Norm Gardner is not a religious man, but even the Canberra trainer felt there was an element of divine intervention when debutant filly Lethal Lady won the Mike Cramsie Memorial Handicap (1000m) at Thoroughbred Park on Friday.
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The speedy daughter of Smart Missile broke stablemate Miss Ostend's class record as she laid down her Black Opal credentials, finishing almost a length clear of Sydney juvenile Black Tahitian in honour of Cramsie who died of brain cancer in February last year.
"When he died his wife [Genevieve] said 'Have you got a horse I could take a share in in memory of Mike?'' and she took a share in this horse," an emotional Gardner said.
"And she comes out [and wins], I've got a tear in my eye about it. That's incredible isn't it."
Cramsie, a lawyer and father of two who lived on a property in Bywong, battled the disease for 18 months before it claimed his life at the age of 76.
He was a long-time racing fan, a passion which stayed with him through his illness, and which will now live on through Lethal Lady who looks set to have a genuine tilt at next month's $250,000 Black Opal.
Gardner bred the horse out of the I Am Invincible mare Madam Tilly. Her first foal, three-year-old Devine Miss, has been to the races three times for a win and two seconds.
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"She's a lovely filly, and she's always shown us a lot, geez I was confident today," Gardner said.
"She led [stablemate] Delacour for the first 600 [metres] and not many two-year-olds can do that. We gave her a really soft trial.
"[Jockey] Matty Cahill's come back and said 'When you start this I want to ride it'.
"We give her a run and she ran good time. I had a horse there last year, Miss Ostend, and this filly beat her race record today.
"She'll go to the paddock for three days tomorrow. We'll assess her on Wednesday and if she's okay she'll go onto the Opal."
On a busy day at Thoroughbred Park, Matthew Dale's fast-finishing Banger impressively won the Benchmark 75 Federal Handicap (1400m) beating home Obelos and Romeo Vella.
Jockey Brodie Loy then rode a mid-race double to upstage two more Dale fancies.
The Kurt Goldman-trained Important Product had the clearest air running home down the outside to outpoint Allgemaine, who hit the line strongly after weaving through traffic in race five.
Mike Petrovic's Queanbeyan mare Annual then sprung an upset in the Class 1 Handicap (1200m) ahead of Beau Rock, and the Dale-trained Fourmadec.
James Buckley
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
