Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Talented four-year-old mare Our Sandy Shore returned to racing at Gloucester Park on Friday night in fine style after performing extremely well at Pinjarra at her previous eight starts.
Trained by Colin Brown and driven confidently by his daughter Maddison, Our Sandy Shore was a $7 chance from the No. 3 barrier in the $21,000 Trotsynd Register Your Interest Pace, in which she set a brisk pace and fought on grandly to win by a half-length from the $3.10 favourite Peaceful.
Peaceful, driven by Jocelyn Young, began from the outside barrier (No. 9) on the front line and she raced three wide for the first lap before moving to the breeze and then applying plenty of pressure on the pacemaking Our Sandy Shore. Peaceful got on terms with Our Sandy Shore 250m from home but Our Sandy Shore proved too strong in the closing stages.
“It was okay having a bit of pressure because Our Sandy Shore can switch off,” said Maddison Brown. “I’ll drive her a bit more conservatively when she goes up in grade.”
Our Sandy Shore is by Sunshine Beach and is the third foal out of the New Zealand-bred mare Winter Strike, who raced 31 times for four wins, three placings and $25,385. Our Sandy Shore, who finished second to August Moon in the Group 2 Westbred Classic for three-year-old fillies in September 2023, has earned $92,011 from eight wins and 12 placings from 30 starts.
Winter Strike’s full-brother Bettor’s Strike was retired with a record of 77 starts for 16 wins, 26 placings and $890,201. After finishing a neck second to Monkey King in the 3200m New Zealand Cup in November 2009 he won the Group 2 Cranbourne Cup, the Group 1 Tasmanian Cup at Elwick and the Group 1 $400,000 Victoria Cup at Melton when he beat Smoken Up and Blacks A Fake.