Crystal’s star continues to rise

Junior harness reinswoman Crystal Hackett scored a career highlight at Cambridge Raceway last night, driving four winners.

“I was pretty stoked to get three. And four is even better,” she told Jo Stevens on Track Chat.

The run of winning form started in Race One with Ilsas Son, (Majestic Son) for trainers Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan.

“We hoped to get a penalty free win tonight. He trailed the right horse and was able to get out on the bend,” Hackett said.

Two races later Claude (Auckland Reactor) won for Hackett and local trainers Andrew and Lynn Neal.

“He was by far the best horse in the race, and we knew that on the ratings points. I just had to drive him accordingly. He was too good in the finish.”

Winner number three came in Race Eight with a win on the Todd Mitchell trained Pixie (Gold Ace).

“She capitalised on a perfect trip which is what we were hoping for. It was nice to get the half rating points with her.”

Run Forest Run (Orlando Vici), another from the Neal barn, took out the very next race and brought win number four.

“We trailed the right horse and they ran along a bit. Forest likes the distance, so it worked out perfectly.”

RUN FOREST RUN REPLAY

The four wins push the Aldebaran Park sponsored driver up the Junior Drivers Premiership and with sixteen wins so far this season, Crystal is well and truly heading for a PBS (personal best season). She now has forty one career wins.

“I’d like to get to fifty wins either this or next season.”

Crystal’s first winner was High In The Sky (Monarchy) at Alexandra Park in June 2021, for her parents Michelle Wallis and Bernie Hackett.

She needs just three more wins in order to surpass her mother Michelle’s forty three wins as a junior.

Michelle hasn’t driven four winners at one race meeting, so Crystal is one up on her mum in that sense. But she did drive a treble at Hawera in March 1991 with Eichy Joe (Doc’s Tuck), Tina Vance (Vance Hanover) and Turk Mahal (Raider Roy).

Crystal has a great example to follow, as Michelle was a trailblazer for women in harness racing and was the first female driver to win 100 races.

For complete race results, click here.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink