to Herlihy as they returned to greet the judge. "I didn't even see you; I thought I had won." Thrilled with the way Luxury Liner had performed, Herlihy said that it was well inside the last 100 yards that he had secured an opening to shoot for. It capped a great week for the Reids, of Waiuku, owners of Luxury Liner and of Fay Richwhite Sires' Stakes runner-up Top Vance.
Only half-head from Lightning Blue, Frangelico, who had been fairly handy throughout, fought strongly for third, with another half-head to Levendi, who finished boldly along the rail. Unused to the angle, Levendi's driver Glen Wolfenden thought he may even have won.
After the first mile of the race had been cut out in a remarkable 1:56 the pressure was kept on. The last 800m required 58.1 and the final 400m in 28.3, with the total time for the mobile 2000m 2:26.4 - a 1:57.8 rate.
Credit: Ron Bisman writing in HR Weekly
YEAR: 1987
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| Jubilant part-owner Alan Hunter displays the Cup |
Melbourne businessman Alan Hunter, 52 year old co-owner of Inter-Dominion titleholder and yesterday's $300,000 Toyota NZ Trotting Cup winner Lightning Blue, has raced horses since he was 23.
"I bought my first horse, a Van Derby pacer named Great Effort, for a thousand pounds," he recalled. "I had to borrow money to do it, and I didn't know how to tell my father about it. He won a good few races for me, and I thought: 'This is easy.' I later found it wasn't so easy, but it hooked me on trotting. I have a few gallopers, including a jumper called Mister Mint, who could win our next Grand National Steeplechase; but I much prefer trotting and football to galloping."
Hunter estimates that he has won about 700 races with his horses. The bulk of this success has come since his profitable business involving cleaning chemicals and detergents has enabled him to spend up large since 1981. "I've had 78 winners at Moonee Valley since then," he said.
"My first NZ horse was Hubert Campbell, who won me 14 races and about $60,000. He was my favourite and a real top-liner. Since then, I've bought, through John Devlin, Paul Davies and other agents, at least a dozen Kiwi horses including My Surdon, One Happy Fella, Kilrush (who cost me $100,000, broke a pedal bone and didn't win me a race), Conga's Pride and That's Incredible. I tried to buy the NZ-bred Jay Bee's Fella, who has done so well in Western Australia, but the deal fell through; and he was beaten at the weekend so I might have been a bit lucky, as it was big bikkies involved. I pay a lot of money for good horses, but I would be ahead of it. It's a wonderful game, with wonderful people in it. Jim (O'Sullivan) is a super man with a horse, and a super man to know."
Hunter was obviously thrilled to be on hand to see Lghtning Blue's Cup win. "I went back to Melbourne at Inter-Dominion time, thinking I wasn't going to have a horse in the Final and opting to see a two-year-old race at Moonee Valley. As it turned out My Lightning Blue won the Final, my other horse here then, Quite Famous, won one of the consolations, and my youngster won at Mooney Valley all on the same night."
Yesterday, Hunter's partners in the horse, (Nes Conidi and Tony Prochilo) who had watched him win his Inter-Dominion Final, were both home in Melbourne.
Nothing made quite the smart start in the Cup as Skipper Dale. And this was rather unusual because Skipper Dale was off the second line and was fortunate to dash through a gap left by Sossy and Metal Mickey after only 70m. At the same time, Frangelico was being held up a place further out, Happy Sunrise broke briefly and Master Mood didn't make marvellous acceleration.
Tony Herlihy wisely sent Luxury Liner forward after 600 metres, and with two laps to run he was in front, ahead of Gaelic Skipper, Lightning Blue, Skipper Dale and Sossy. Four hundred metres later, Rum Brydon swept round, running hard, and he made the front near the 2000 metres. Jim O'Sullivan had Lightning Blue out of the trail at the same time, to sit in the 'death', outside Luxury Liner, and ahead of Gaelic Skipper.
The pace slackened near the mile and remained that way until near the 900 metres. Master Mood and Happy Sunrise were the last pair and facing an awfully difficult task, with the pace by now right on and Lightning Blue, Luxury Liner and Skipper Dale many lenghts in front of them.
On the corner, O'Sullivan had made his move passing Rum Brydon and receiving very generous response from Lightning Blue.
Herlihy, with more hope than confidence, sent Luxury Liner into the attack, Patrick O'Reilly joined in with Skipper Dale and Sossy came too. But Lightning Blue, showing the same extraordinary strength and courage of eight months ago, was quite supreme in the end, winning by a length and a quarter, with a short neck and three-quarters of a length between the others.
Rolls Hanover made progress strongly near the end which was commendable allowing for the fact he pulled a punctured tyre for the last 1400 metres.
The time of the race was 4:05.13. Lightning Blue ran his last 2400m in 3:00.7, and his last 1600m in 2:00. The first 800m of that 1600m took an easy 1:03.4, and the last 800m followed in 56.6, the last 400m in 28.5.
Credit: Ron Bisman writing in HR Weekly
YEAR: 2002
BILL FARRELL
Bill Farrell, the South Canterbury farmer who bred the brilliant pacer Happy Sunrise, died last week aged 82.
He was a versatile and knowledgeable horseman who trained, drove and bred standardbreds for more than 20 years, many in partnership with Graham Trist.
It was Trist who got him started, and together they bred the winners Winning Choice, Meesha(2.06), top youngster Winning Glimpse(2.03), Haughty Choice and Hunter Hanover(2.06) from the Bachelor Hanover mare Bachelor's Choice, and two winners from the Johnny Globe mare, Apollo Globe. All told they bred 14 horses, and nine of them were winners.
Later, he stood Steven Stock at the stud, and among the mares he had assembled for the horse to serve was Happy Gift, by Johnny Kawa.
In due course, he found himself with too many horses, and he told Trist on Sunday afternoon that he was sending some to a dispersal sale at Ashburton. Trist told him he wouldn't get much for them, and he was right - the Steven Stock-Happy Gift 2-year-old was sold to Brian Saunders for $350. Happy Sunrise went on to win more than $100,000 and take a mork of 1:57.8.
Credit: Mike Grainger writing in HRWeekly 6Jun02