Trots Centre: Miles' had good region to celebrate as Starzzz return

David Miles’ stable will attempt to lay further groundwork in the path to Group 1 glory at Bendigo tonight, when both short and long-term success will be front of mind.

Pick Up Line and Holi Starzzz will be among the trainer-driver’s hopefuls tonight and, with metropolitan racing proposed for a July 1 resumption, both step out with an eye to the future.

The former is being prepared for the Elizabeth Clarke Mares Triple Crown, to run from August 22, and two-year-old Holi Starzzz has a big season of sires racing in her sights, but both are also a great opportunity for Miles to tonight build on his stunning recent success.

Region-based racing has been good to Miles, having won 19 of 57 starts in the East between April 2 and May 24 and then continued in that rich vein since borders opened, with five wins from eight starts since May 25.

“We’ve really been suited by the regionalisation of racing,” Miles said. “We’ve had a lot of luck, we had some pretty nice two, three and four-year-olds come back in early March and they have taken advantage of that.

“Thanks to HRV and everybody, there’s been a lot of work go in behind the scenes to keep harness racing going and I think the administrators and participants have done a super job.”

While region-based racing’s been kind to the stable, Miles is looking forward to getting in to what presents as a jam-packed program of racing, particularly for his talented crop of two and three-year-olds who are eying sires success.

“It’s going to start getting a little tricky because there’s a lot of races that are going to come up for these babies,” he said. “A little bit of a juggling act to try and make sure that we don’t over tax them.

“Looks like we are going to have Breeders Crown run through November, sires stakes (Vicbred Super Series) is down here in December and for those horses who are dual paid up, we have got the New South Wales Breeders Challenge in October. To be honest, it’s great to have those races still going ahead and in the better weather, which is going to be nice.”

Among his throng of sires hopes is Holi Starrrz, who will contest tonight’s J L King & Co 2YO Pace, which streams on Trots Vision at 5.52pm.

The Four Starzzz Shark filly’s three starts have produced two wins and a second and Miles said tonight “looks like a winnable race”.

“It’s a fairly similar field to last time, maybe just a smidge stronger, but it’s always hard to win two-year-old races from outside the back line,” he said. “She’s going to have to go to the top of her game, but she does look like she’s got above average ability.

“She was very strong last week, she didn’t actually have a lot of luck from barrier two on the second line when she got caught in the breeze and won reasonably convincingly in 56.

“If she can get down to running those times, with no bad luck, I think she will go very very close this week. She’s definitely one we will be looking at the Vicbred and (Breeders) Crown.”

Before those series come later in the year, Miles’ focus will be on the Elizabeth Clarke Mares Triple Crown, which was among HRV’s big announcements on Tuesday.

Leading the stable’s charge in the three-race series will be Pick Up Line, whose build-up continues in tonight’s TAB Long May We Play Pace.

“She’s definitely in line for the Triple Crown. She was actually back in work getting ready for it when it was (initially) called off, so we did have it on the radar,” Miles said.

“We have a couple of other mares in the stable, Six Elements could make up the field in races like that, and also Enchanted Stride, who’s been going gangbusters lately, so fingers crossed we will have more than one arrow to shoot at that target.”

Pick Up Line is three starts back from a spell, when she’s been steered by her owner-breeder Patrick Franklin including to a last start win at Cranbourne.

“Her win last week was really good,” Miles said. “She always takes a couple of runs to come up, her first two runs back from a spell were quite good, she didn’t have a lot of luck. She had all the luck at Cranbourne and dually saluted.

“She’s a couple of weeks between runs this time, which is not ideal for her, she really likes racing week to week, but she’s drawn a nice alley where she’s not going to get too tough a trip.

“The speed track of the state at the moment, Bendigo, I can see them running really slick times and she’s probably going to have to take a couple of short-cuts with the barrier draw, but if she gets a bit of luck in the last lap she will definitely be thereabouts.”

Miles other entrant tonight is Dark Terror, a new acquisition from Ben Settree’s stable who he said was not without a winning chance in his second Victorian start.

“It will be a bit of a learning curve for us this week, it’s his first run for us. He’s coming off a run where he run around in one of the $100,000 regional finals at Bathurst. He won the heat very convincingly, but just looked a shade disappointing in the final after having done a fair bit of work early.

“He’s only been with us a couple of weeks. This week will be a bit of a wait and see scenario, but I think he’s got his share of ability and I think he should step up an make the M0 grade. He’s come down to win a Vicbred bonus and hopefully if he kicks goals we will run him around in some metropolitan racing when that opens up.

“He’s not without a chance of winning this week if they go hard early and come back to us, but from that barrier draw I don’t think he can make his own luck this week.”

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