KEY POINTS:
You'd like to think a certain bank manager was watching Ististar run away with Saturday's $60,000 Platinum Homes Tauranga Classic.
Four years ago, when Tina Bryant returned to New Zealand after 30 years living in most of the states of Australia, she realised she needed to establish a credit rating.
Buy a fridge or a washing machine on time payment, one of her closest mates told her.
The 50-something nurse decided she didn't need a new washing machine.
Instead she knocked on the bank manager's door and asked for a loan.
"He looked a bit shocked when I told him I wanted to buy a racehorse," said an extremely excited Bryant in the Tauranga birdcage after the race.
"He was a good bloke. He said, 'Let's call it furniture'."
Bryant's "furniture", the mare Ististar, won her second consecutive $60,000 race at Tauranga and, perhaps even more important, she bagged a listed stakes race, making her a valuable broodmare proposition.
The loan didn't need to be substantial: Ististar cost around $2500 as a weanling and the Fun All Round syndicate Bryant formed with her mother Marilyn numbers five.
The loan is also well paid off - Ististar took her official earnings to $117,850 on Saturday and she has also picked up bonus payments of $35,000 and $15,000.
Tina Bryant is clearly in her element in the horse racing scene.
"When I was 5 I sat on the back of a horse for the first time in Huntly and said, 'This is for me'."
Amid her excitement and the red wine on Saturday, Bryant was thinking about stallions to possibly mate Ististar to in the spring, but that will depend on the mare's spring racetrack form when she comes back from the spell trainer Stephen McKee will now give her.
"When she came back in this time I told Tina that she would have to step up to better company and sometimes that can be a stopper," McKee said.
"I said that if she didn't measure up she could go to the stallion in the spring."
That might be delayed a year if Ististar's form continues at the same level of her last two starts.
One factor that will help is Ististar's newfound ability on rain-affected tracks.
"When I took her to New Plymouth for the Interprovincial I nearly scratched her when the track came up wet because she'd had two starts in conditions like that and finished last both times."
Ististar won that race and again on Saturday proved her worth in winter conditions, although the footing was considerably better than many had anticipated.
"One thing that didn't help early was her size when she was racing in tight situations in big fields," said McKee.
"She's flat out being 15.1 tall and often ran into traffic problems.
"The softer tracks suit because the field spreads out and there is generally a fair bit of room."
Michelle Wenn had to push Ististar through a narrow gap on the home turn to poke her nose in front and in the closing stages there was only one horse in it.
Wenn has had only the two rides on Ististar, for two wins.
Someone collected big on the win - Ististar was at $10 on the TAB's fixed odds for much of the day, but when the main tote pool opened on course the mare was showing just $3.80 to win and $2.90 for the place.
Bryant said she knew who was responsible for much of that, although she wouldn't confirm it was any of the owners - or the bank manager.
"It cost me," said McKee. "I was going to back her, but I couldn't take the short odds at the time I looked at the tote." Ististar's price blew out late and she eventually paid $7.10 and $2.70.
Palmerston North visitor Abit Rusty turned in a huge performance after getting blocked for room when at the tail of the field approaching the home bend.
David Walsh switched her back to the inside portion of the track and she powered home for second, but would never have troubled the winner.
She has not had a lot of luck lately and deserves a winning turn.
