A slow and steady path to the racetrack is in order for star pacer Hurricane Harley, who continues his recovery from a serious hock infection.
The Emma Stewart-trained five-year-old has not been seen at the races since the Vicbred Super Series finals night on December 31 due to the issue that was discovered in the lead-up to the Ballarat Pacing Cup.
Hurricane Harley was a shock scratching from the Bray Raceway feature and was taken to the Ballarat Veterinary Clinic, where the full extent of his injury was realised.
“They diagnosed there was hock soreness, which led to him having an infection, and that was then a requirement for surgery,” owner Bill Anderson said.
“Subsequent to that surgery, it was strongly recommended that Harley have between 8-10 weeks off. I think we are now at about week eight or nine and we will probably give him about another 3-4 weeks.”
While happy with the horse’s progress at he and wife Anne’s Euroa property, Anderson said Hurricane Harley’s racing preparation would be a slow one.
“We would expect that he might return around about maybe August or September, just in time for races like the Victoria Cup and those that are programmed later,” he said.
“On the basis of the advice, we believe that it is better to give him a slow build-up preparation rather than try get him up in 10-12 weeks.”
Hurricane Harley is the last horse to beat Lochinvar Art, with the victory on November 21 equaling the Tabcorp Park Melton 2240m mobile track record mile rate of 1:51.4min.
The son of Bettors Delight is a winner of 21 races – including one at Group 1 level – and more than $470,000 in prizemoney.
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