Successful night for Ryder stable

Press, 12 September 1988, Page 25

Successful night for Ryder stable

By

JEFF SCOTT

The West Melton trainer, Peter Ryder, harnessed up the winners of the two feature pacing events at the New Brighton Harness Racing Club’s meeting at Addington on Saturday.

Nugent Lopez, taking advantage of Dillon Dean’s misfortune, won a rich C2 stake in the Second D.B. Superstar Trial in sizzling time, then 30 minutes later, Speedy Cheval, which changed ownership last week, brought instant success for his Perth owner, Roy Annear, in the Latimer Motor Lodge Pace. Nugent Lopez, which finished best from the trail in the hands of Ryder’s father-in-law, Jack Smolensk!, shattered the class record for a C2 pacer at Addington over 2600 m from a stand with a 3:17.82 clocking. The previous record at 3:20.68 was held by Great Provider, which returned to winning form in the Harcourts Mobile Pace later in the night. Nugent Lopez’s time was only .92 of a second outside Camelot’s New Zealand record for the distance. The runner-up, Wait A Moment (10m), which tracked the winner mostly and only failed by a long head, was credited with a placed time of 3:17.02, just .12 outside Camelot’s record.

An inquiry was held by the stipendiary stewards into Nugent Lopez’s improved racing performance.

The winner of the Queen’s Birthday Stakes over Fair Chip and Starship in June, Nugent Lopez failed to finish closer than sixth when resuming in a C2 race at Addington two weeks ago. The winner on that occasion went 8.31 seconds slower than it took Nugent Lopez to win the Superstar Trial. After the gelding had

been slow away at Addington on August 27, Nugent Lopez had started with an undercheck at the trials and again on Saturday. The report states: "With a change of driver tonight, along with his rapid beginning, this had contributed to his improved racing performance.” The stewards were satisfied with Ryder’s explanation. Ryder decided to engage Smolensk! (who earlier drove the gelding to win the Queen’s Birthday Stakes) for the Superstar series in the hope the son of Surmo Hanover would begin better. After tangling for his first few strides at his previous start and again being slow away at the trials mid-week, Ryder asked his brother, Chris, to ride Nugent Lopez twice daily in an effort to settle the horse down. “Sometimes it works and it did with him,” said Ryder. The subject of a $70,000 offer by Melbourne clients, through Ryder’s brother Chris (bloodstock agent) at the time of his Queen’s Birthday Stakes triumph, Nugent Lopez has now raced seven times for three wins. His earnings almost doubled to $13,925 with Saturday’s win.

Ryder will be looking for Nugent Lopez to go one better than his close relative, Nugent du Jour, which he produced to run second to Pathfinder in the 1986 Superstar Championship.

Nugent du Jour has gone amiss twice since being solde to Victorian

interests. Chris Ryder recently purchased back a half-share in the gelding and it is intended to return him for racing in New Zealand next year. All-the-way win An astute front-running drive by Colin de Filippi with Speedy Cheval resulted in a deserved length win over Ankorman (handy outer) in the Latimer Motor Lodge Pace.

“He’s here until after the New Zealand Cup meeting, then he’ll be over to Perth for the Inter-Dominions next year,” said Peter Ryder of Speedy Cheval, a former leading two and four-year-old for Rangiora owners, Maurice and Margaret Vermeulen. Speedy Cheval’s sale was negotiated by Ryder’s father, Kevin, who has consigned around 1800 horses to Mr Annear over the years, including All Arranged, Countess Gina, Tiger Maid and Lock Rae.

Speedy Cheval, the winner of 10 races from 50 starts for the Vermeulens for earnings of $111,895, is to be trained in West Australia by a top horseman, Fred Kersley. The Noodlum gelding, now five, advanced to a C 9 mark with Saturday’s win.

Speedy Cheval paced the 2600 m in a leisurely 3:25.01 with the race developing into a sprint home from the 400 m.

Imperial Time, which trailed, was a long neck from the strong-finishing Ankorman in third place, with Skipper Dale, in the open, an improver’s fourth. Sossy ran on late

for fifth. Jeka honoured Jeka earned “Horse of the Night” honours after giving the leaders 50m start early and a sound beating in the First D.B. Superstar Trial. The Clever Innocence gelding was initially developed by the West Melton trainer, David Butt, who owned him with Max Bowden. After qualifying impressively last term, running his closing quarter in 28, Jeka’s' sale to Christchurch’s Fred Morris was negotiated by Chris Ryder. Jeka was second-up at Nelson in June for his new connections and Saturday’s success was his second in only four appearances.

Declared unruly after suspect barrier manners at the Rangiora trials last month, Jeka broke early again on Saturday and came storming home late to win going away by a length and a quarter. He recorded 3:23.54 for the 2600 m, with the leaders dashing home from the 800 m in 58.4.

An upstanding and headstrong gelding, which races without an overcheck, Jeka is from the same family as the former champion juvenile, Tuapeka Knight (1:58).

“He keeps putting his head down and breaking overchecks so he doesn’t wear one,” said reinsman Murray Edmonds. “He’s got some real go. It was the first time I hit him tonight and he just took off.”