Seabrooke impresses with first win

At the Wyndham Harness Racing Club’s meeting today, Seabrooke (Mach Three) favourite in the Southern Hedge Cutting Mobile, showed a clean pair of heels as she won her first race.

The four year old mare out of Beach Towel mare Sam’s Beach Babe, was bred by farmer Phil Hewitson who runs sheep on four hundred acres just above Edendale Hill.

“When I shifted there seventeen years ago there was just one dairy farm. Now I’m the only sheep farmer there (laughter),” he said.

Brydon horseman Keith Norman sourced Sam’s Beach Babe for Hewitson.

“She kicked her owner in the back and actually broke her back. She was looking at getting rid of the mare, so I bought her.”

As a racehorse Sam’s Beach Babe won two races for Edendale trainer Alex Milne and as a broodmare has fashioned a good record leaving Freyberg (Washington VC – 25 wins), Vanhalem (Santanna Blue Chip – 12 wins) and The Croupier (Roll With Joe – 14 wins).

Seabrooke is trained at Gore by Shane Matheson.

“We’ve realised the breed gets better when they’re five or six. If you can hold on and wait, they come good. She’s got a huge motor and you haven’t seen the best of her yet. She wants to go quicker than her legs will let her. Being by Mach Three she’s also quite fizzy. When she’s going around this year, we’re always looking at next year. She’s quite exciting,” he said.

He said the progeny of Sam’s Beach Babe have a lot in common.

“They don’t like change. You can’t just put a pricker or a murphy blind on. You have to introduce it slowly, so she’s a work in progress. She’s been in a long time without doing too much racing but we’ve had to put the handbrake on a few times.”

In today’s 1609 metre mobile, driver Mark Hurrell pushed the go button early from barrier seven with second favourite Cock A Hoop taking up the front runner’s role. When Need A Change came round, Hurrell slotted Seabrooke into the one one. With 450 metres to run Hurrell took the mare three wide and when the field straightened for the run home Seabrooke hit the front and ran to the line a length and three quarters in front of I Spy. The 1609 metres was run in 1-57.2 with the last 800 cut out in 58.8.

SEABROOKE REPLAY

The win was one of three for in form junior reinsman Mark Hurrell. His other winners were My Pleasure (Sportswriter) for Kennington trainer Greg Hunter, and Bubba Scrub (He’s Watching) for Yaldhurst trainer Regan Todd.

Hurrell has won thirty four races this season and sits in second place behind Sarah O’Reilly (55) in the Junior Drivers Premiership.

For complete race results, click here.

by Bruce Stewart for Harnesslink