This week's Craig Rail's Trial File is the full two-bob, with plenty going into the Blackbook include an eye-catching recovery at Mildura.
Here's the good oil from this week's trials circuit. Scroll to the bottom for Craig Rail's Trial File Blackbook.
STAWELL 15/04/20
Trial 1: - FIFTYSHADES CRESCO has been unplaced at her past few outings but was able to defeat the handy mare GRACIE CULLEN in the opening trial. FEELIN THE BEAT was beaten a long way at her debut and finished a distant third ahead of SOURCE TO MARTYR, which hasn’t raced since December 2018. The former Queensland trotter INDEFENSIBLE, which performed nicely in three local runs in August/September, finished last of the five runners.
Mile Rate: - 2.5.66 Final Half: - 61.46 Margins: - Neck, 12m
Trial 2: - TIC TACT has disappointed since coming from Queensland but she showed improvement by winning her trial by a large margin. HARRY MCKINNIS hasn’t raced since August and finished in second position ahead of CAESARS REIGN (Julius Caesar – Miss Rainmaker 2.1.6, $21,160). SUMMERHILL (Peak – Summerline 2.1.9, $74,544) finished second last with ZERO DOUBT (Shadyshark Hanover – Problem Solved 1.59.0, $27,361) coming in at the tail of the field.
Mile Rate: - 2.6.56 Final Half: - 60.57 Margins: - 25m, 5m
Trial 3: - SUAVE TAJ is a smart trotter and won the Hobart Trotting Cup in March. He came off the handicap of 20m and defeated the nicely bred filly TICTOK (Love You – Sundons Pride 2.1.4, $112,733) by two metres. DEFENCE GOT JUMPED hasn’t raced since November 2018 and finished third ahead of JUST STELLA MAGIC.
Mile Rate: - 2.10.61 Final Half: - 62.87 Margins: - 2m, 6m
MILDURA 19/04/20
Trial 1: - SASSYS A TERROR has recently joined trainer Scott Garraway and raced to an easy trial victory. She trailed the leader, moved up without cover at the bell and proved too strong. BEAUTYS SHADOW hasn’t raced since August and tried to lead all of the way. ART OF OZTREOS settled three back on the markers and finished in third position. IM JIMMIES GIRL (Shadow Play – Priddy Good 2.0.1, $5,125) galloped at the start, hung in badly and nearly fell over the inside fence before being tailed off throughout.
Mile Rate: - 2.4.2 Final Half: - 60.0 Margins: - 15m, 2m
Trial 2: - SHADYS PURSUIT trailed the leader and moved to the outside on the home turn. He was able to forge to the lead on the home turn and held off his rivals in the run to the finish. TWOBOBJACK broke stride approximately 50m after the start and lost valuable ground. He chased hard and came from tailed off to tack onto the group at the 650m then came out three horses wide on the home turn and produced a big effort to finish second. It was a top performance and he should be competitive when he steps out onto the track at Mildura this afternoon. GOVINNI began quickly to find the lead and finished third. He hasn’t started since an unplaced run at Albion Park in December but is now preparing for his return to Victoria with trainer Frank Cavallaro. OLLIE AND BROCK raced without cover for the first lap, settled three back on markers at the bell then went through the middle late to finish jogging with no clear run. He finished last of the four but was luckless in the run to the finish.
Mile Rate: - 2.4.0 Final Half: - 62.0 Margins: - 2m, 2m
BLACKBOOKER: - Twobobjack
MARYBOROUGH 19/04/20
Trial 1: - MOONLITE BAY is a former Tasmanian pacer, which has recently joined trainer Kate Hargreaves. He settled four back on the markers but moved up without cover from the 1100m and produced a strong performance to score in handy time. SUNDONS COURAGE began quickly to find the lead and gave a great sight when a narrow second. SHADOW ROSS settled fifth on the markers and followed MOONLITE BAY all of the way. He finished off quite nicely for third with CHOOZ REACTOR being fourth after tailing the leader throughout. TELL NOBODY finished last of the five runners after being three back on the markers throughout.
Mile Rate: - 2.1.9 Final Half: - 56.0 Margins: - Neck, 4m
Trial 2: - ALDEBARAN SUNDOWN has had trouble in trotting fluently at his past two trial appearances but his ability has been able to see him being successful. He found the lead, pulled hard, raced roughly and hung out badly but was still able to score by 30m. TRUSCOTT SUN was badly away, lost 15m and settled last of the three runners then obtained an inside run underneath of FLICK IT (Fling It – Sli Trix 2.4.0, $28,885) and was able to snare second. FLICK IT finished third after trailing the leader and hung out under pressure approaching the final corner.
Mile Rate: - 2.7.0 Final Half: - 65.1 Margins: - 30m, 5m
Trial 3: - KEILAH (Art Major – Shakeilah 2.1.6, $13,691) settled five back on the markers before moving into a one out and one back trail at the 800m and came out three horses wide at the 600m when she won nicely. ROXY ROYALE (Pet Rock – Baroda Bess) settled four back on the markers, moved up without cover from the 800m and battled on well for second. SPORTING MODEL (Art Major – All Eyes On Me 1.51.0, $349,926) showed good gate speed to lead and held down third in front of THUMP (Village Jolt – Umi 1.56.5, $36,725), which gained a nice run behind the leader. TALLARAS SHADOW settled three back on the markers and was under pressure from the 800m mark hence finishing last of the five runners.
Mile Rate: - 2.5.7 Final Half: - 58.8 Margins: - 4m, 6m
Trial 4: - STATESWOMAN settled three back on the markers and moved out three horses wide from the 400m. She hit the lead on the home turn and held off the late challenge of CEE VEE VEE, which raced five back on the markers and came out four horses wide entering the home straight. He did run home well to finish a close up second. NIL DESPERANDUM trailed the leader and moved up without cover from the quarter pole and battled away for third. LONGASULOVEME (Pet Rock – Aniteattheopera 2.1.6, $13,600) settled four back on the markers, was held up for a run at a vital stage before using the sprint lane and running into fourth position over the latter stages. SHADY HANOVER began very quickly to find the lead but tired late and SOHO KYOTO (Bettors Delight – Chip and Gale 1.52.6, $563,343) finished at the tail of the field after settling five back on the markers and started to struggle in the back straight on the final occasion.
Mile Rate: - 2.1.9 Final Half: - 60.5 Margins: - Head, 5m
Trial 5: - IMA ZIABEE broke at the start, settled last of the three runners and circled around the field to lead at the 1400m. She held on to score over MYSTIC CHIP, which led out then took a trail and moved away from the markers on the home turn. LUCY SAWYER (Tennotrump – Annies Last 2.9.2, $4,508) trailed the leader early before being relegated to last when IMA ZIABEE made her move. She is a juvenile and she was taking on older trotters that have already won races so she understandably finished at the tail of the field.
Mile Rate: - 2.11.5 Final Half: - 61.6 Margins: - Neck, 50m
TABCORP PARK, MELTON 20/04/20
Trial 1: - ALDEBARAN DIANNA (Father Patrick – Bromac Aldebaran) trailed the leader in the early stages, gained the lead at the 700m and continued to roll along in the final circuit to win nicely. EURYPHAESSA (Majestic Son – Indie Pepperell 2.0.6, $32,458) began well and was able to find the lead. She made an error and wanted to pull up with 700m remaining, ended up being a distant second and chased hard in the latter stages. UTOPIA (Trixton – Gluteus Maximus 1.59.6, $104,855) is a beautifully bred colt, which galloped at the start, settled a distant fifth and made up plenty of ground to finish a game third. TENNERSON (Skyvalley – Poet Laureate 2.5.7, $44,598) settled four back on the markers and finish fourth with PARIS SUZIE (Great Success – Forgetfulljane) in fifth after jumping nicely and galloping 200m after the start. THE SARGENT (Skyvalley – Redneck) settled a distant third and broke stride at the 700m, losing his chance. SILENT REVERIE (Pegasus Spur – Sunny Folly 2.8.1, $27,778) was slow to move, raced roughly and was tailed off for the entire trip.
Mile Rate: - 2.10.6 Final Half: - 61.62 Margins: - 14m, 42m
BLACKBOOKER: - Utopia
Trial 2: - MOLLYS PURSE trailed the leader early, found the lead with 600m remaining and dashed to an easy victory. OVERANDOUT (Majestic Son – Coruscating 2.7.7, $11,440) broke at the start and lost 60m, chased hard and moved up without cover from the 400m. It was a big performance to finish second. LEFT RIGHT ANDCENTRE was slow to move and missed the start by 80m. He made up a lot of ground but finished in third position with FLING IT ALL ABOUT dropping out to the tail of the field after leading early.
Mile Rate: - 2.7.7 Final Half: - 59.79 Margins: - 12m, 21.5m
Trial 3: - HEAVENLY GIPSY (Rock N Roll Heaven – Mach Robyn 1.59.2, $15,975) settled three back on the markers, dropped back one position further mid-race but was able to get through and trail the leader before coming to the outside on the home turn and finishing off best in the final stages. FIGHTNFURY (Bettors Delight – The Waratah 1.57.9, $40,861) raced without cover and pushed forward to find the lead at the 1200m. He fought hard in the straight and went down narrowly on the line. SUMOMENTSOMEWHERE (Somebeachsomewhere – Special Moment 1.58.0, $72,511) showed gate speed and trailed the leader early before being shuffled back in the field then manoeuvred into the one out and one back trail. He switched back to the markers in the final stages and used the sprint lane to finish in third position. ALAKAZAM (Well Said – Mumbai Majik 1.59.2, $20,727) wanted to hang in and raced greenly during the early stages of the event but he showed enough early speed to lead before taking cover. He moved into the death seat with 500m remaining and kicked on quite well at the finish. ILLAWONG AWESOME (Mach Three – Miss Astronomical) settled in the one out and one back trail early, before easing to be sixth on the markers. He finished fifth ahead of CELESTIALFRAGRANCE (Terror To Love – Heavenly Scent), which ended up being five back on the markers for the majority of the trial.
Mile Rate: - 2.4.6 Final Half: - 59.70 Margins: - 1/2head, head
Trial 4: - COVER OF DARKNESS (Majestic Son – Illawong Mooshine 1.58.1, $63,515) raced without cover before finding the lead at the 1800m and completely dominated the trial. He ran away from his rivals to score by almost 50m. ABITOFADREAMER started off being three back on the markers and was four back at the bell, approximately 30m away from the leading trio. He was able to run into a distant second over the latter stages. HAMMERS PEGASUS (Pegasus Spur – Sundonna) was beaten by a long distance but he did make up good ground on the beaten brigade from sixth to pick up third placing. ROLL WITH ROSCO (Roll With Joe – Petousa 1.57.3, $180,217) is bred to be an exceptionally good pacer but he obviously has the inclination to trot. He settled five back on the markers and picked up fourth in front of RUM AN ROYAL, which galloped early and was tailed off. MARIACHI (Fling It – Golden Photo 2.5.3, $9,813) began quickly to lead before taking cover at the 1500m. He was still in second position when he broke stride and lost his chance with 600m remaining. MY LINDY ANGELS ended up being three back on the markers but was travelling very awkwardly in the back straight before eventually galloping at the quarter pole.
Mile Rate: - 2.8.4 Final Half: - 64.21 Margins: - 48.5m, 2m
BLACKBOOKER: - Cover Of Darkness
Trial 5: - PLATINUM SPARKLE (Bettors Delight – Bollinger Baby 1.56.0, $67,256) showed exceptionally good gate speed to lead and was able to hold off a challenge from DOUGS BABE (Western Terror – Dougs Courage 1.58.0, $94,902) to record a good victory. DOUGS BABE was a game effort as she raced without cover early, switched to the markers in fourth then moved up into the breeze again to chase at the 500m. QUICK DAN (American Ideal – Courageousnquick 1.56.1, $236,427) settled five back on the markers and came out three horses wide from the 400m. He finished a distant third ahead of MERRY DANCER (Changeover – Lucky Merrywood 1.58.4, $51,128), which settled three back on the inside before coming off the pegs at the quarter pole. DOUBLE HAPPINESS (Rock N Roll Heaven – Our Waltzing Mathilda 1.57.7, $12,131) finished in fifth position after trailing the leader and NO WIN NO WORRIES (A Rocknroll Dance – Onedins Courage) was last of the six horses throughout.
Mile Rate: - 2.0.3 Final Half: - 58.24 Margins: - 2m, 23m
Trial 6: - STAR OF MEMPHIS took out the open class trial, which only boasted three runners. He was able to lead throughout with SOMEBEACHSHADOW trailing and using the sprint lane and MY KIWI MATE being last of the three and moving up without cover with 400m remaining. After receiving an easy run in front, STAR OF MEMPHIS was able to blast home in a very quick final half of 54.61 seconds to defeat SOMEBEACHSHADOW with MY KIWI MATE being a close up third.
Mile Rate: - 1.58.1 Final Half: - 54.61 Margins: - 2.5m, ½ head
Trial 7: - LONG WEEKEND gained a nice trail behind the leader throughout but he was impressive at his trial victory. He raced very fiercely throughout but still had a good kick left at the finish and quickly put the issue beyond doubt when he angled away from the markers on the home turn. PRELIMINARY tried to lead throughout and finished in second position, well clear of FLEETWOOD ROCK, which eased back to fifth after racing without cover early and followed inside runs thereafter. UNETHICAL (Four Starzzz Shark – Notfitforsale) settled three back on the markers and finished in fourth ahead of A ROCKNROLL WALTZ (A Rocknroll Dance – Our Waltzing Mathilda 1.57.7, $12,131) (four back markers, without cover from 700m) and MOZZARELLA MAN was last of the six runners throughout.
Mile Rate: - 2.1.1 Final Half: - 59.92 Margins: - 5m, 17m
BLACKBOOKER: - Long Weekend
Trial 8: - SPEEDY MACH settled four back on the markers, moved into the one out and one back trail and got up to second at the quarter pole. He finished off strongly and was able to draw clear to win nicely at the end. HIT THE SKY settled six back on the markers, moved up without cover at the half mile marker and battled on well for second. JOBELLS IMAGE settled three back on the inside, moved away from the markers in the back straight and quickly hit the front with 400m remaining. She was run down late and finished third ahead of MACHANICAL, which sat without cover early before gaining the trail behind the leader VALLEY OF TERROR and being held up behind that tiring runner leaving the back straight. HARRYS FLIGHT finished fifth after working onto the back of HIT THE SKY from seventh in the back straight. GIUSEPPE MOON settled five back on the markers and beat the early leader VALLEY OF TERROR to the line.
Mile Rate: - 1.59.5 Final Half: - 57.91 Margins: - 4.5m, Neck
Trial 9: - SOMEGLITZSOMEWHERE trailed the leader, moved away from the markers at the 600m and quickly zoomed to the lead. The further the race went, the bigger his leading margin was and he ended up being successful by 48m. SUMMER GRIN (Grinfromeartoear – Goingonsafari) settled three back on the markers and finished second ahead of ARCTIC WIND (Roll With Joe – Windchill 2.3.2, $9,600), which tried to lead throughout. JOHNNY YURO (Sportswriter – Mendelico 1.56.1, $188,243) broke stride at the start and lost 40m early, tacked onto the group at the 1200m and finished fourth. TIZ ATEGO (Tiz A Masterpiece – Sarahs Jasper 2.1.4, $21,210) settled four back on the markers but was struggling a long way from home and finished a distant last.
Mile Rate: - 2.3.3 Final Half: - 58.66 Margins: - 48m, 3m
Trial 10: - EUREKA was very impressive in taking out the final trial. He showed good gate speed to lead, took a trail and was shuffled back on the markers before powering along the sprint lane to defeat a handy field. ROCKNROLL RONNIE raced without cover before pushing forward to lead at the 1600m. He finished second in front of ARDEN VOYAGER, which took the lead away from his stable mate EUREKA shortly after the start before taking cover and coming to the outside on the home turn. JUSTICE SERVED was fourth after settling five back on the markers and moving into the breeze at the 800m mark. THE KIWI WAY followed JUSTICE SERVED throughout and finished ahead of ADMIRAL, which was headed off from the pole position and ended up being four back on the markers.
Mile Rate: - 1.58.9 Final Half: - 57.18 Margins: - 2.5m, 4.5m
KILMORE 21/04/20
Trial 1: - EXPRESS BEAUTY was five back on the markers before moving up without cover at the 1100m and proved to be too strong for her rivals in the run to the judge. CONSTANTINA settled down near the rear of the field but moved up boldly without cover and pulled hard. She found the lead at the 1500m mark and boxed on well in the run to the finish. LE BELLE BIJOUX (Art Major – Bellas Delight 1.54.3, $442,523) settled four back on the markers before moving into the one out and one back trail behind the eventual winner. She tried hard for third in front of EDNA DOROTHY (Hurricane Kingcole – Safe Hills 2.2.1, $8,375), which led out then took a trail. INSHADOW (Shadow Play – Gaelic Way) trailed the leader early before being three back on the markers and finished in front of AY KABAYO (Pet Rock – Littlemishollywood) (six back markers).
Mile Rate: - 2.3.8 Final Half: - 60.0 Margins: - 2m, 10m
Trial 2: - HADES SKY showed very good early pace to lead clearly and never appeared to be in any danger of defeat after enjoying a nice run in front. STAR MACEY (Danny Bouchea – All Hail The Byrd) trailed the leader before moving to the outside at the 600m mark and tried hard for second. FLYIN FIRST CLASS was headed off from barrier one and followed the markers home being in third position throughout the trial. MAORI ABOUT TIME (Majestic Son – Happy Maori 1.59.6, $89,365) settled four back on the markers and was never extended at any stage. BENJI HALL (Angus Hall – Maori Vale 1.59.5, $35,615) was last of the five runners throughout.
Mile Rate: - 2.7.4 Final Half: - 62.3 Margins: - 3m, 5m
Trial 3: - PICK UP LINE was driven aggressively in the early stages and found the lead with 1700m remaining. She is a strong mare and was always going to take some beating from that point. She held an advantage of two metres over SUNROSE MASTER, which led early then took the trail shortly afterwards. ALL I CAN BE settled down sixth, ended up being four back on the markers when MYZARMI dropped out and retired from the trial, and moved into the death seat at the 600m mark. He finished third ahead of NOTA REPLICA, which ended up being three back on the markers and went to the line strongly in restricted room and being under a hard hold. KING SOLOMON was five back on the markers and gained the one out and one back trail behind ALL I CAN BE but was the last one to complete the course.
Mile Rate: - 2.2.3 Final Half: - 59.1 Margins: - 2m, 4m
Trial 4: - MAESTRO (Love You – La Tonneralla) trailed the leader WATCH AND ACT and came to the outside on the home turn. He finished off well and claimed victory on the line but neither horse was fully extended. JAUNTY JAY JAY (Muscle Mass – Jaurdon) settled three back on the inside, came wide on the home turn and was not extended at any stage of the trial. IMASOCIALBUTTERFLY (Muscle Mass – Diedre Deville 2.3.9, $4,643) was out of position at the start and lost twelve metres early. She settled down four back on the markers and finished fourth ahead of ASTRO (Love You – Auravale 2.8.2, $30,650), which broke stride at the start losing 40m then made another error with 500m remaining.
Mile Rate: - 2.15.4 Final Half: - 65.6 Margins: - Head, 6m
Trial 5: - POWDERKEG trailed the leader ILLCRYIFHEWINDS early but was left in front when that trotter eased to the outside and retired out of the trial with just over a lap remaining. He enjoyed a nice run throughout and scored very comfortably at the line. EMERALD STRIDE settled down last and came to the outside on the home turn. She worked into second ahead of TAM O’SHANTER, which trailed his stable mate POWDERKEG throughout.
Mile Rate: - 2.7.2 Final Half: - 60.0 Margins: - 5m, 1m
Trial 6: - HOTEL KYVALLEY began well from the standing start and was able to lead comfortably. He trotted faultlessly and ran away from his rivals to win by a large margin. WHOS THE MAN (Angus Hall – Oh Yes Indeed 2.5.2, $57,750) settled last on the markers but after a few others made errors, he ended up being three back on the inside. He worked into second ahead of EVAS IMAGE (Father Patrick – She’s An Image 1.57.4, $233,824), which trailed HOTEL KYVALLEY for most of the journey. LIFEINTHEBALANCE (Grinfromeartoear – Artistic Wings) settled four back on the inside then improved one position further to be in third when LUNA (Used To Me – Auravalley) galloped from behind the leader at the 1700m mark. He got through on the inside and was battling out second but galloped with 100m remaining. LUNA lost 20m after that costly error in the back straight on the first occasion, settled last of the group and remained last of the five runners
Mile Rate: - 2.13.3 Final Half: - 63.2 Margins: - 60m,8m
Trial 7: - STARLIGHT SAFARI came out of the gate brilliantly to find the lead, ran along at a genuine tempo and was simply too good for his rivals, running away to win by 30m at the end. VILLACI settled four back on the inside and worked into the one out and one back trail at the 500m. He ran into second and was clear of PEPPERBERRY (Major Bronski – Rock Melody 2.2.6, $19,300) (3 back markers, without cover at 500m) at the finish. MALALLA settled down six back on the markers and was held up for a run at a vital stage. She finished in front of GOOD COP, which began quickly to find the markers behind STARLIGHT SAFARI but tired late. JAZZY BAY (Heston Blue Chip – Jazzy Art 1.57.4, $62,763) settled five back on the markers before moving into the one wide line (1-2) in the back straight on the final occasion. She beat home FOUR LONELY NIGHTS, which was last throughout.
Mile Rate: - 2.0.7 Final Half: - 58.9 Margins: - 30m, 8m
BLACKBOOKER: - Starlight Safari
Trial 8: - CHATEAUBRIANT has been very good at the trials over the past few weeks and he scored by a large margin. He broke stride momentarily at the start before pushing forward and finding the lead with 1700m remaining. He rolled along at a genuine tempo and continued to build on his lead in the final circuit. KYVALLEY CHIEF sat behind MADENA BAY until the final 150m where he was able to dash into second position, relegating MADENA BAY to finish last of the three runners.
Mile Rate: - 2.5.8 Final Half: - 62.3 Margins: - 50m, 8m
BLACKBOOKER: - Chateaubriant
Trial 9: - KYVALLEY HEIST trailed the leader and used the sprint lane when he was able to dash home to get the prize over HERE COMES KYVALLEY, which led and copped some pressure at the 1200m mark. MAORI MAYHEM (Pegasus Spur – Happy Maori 1.59.6, $89,365) finished in third position after settling three back on the inside and coming away from the markers at the 400m. MAJOR MAX (Majestic Son – Nicky Newky 2.7.0, $18,305) jumped in second position but galloped 50m after the start and lost 25-30m. He ended up being fifth on the markers and beat home RYMES (Majestic Son – Genayas Girl), which settled in fourth, moved up without cover, pressured the leader and tried to lead at the 1200m but raced roughly and broke stride at the 600m mark.
Mile Rate: - 2.16.6 Final Half: - 63.9 Margins: - 2m, 4m.JPG)