Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
Veteran reinsman Lindsay Harper had some anxious moments before scoring a narrow victory with $1.50 favourite Eldaytona in the 2130m Hotspurs 1882 Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Eldaytona had a comfortable time with a slow lead time of 39.3sec. and modest opening quarters of 31.6sec. and 30.8sec. before he sprinted over the third 400m section of the final mile in 28.3sec.
Then, after rounding the home turn Harper went to pull the ear plugs. But the cord broke, and the plugs failed to come out.
“I thought we were in trouble, but Eldaytona was able to hold on,” said Harper. “They were coming, and it got close on the line. Normally, I pull the plugs on straightening up and he accelerates away. It’s a myth that that plugs help all horses. But they make all the difference in the world to him.
“If the plugs had come out tonight, I think he would’ve run away and won by three lengths. He tends to knock off in the straight, and he got beaten a couple of times when he switched off. So, then we put the ear plugs in, and he was a different horse and became very focused when you pulled the plugs.”
Harper, who races Eldaytona in partnership with his trainer Sue Wiscombe and Kevin and Annette Charles, said that the gelding was on the way up and was being set for the rich four-year-old classics, culminating in the $200,000 Golden Nugget on December 16.
“He is a quality horse and I think he deserves a start in the feature events,” said Harper. “There are a lot of quality four-year-olds around, and there are probably four or five certainties and then at least another 15 who deserve a spot.”
Eldaytona, who won by a metre from Markham Eyre on Friday night, has earned $118,709 from 12 wins and 12 placings from 31 starts.