North Latrobe-based trainer Ben Parker claimed the biggest win of his training career with just his 14th starter as a trainer, when Glenview Lanikai ($51) claimed the Group 2 Collins Homes Granny Smith (2200m) at Launceston’s Ladbrokes Racing Centre, Mowbray on Sunday night.
Driven by Gareth Rattray, Glenview Lanikai settled outside the leader in the early stages, before ending up in the one-one near the mile, and she was shuffled back further to be one-out and two-back at the 1200m.
Rattray eased the mare three wide with cover from the 850m, with the mare finishing off best in the home straight to win by a neck over Carmen Emjay ($11), with Smooth Reason a further 4.9m away third in a mile rate of 1:58.0s.
Parker did not expect to win but believed the mare could run well.
“I couldn’t believe it,” said an excited Parker, surrounded by an emotional group of owners and stable supporters.
“I would have been happy if we ran in the first five. That was our target.
“I was a little disappointed they changed it from 2698m to 2200m as she is more of a stayer, but with a pretty genuine race pace tonight, it played into our hands a little bit,” the trainer said.
The daughter of Soho Lanikai is out of Motoring Rivers, and is raced on lease by Parker and a syndicate of eight family members and friends.
“She went to the sales, didn’t sell, and I said to the Lefevre family, ‘I’ll take her.’
“We have all just got in together and have a good bit of fun as a group,” Parker explained.
Parker didn’t commit on whether the pacer will now be aimed at next month’s $80,000 Beautide.
“She has gone super tonight. We will wait and see how she pulls up and go from there,” he said.
Parker is no stranger to winning a four-year-old Tasbred final, having driven Pardoe Plugga to victory in the 2020 Raider Stakes.
In the Bevan Lee’s Butchery Golden Mile (1680m) for the open class pacers, the Juanita McKenzie-trained Waves Of Chance ($6.50) made every post a winning one, scoring in a mile rate of 1:54.6s.
“I knew that was what Jack (Watson, driver) wanted to do,” said McKenzie.
The win was the fifth of the season for Waves Of Chance, who has won 10 of his 31 starts, with McKenzie happy to pick and choose the five-year-old gelding’s races in the near future.
The victory capped a memorable weekend for owner Mick Boots, who also races Inter Dominion winner Captains Mistress.
