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 The Woolamai Cup meeting ended on a high note for Shane and Kim McGovern, with the husband and wife team taking out the feature race on a day when they experienced the highs and lows of racing.
Barely an hour before the Cup, the McGoverns suffered a major blow with their newly acquired galloper Cousins Triumph succumbing to a heart attack in one of the supporting races.
Sent around as the $21 outsider of the ten-horse-field, the six-year-old was well positioned by Shane McGovern behind the leaders and made his move 400 metres from the finish surging to the front at the top of the straight and securing an emotional win. Race leader Leica Reason battled on well for second place, with last year's winner Manilla Royal closing late to finish third.
For the connections of Leica Reason, it was another frustrating finish to a race they have been chasing for several years. Despite having won six races at Woolamai and developing a reputation as a track specialist, the Robert Lont prepared gelding has now been placed in three consecutive Cups without being able to win one.
In 2007 Leica Reason finished third to the Mick Bannon trained The Fibbernator, while last year he recorded another third placing to Eric Bromfield's Manilla Royal.
It might have been some consolation for the connections that the grey gelding stepped out at Drouin a week later to record a strong win in a feature mile race of the day.
Earlier in the month The Buchan & Gelantipy Race Club staged their once-a-year meeting.
With extreme temperatures in other parts of the state forcing the postponement of meetings at Caulfield and Bendigo, the Buchan club staged the only race meeting in Victoria on Saturday 7 February, a fact that will be proudly recorded in the anals of the club.
In the headline race, the Buchan Station Cup, it was another family affair with the seven-year-old gelding Ancient Faeroe adding to his recent good form.
Prepared by Charmaine Barnes and steered home by partner Karly Harris, Ancient Faeroe defeated Gippsland locals Miss Gisborne and Reddy for Kerry in an exciting finish.
However the locals bounced back in the last race with the club's secretary Ian Dunkley cheering home his speedy sprint Biscay Steel.
Bred and raced by Dunkley, and broken-in by the club's President Peter Sandy, there were no empty glasses at the iconic bush battle after the last race had been run. |
a tradition rich in history that dates back to 1887, this year's fixture attracted another large crowd of approximately 4,000 people. Under the scorching sun, spectators came from far and wide to enjoy true grass roots bush racing. The biggest building on the course - the bar - soon became the most popular refuge, as it provided shade from its battered and rusted-iron roof and much-needed refreshments.