Smart win rewards patient punters

BY TIM BARTON

Vosne Romanee rewarded the faithful on Saturday.

"We never gave up," part-owner Ian Smart said after Vosne Romanee paid $55.40 when winning New Zealand's richest weight-for-age race.

Seven-year-old Vosne Romanee had started favourite in 11 of his 24 previous starts and till this season had only once been at double-figure odds, and that was at his race debut.

However, a losing streak that had stretched for 11 starts and more than 16 months tested the patience of punters and he was the rank outsider for the $1.2 million Kelt Stakes (2040m) at Hastings.

It was a stunning result for Smart and his wife, Alana, who founded the Alana Estate winery at Martinborough and race Vosne Romanee together.

"This is life changing," said Ian as he contemplated the $720,000 first prize. "The wine industry has been very tough recently.

"We are just normal Kiwis out there having a go [at racing]. This is one for the little guys.

"It shows you don't have to be rich and famous. You just need to get a good horse and have some luck.

"This is a fantastic game. We have met a lot of cool people and it's neat to be involved."

Alana Smart was in tears as the horse the family knows as "Maddy" hit the line and was moved to tears again after watching a replay. "He's part of the family," she said.

Vosne Romanee is just the second horse the Smarts have raced and the first they have owned outright.

They bred Vosne Romanee and one result of the Kelt win is that the three-year-old half-brother, by his Royal Highness, can now go into full work. "Till now, we've only been able to have one horse in work at a time," Ian Smart said.

The Smarts bred Vosne Romanee after paying $10,000 for his dam, the Morcon mare Madison Avenue, and then buying a share in his sire, Electronic Zone.

Vosne Romanee is named after a village in Burgundy which produces some of France's best known wines and his racing colours have a logo of a bunch of grapes on the back and front.

Despite his odds on Saturday, Vosne Romanee has rarely raced badly but events had conspired against him this spring and he had given punters little guide as to his Kelt prospects.

He was run off on the turn in the Mudgway Stakes and a slow track meant he was unable to show his best in the Windsor Park Plate.

However, trainer Jeff Lynds had never doubted that the horse could be competitive in the Kelt, given luck in the running.

Rider Buddy Lammas did his part by giving Vosne Romanee a soft run and the horse won well.

Ginga Dude, who was caught wide all the way, produced a wonderfully brave run for second, with the Melbourne mare Miss Maren third, after taking advantage of a lovely ride from Leith Innes.

Daffodil, a $2.60 favourite, finished on solidly for fourth, beaten less than a length and a half, without showing quite the same dash as she did in her previous start. She was caught wide early but had a good run for most of the race.

However, she still found the line and did enough to confirm a Caulfield Cup tilt.

- © Fairfax NZ News