RACING: New format promising, says club

The outsiders may have stolen the show but the success of the $100,000 Stoney Bridge Triple Crown Series still had the locals smiling at the Whangarei races at Ruakaka on Saturday.
Cambridge trainer Ross Eliot had his horse Martini Red win the third and final leg of the Triple Crown series on Saturday, gazumping Ruakaka hopeful The Mooseisloose in the process.
Then star jockey Lisa Cropp rode Cape Kinaveral to win the Whangarei Cup, Cropp producing an eye-catching ride on the horse trained by Graeme Rogerson from Pukekohe for the victory.
But while the locals were licking their wounds, the Whangarei Racing Club hosts were still smiling. They think they might have designed a winning format with the new Triple Crown two-year-old series that they believe is set to gain a big profile.
Club chairman Mike Beazley said the series had attracted several classy horses in the inaugural season last year and had taken another step up the ladder this year.
"The response has been heartening. It has attracted horses that we wouldn't otherwise see. At this time of the year in particular it creates interest with the triple crown bonus for the three-race series and we think it might gain a real following in the future," Beazley said.
"Could it work for the club? Well it appears to be, but it is a five-year strategy in this game. You can't just put it out there and expect it to take off in one year, these things take time to develop," he said.
On Saturday the Donna Logan and Chris Gibbs-trained The Mooseisloose was the clear pre-race favourite to win the third race of the Triple Crown series, and the horse all the Ruakaka racing followers were hoping would succeed.
But Martini Red stormed down the home straight and left all the other hopefuls struggling in her wake. The Mooseisloose ended up fifth, running strongly in the last 200 metres.
Attention then switched to the Whangarei Cup where two locally trained horses, Stabinthedark and Letsgoparty, were the Whangarei hopefuls. But Cropp's experience showed through as she steered Cape Kinaveral to the front of the field, charging past Jovial Jock on the home straight.
Beazley said despite the weather the betting turnover had been heartening. There had been $1.58m bet off course and more than $175,000 bet on course.