KEY POINTS:
Stephen McKee was happy to give credit where credit was due when Leith Innes rode a picture perfect race to get Keepa Cruisin home in Saturday's $100,000 Sharp Desert Gold Stakes.
"I was critical of Leith's ride on her in the Eight Carat [at Ellerslie] and he got that right today, thanks for that Leith," McKee publicly acknowledged at the presentation.
Keepa Cruisin has a short, sharp sprint and Innes did well to judge it perfectly on a day when that was difficult with the fields fanning out on the home bend because of the "off" track.
Perhaps missing the Royal Stakes, a week after the Eight Carat, helped Keepa Cruisin parade one of the freshest for the race.
Keepa Cruisin's temperament let her down that day, being declared a late scratching after playing up badly in the starting stalls.
"She was in season and it was against her usual deameanour - she's usually very good in the gates," said Rick Williams, manager for Keepa Cruisin's owner Dick Karreman.
Keepa Cruisin was pulled out of the Oaks at Trentham in March, but there is provision for a late entry fee to be paid, something Williams and Karreman have to consider whether they go that route or set her for a Brisbane campaign, in Karreman's home state of Queensland.
"She keeps surprising me," admitted Williams. "At the start of the season I thought she might be a group three filly - she's an awful lot better than that."
Little-raced Kaatoon made a huge impression with a big finish into second over a distance (1600m) which is well short of her best.
It was one of the best Oaks trials we've seen for a while.
"Very happy with the way she's coming up," said trainer Roger James.
It was just her fifth race start.
Satinka, who had all the luck in winning the Eight Carat and Royal Stakes at the Ellerslie carnival, ran out of it when she attempted to make her run near the inside where horses simply couldn't win all day.
Bella Valentina looked good running third and fourth-placed Exquisite is one of the big improvers to come out of the race. Watch her as the distances increase.
