Speed and stamina will be on display in a real treat for horse racing fans at Friday’s meeting on the Fairview Turf track in Greenbushes.
It is a bumper meeting of nine races, with the highlights being the East Cape Oaks and the Fairview Flying Five.
The Oaks is a race for three-year-old fillies over the challenging distance of 2 000 metres.
To win this one, a filly has to have speed and stamina. This will be a real test for some promising fillies, and is usually a race the spectators enjoy.
In the Flying Five, the focus will be on speed. This race is run over 1 000m and the speedsters will indeed be doing low flying to the finish line.
The Fairview sprint races are always very competitive and very exciting. Friday’s race should be another thrilling contest with quality horses in action.
Another interesting race is the Derby Plate for three-year-olds over 2 000m. Some will use this race as preparation for the big one, the WSB East Cape Derby, on May 10.
April is a great month for local racing and fans saw a fantastic race last Friday, when Zatara Magic won the Glenlair Trophy for the Gavin Smith stable.
This race is a stamina test over 2 800m and it turned into an exciting finish, with Zatara Magic just managing to get the better of the gutsy filly, Medlers Tart.
There were also good performances by Great Affair in third place and the unlucky Peace In Our World, who encountered traffic problems late in the race, in fourth.
It will be interesting to see if all these horses will be back to tackle the Gold Cup over 3 200m, a little later in the season.
Cape Town-based jockey, Keanen Steyn, was the real hero in the Glenlair Trophy triumph.
Craig Zackey was carded to ride Zatara Magic but couldn’t make the trip to Fairview. A few other jockeys turned down the chance, but Steyn put his hand up.
Zatara Magic is not an easy horse to ride. He struggles to relax early in a race and when he eventually settles down is not keen to pick up the pace again.
Steyn grabbed his chance ride with both hands, and rode the perfect race in a classy display. He deserved the victory, through and through.
Fairview in April
12: Turf – EC Oaks & Flying Five
16: Poly
19: Turf – EC Nursery
26: Poly
