Racing: Mare on a mission

Canberra visitor Bacchanal Woman dodges Sydney carnival to tackle NZ features

It was a very fortuitous day a couple of years ago when Canberra property developer David O'Keefe decided to get into racing horses.

Top Canberra trainer Keith Dryden selected a A$80,000 ($99,000) yearling at the Sydney Easter Sales.

That A$80,000 has multiplied more than 10 times, possibly more if Bacchanal Woman wins tomorrow's $150,000 First Sovereign Trust Japan/NZ Trophy at Tauranga.

And if the Australian visitor can back up and win the group one Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes at Te Aroha in a couple of weeks then O'Keefe may as well retire.

Bacchanal Woman is by Encosta De Largo out of the Zabeel mare M'Lady Fonteyn.

She has already won more than double her purchase price and with her bloodlines, if she can win a group one she will become an extremely valuable broodmare.

Tomorrow is a step along that journey.

Keith Dryden was yesterday happy the mare has settled into her new surrounds at Matamata.

"She arrived off the flight in pretty good shape and the vet has pumped plenty of fluids into her," said Dryden.

"She seems pretty well and Kevin [rider Kevin Sweeney] said she felt good when she worked here at Matamata this morning."

Dryden is last year's Canberra Racing Club's premiership winning trainer and Sweeney the track's premiership winning jockey.

The trip to New Zealand is an afterthought.

"She had a fairly stiff campaign last time in and she did a good job for us.

"David wanted to win the National Spring Championship in Canberra so we set her for that and she won it last start.

"We were going to spell her then because we felt the Coolmore Classic in Sydney might be too rich for her.

"Then we thought that your best fillies and mares might be in Sydney for races like the Coolmore and it might be an opportunity to sneak over here and get some black type."

The camp thought the deal through well - top mare Culminate, who would have been extremely hard to beat in the group one at Te Aroha, is in fact heading for Sydney.

The A$100,000 Sprint in Canberra last start was a strong win and Bacchanal Woman impressed plenty of keen judges with her manner and the way she moved at the Matamata track yesterday morning.

She has had 20 career starts for seven wins and A$189,090 in stakes.

The camp say they would much prefer a decent track, although the mare was narrowly beaten into third on a slow track at Rosehill on December 13.

The team will this morning walk the Tauranga track in company with senior local jockey David Walsh.

There is no form cross reference between Bacchanal Woman and the likes of Sir Slick, Ginga Dude and impressive Ellerslie winner My Astron.

Sir Slick's spring and early summer form in Victoria is no guide to his chances here. But his fighting second to MacO'Reilly at Ellerslie last start certainly is.

His four wins and one placing from nine starts on the Tauranga track tells much of the story.

The 59kg, while difficult, is actually well earned when you consider the 7-year-old's $1,646,150 earnings.

The rain-affected track - we won't know how affected until tomorrow morning - will change the usual Tauranga pattern of racing, but that will remain a mystery until the first couple of races are run.

If the footing chops up on the inside, on-pace runners like Sir Slick will be disadvantaged.

Ginga Dude, on 55kg, has a great stat - three races at Tauranga for three wins. He looked extremely well when finishing second at last week's Cambridge trials.

My Astron is an emerging talent who has earned his chance at this level. He was beaten less than four lengths when fourth to Culminate at weight-for-age before his impressive Ellerslie victory.