TO breeder and part-owner Noel Tynan, Eye Stryker is the apple of his eye, especially after the seven-year-old, trained by his son Ken, came from second last to score a runaway win in the Muswellbrook RSL Sprint (1000m) at the Muswellbrook Race Club last Sunday.
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Tynan lost his left eye some years ago courtesy of Eye Stryker’s dam, Danse Pas (by Danehill Dancer).
“The dam lashed out and kicked me in the eye and I lost it,” Tynan said.
“Since then every horse I have bred and raced is called Eye something.
“I trained for many years and when I gave it away I gave Ken all my gear.”
The Wyong-based Ken Tynan said Eye Stryker had been plagued by injury early in his career.
“He has had a heap problems early and at one stage was in the paddock for 10 months letting nature take its course,” Tynan said.
“This is only the second time he has raced on heavy going.
“The only other time he raced on it he did not handle it.
“It is so good to see this horse win a race like this.
“He is an absolute gentleman and a pleasure to train.”
Apprentice James Innes allowed Eye Stryker to settle near the tail of the field then worked forward to be posed behind the leader Social Rank after turning for home.
While the leaders started to tire, Eye Stryker quickly sprinted away to win by four-and-three-quarter lengths from Floral Insight.
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ROBERT Thompson is now only nine victories short of his 4000th winner after he overcame the early pattern of racing by coming from last on the Steve Hodge-trained Winter Reign to capture the Bengalla Class Three (1450m) at Skellatar Park.
The champion hoop allowed Winter Reign to stay in last place to the 600 metres before easing to the outside and coming down the centre of the track.
It was his second triumph on the mare after winning on her at Cessnock two starts back.
“She has a nice sprint and by going to the centre it gave her plenty of room to use it,” Thompson said.
“The track is a genuine heavy but it is a very good heavy and every horse has a chance.
“It is a credit to the club.”
Hodge said the win proved that Winter Reign could handle a heavy track.
“I have never tried her on it before,” he said.
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TWO years ago mother of four Jane Heller, from a small town near Bathurst, bought a horse called All Sixes from a neighbour for $1000 to educate as a show hack.
All Sixes had previously been trained in Sydney and won one race, a maiden at a picnic meeting at Gosford.
The mare had been retired hurt and was living in a paddock not far from the property Jane and her husband run – and she bought the mare on the internet.
“I wanted her for a riding horse but he was in pretty poor condition, full of worms and we knew she would need some time to recover,” Heller said.
“Over time, as she recovered, she started to show that perhaps she was not finished as a race horse so we gave her to Paul Theobald at Bathurst to train.”
At her first start for her new connections, All Sixes ran third at Bathurst, at her first start for 786 days and may have finished closer except for the saddle slipping.
On Sunday, at Muswellbrook, with Newcastle jockey Alex Stokes aboard, All Sixes came from fourth last early to win the Mangoola Benchmark 55 (1280m) and give her owner a healthy return on her meagre outlay she made to buy the Southern Image mare.
“This is the first race horse I have owned and that is probably by default,” Heller said.
“It certainly is an exciting time.
“It took us four hours driving to get here and the kids were car sick on the way but it has all been worth it.”
As the couple were loading their children into their car for the drive home they had a new problem.
All four wanted to hold the winner’s sash – all at the same time.
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PROBATIONARY, a filly that according to stable foreman Shannon Perry has been her own worst enemy, led all the way to win the www.muswellbrookraceclub.com.au Maiden (1000m) at Skellatar Park on Sunday.
“She is a hard going filly, all she wants to do is jump and run,” Perry said.
“Maybe with a spell and some maturity she will learn to settle.”
Probationary, ridden by apprentice Serg Lisnyy, was quickly away and with no early speed on sprinted along the fence to take the lead.
He kicked away in the straight to go on and win by two lengths from Prussian Miss (Adam Sewell) with the heavily-backed Busscat (Chris O’Brien) a further two lengths away third.
Probationary won in 61.33 secs, a smart time considering the track was rated a heavy 9.
Immediately after the race the track was upgraded to a heavy 8.
The Perry-Lisnyy combination was back in the parade in the following race when Bonaventura also led all the way to win the Remington Motor Inn Maiden (1500m).
And for Shannon Perry the win held special significance.
“He is owned by my in-laws,” Perry said.
They are Phil Priestly, a former long-time committee member of Newcastle Jockey Club, and his wife Jenny.
“The horse had previous form on heavy ground but he is by Northern Meteor and they love that sort of going,” Perry said.
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OWNERS John and Carol Stanford cast their minds back 20 years when apprentice Luke Dittman out rode his country claim to win the Singleton Cup 21 April Benchmark 60 (1750m) at Muswellbrook at the weekend.
Two decades ago Dittman’s father, Mick, won a race at Rosehill on a horse called Charming Poet for Sandford’s father Reg.
The Rundown carried the same colours, dark blue, yellow sleeves, red armbands and yellow and yellow and red quartered cap.
“We kept the colours in the family,” John Stanford said.
“I bought this horse at the ready to run sales but he hasn’t done a lot of running because of a tendon problem,”
Trainer Todd Howlett said he had to nurse The Rundown through his injury and his recovery.
“He is a six-year-old and that is only his 19th start,” Howlett said.
“We will head to the Mornington Prelude at Tamworth with him now and then on to the Mornington.”
The Mornington Prelude will be run on April 15 while the Mornington will be run on Tamworth Cup day, April 27.
Dittman, who has now had one ride for Howlett for one winner, settled The Rundown in second place behind Tori Girl and grabbed the lead near the line to beat that horse by half a length.
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THE Jeff Englebrecht-trained Shalama (Grant Buckley) was another runner having his first run on a heavy track and he proved, even more convincingly, that he can handle it.
The chestnut came from fifth early to career away in the straight and win the BHP Mt Arthur Class One (1000m) by five lengths.
“I had been running him over 1200 metres but he wouldn’t settle so I dropped him back to 1000 metres with more speed and it worked,” the Wyong-based Englebrecht said.
“He has been carrying big weights on country and provincial tracks and having no luck.”
Shalama was bred by Sydney doctor Phil Wesley-Smith and Shalama is one of several horses he has with the trainer.
