Gone Surfin waves goodbye

Gone Surfin (Downbytheseaside) showed a touch of class today (Jun. 2) for trainers Robert and Jenna Dunn, beating eight harness racing rivals in style in the $40,000 Group Three Helen Pope Fillies Classic at Ashburton.

Driver Tim Williams took her straight to the top and with no pressure from the field she won easily by four and a quarter lengths with Joyride finishing second and One For Jay third.

GONE SURFIN REPLAY

The winning time was 2-02.2 a new race record. The previous record of 2-03.7 was held by the 2022 winner Millwood Nike.

Gone Surfin is out of the Christian Cullen mare Surfin Swift which won two races for Dunn.

“She was heading to being a classic mare but she bowed a tendon. We had a bit of bad luck with her first two foals but they were very nice horses. This filly looks to be the best of them I’d say,” Robert said.

Robert and Jenna share in the ownership of the filly with Bruce and Marg Taylor and Sam and Mitsy Taylor, all of whom are vets.

“We bred off five mares in partnership and we’ve got a lot of young horses coming through. Having four vets in the family and three of them are reproduction vets –  Mitsy, Bruce and Margaret – we don’t have many not getting in foal. They agist the mares and raise the foals. Bruce does all the early work which is great so it’s a good system.”

Gone Surfin’s winning chances were enhanced when stablemate Queen Tyron was scratched.

“Johnny (Dunn) rang yesterday and said she had some snot running out her nose so Sam went down to the stables and scoped her and she had a lung infection.”

The Dunns were the main supporters of both the Sapling Stakes and the Helen Pope Classic today but Robert doesn’t think the timing of the two races is quite right.

“It’s a great days racing but it would be nice if the races could be run at a different time of year. It’s something for the powers that be to possibly look at.”

For complete race results, click here.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink