First Volstead winners via siring double at Maryborough

North American bred and Swedish group one winning trotting stallion, Volstead, has wasted little time making a big impression in the world of harness racing.

The son of Cantab Hall got his first siring credits anywhere in the world when two of his daughters won not one, but two Vicbred Platinum Home Grown Classic heats yesterday (12 May) at Maryborough in Australia.

The first of them came in the very first race on the card with Nathan Jack producing the impressive Violet Stanford to win comfortably on debut.

The juvenile filly was left alone in front with trainer/driver, Jack, dictating terms and careering away for a winning margin of 25m. She stopped the clock for the 1690m journey in 2:09.4 with a mile rate of 2:03.2.

Violet Stanford is the first (and only) foal from the New Zealand-bred ten-win Thanksgiving mare, Mingara. The one-time G3 runner-up looks to have produced a smart one and the dominant wire-to-wire victory by Violet Stanford will bode well for the $50,000 final in seven days’ time at Melton.

VIOLET STANFORD REPLAY

Despite doing plenty wrong in the same heat, the David Aiken-trained and driven Maoris Mac was a commendable third, with the bay filly also being a daughter of Volstead. She has the bloodlines to be well above average being a granddaughter of three-time G1 winner, Sumthingaboutmaori and will possibly appreciate the bigger track at Melton next weekend.

The second Volstead winner came about an hour a half later when in the second heat (race four) for the two-year-old fillies, Matthew Gath produced Third Eye to a win on debut.

It was a gritty performance after spending plenty of petrol early with an unsuccessful bid for the lead was made, with Gath forced to restrain and take a trail behind race favourite, Centurion Dream.

Third Eye was produced up the sprint lane and showed a nice pair of heels to easily reel in the leader, and despite shying at the winning post stayed in her gait to score by 2.4 meters. The winning time and mile rate for the 1690m mobile event were identical to the first heat being run in 2:09.4 and 2:03.2 for the mile rate.

THIRD EYE REPLAY

She is the product of some unique bloodlines with the Yabby Dam Farms bred filly being out of the Bettor’s Delight race winning mare, Roxy Maguire.

The only trace of trotting blood outside of that of her own sire is found in that of her fourth dam, with her great great grandam, Now And Zen being by Chiola Hanover. That line has produced a mixture of pacers and trotters; however, the majority have come wearing hopples with the likes of Tin Tin in America being a close relation to yesterday’s Vicbred heat winner.

On the other side of the Tasman, Macca Lodge produced another smart looking daughter of Volstead to run second in the non-tote two-year-old trot.

YOSEMITE REPLAY

Where most of the small field faltered, Yosemite showcased great manners and fluidity in her gait to push the Greg and Nina Hope trained Pantani all the way to the winning post going down half a length at the finish.

by Brad Reid, for Harnesslink