Geddes team in the zone at Reefton

The name of 'Geddes' has been heavily involved in harness racing in New Zealand as long as the records go back.

As Jim Geddes was explaining to the writer yesterday afternoon at Reefton, his great great grand father was driving in a race in Canterbury as far back as 1868 and the family have been involved ever since.

These days Jim trains in conjunction with his son James Geddes and they always have a handy horse or two in the barn.

Yesterday they lined up four starters at the Reefton meeting and came away with two winners and a placegetter for a great result for the small Norwood based barn.

First up was the four year old American Ideal mare in Bontz who lead early for James before taking a trail behind the favourite Blade and when angled into the clear at the top of the straight, she simply ran away and hid from the opposition by 3 1/2 lengths.

Extremely unlucky on the first day at Westport on Friday, James was very confident going into yesterday's race.

" I took a trail on Friday behind the $2.00 shot but it stopped badly on the last corner and dragged me out the back."

" I was absolutely jogging at the time and would have won easily so I was out early today to make sure I didn't get caught again."

" I thought Bontz was good enough to go around in the good fillies races last year but she use to tie up something shocking and we had to put her aside.

" This year we give her a mixture of swimming and galloping but not too much of either to be honest and it seems to be working.'

She has got the ability to win a few more races yet, James told Harnesslink yesterday afternoon.

Four races later the stablemate Mogul made it two wins from two starts over the weekend when he proved way too strong for a good field of C1 pacers in the hands of stand in driver Ricky May as James was driving the stablemate Buckeye.

Away well early, Mogul joined the three wide line and progressed to the parked position with a lap to go.

From there he got cover behind the favourite Latin Lloyd and when Ricky asked him for an effort on the corner, Mogul quickly sprinted up to them and past them for an impressive victory.

Ricky May was suitably impressed.

" He doesn't know anything yet but he has got a lot of bottom to him and showed a bit of speed when I pulled him out.

" He has got the makings of a nice horse."

James was just as impressed with the son of American Ideal.

" That is only the fourth time off the place in his career to date."

" He qualified the first time we took him off the place in mid January and then we gave him a quiet C0 trial before coming to the coast."

" Both his wins here have been on raw ability as he hasn't got any ring craft yet."

" He gives you the feel of a really nice horse in the making but whether that is for me or not is another matter."

"I am milking 800 cows and have heaps of young ones at home so the racehorses are all for sale at the moment."

Megan Mcintyre has been a great help with the young ones at home and I can't thank her enough but we have nine yearlings and seven weanlings at the moment so we need to be turning them over," James said.

Harnesslink Media