A significant landmark in the annals of the Australian trotting turf went almost unnoticed when Familiar Tricks clocked 1:55.7 winning at a Menangle midweek meeting in April. The Used To Me gelding became the 100th 2:00 trotter descending from the celebrated matron Maori Miss.

The first was the legendary Maori’s Idol, who posted the first ever 2:00 race mile by a trotter in the southern hemisphere with his 1:59.3 triumph in a Free-for-all at Moonee Valley in November 1977.

The champion racemare Maori Time, who is three times removed from Maori Miss, is the current Australasian mile record holder at 1:51.5 set at Menangle in 2018.

A three-time Australian Broodmare of the Year, Maori Miss has been responsible for seven inside 1:55 – Maori Time 1:51.5, Im Bobby 1:53.9, Pink Galahs 1:54.2, The Windsurfer 1:54.6, Generally Speaking 1:54.6, Van Sank 1:54.7 and Rave On Hall 1:55, according to trotting historian and author John Peck, from the Classic Families website.

The descendants of Maori Miss have won every major race on the trotting calendar, most of them on several occasions. They have won six Victoria Derbies, five Victoria Oaks, 31 Vicbred Finals, 23 Breeders Crowns, five Bill Collins Trotters Miles, two Inter Dominion Trotting Championships and a pair of Australasian Trotting Championships.

They have captured five Australian Trotter of the Year titles, five Broodmare of the Year awards and four Sire of the Year awards.

The Maori Miss family has earned a place all of its own in producing racemares such as Maori Time, Keayang Zahara, Sumthingaboutmaori, Pink Galahs and Spidergirl - all Group 1 winners – and colts in the same class such as Maori’s Idol, Noopy Kiosk, Tennotrump, Danny Bouchea, and others.

  • Captaintreacherous has the largest representation in the Inter Dominion Pacing Championship heats at Albion Park with seven runners, while Majestic Son leads the trotting section with five
  • Hallebesofine, a two-year-old trotting filly, notched her first success at her fourth start at the Bendigo midweek meeting. The filly was bred by Dr Kath McIntosh, the principal of Llowalong Farms, who stand her sire Pastor Stephen
  • The siblings Ruby Wingate and Iamawingate, who were bred and are raced by the Stephens family, both won on the same card at Shepparton recently