Doncaster

[Ice777]

She's been working really well EF. She had a jumpout at Balnarring last week with Brad on board which she won and her regular track rider Rowan Waymouth said he couldn't be happier with her so everything seems to be going to plan at this stage.

Johnny decided to hold off floating her over until this arvo so hopefully she travels well. I agree we'd have liked to draw in a bit closer but that's how it goes, it could've been alot worse and if we can jump from 9 and like you said she should get her chance from there.

I'm not sure what the tactics will be but i'd say the plan will be for Brad to go forward and sit just off the pace much like she did in the Autumn classic last start. Looking at the field it's a very enen one with some real genuine chances but If we can hopefully have a bit of luck in running and runs up to how she has in her last few starts i reckon she's capable of being around the mark at the finish.

 

[hineyrulz]

I think she will run a massive race, she is so honest and always gives 110%. My Emotion will be the one to beat IMO was impressive last start and will relish the extra trip.

 

[Fein]

I think she will run a massive race, she is so honest and always gives 110%. My Emotion will be the one to beat IMO was impressive last start and will relish the extra trip.

Precisely how I read it too.

Get on early and get on often!!!

 

[Evenflow]

Nice little write up here Ice though i'm sure you've seen it. You must be pretty excited going into such a big race, are you heading over to see it? If i don't get a chance i'll say good luck for it and i hope she gets up for you mate.....and for me as well as i've already snapped up the juicy odds of $10 she's showing at centrebet which is easily the best price i've seen ;-)



http://formguide.cyberhorse.com.au/...alia/mcardle-has-absolute-faith-in-filly.html



McArdle has absolute faith in filly


John McArdle is confident Absolute Faith can give him the third Group One win of his career in Saturday's Australasian Oaks at Morphettville. When McArdle first kicked off his training career he was quickly in the spotlight with top filly Hollow Bullet who won the 2004 Wakeful Stakes-VRC Oaks double at Flemington and the 2005 Arrowfield Stud Stakes at Rosehill.

While she may not be as good as Hollow Bullet, Absolute Faith is certainly rated highly by the Mornington mentor. "She has 1200-metre speed, but she relaxes very well and the jockeys who have been riding her say she is looking for 2000 metres," McArdle said.

Regular rider Brad Rawiller couldn't make the weight of 53.5kg when the Not A Single Doubt filly was ridden by Dwayne Dunn to a half-neck second to Extra Zero in the Group Two Autumn Classic (1800m) at Caulfield on February 27. "She went terrific against the colts and was a bit unlucky not to win," McArdle said. "Dwayne got off and said she just wants further."
While her sire was a sprinter, McArdle says the filly has thrown to the dam, US mare Tender Saint, a daughter of St Jovite.

Featuring in her pedigree is Helenus, the triple Group One winner of the Victoria Derby, Rosehill Guineas and Caulfield Guineas. From eight starts, Absolute Faith has won twice at Flemington, over 1200m and 1400m, and has been placed at Group Two and Three level this preparation. "We put her aside after two runs in the spring as we were hoping she'd come back a stronger filly in the autumn which she has," McArdle said.

"Brad (Rawiller) came down and trialled her over a mile at Balnarring since her last run just to keep her ticking over." Absolute Faith, $8.50 with TAB Sportsbet, has drawn barrier 11 in the 16-horse field plus three emergencies.

Favourite at $4.60 is the Mick Kent-trained My Emotion, who goes in as the last-start winner of the Group Two Fillies Classic (1600m) at Moonee Valley, ahead of Speedy Natalie at $5.50 and Aloha at $7.

 

[Ice777]

My emotion is certainly the one to beat you'd think and is deserved fave for sure. It was a very impressive win last start and i can't see her not being in the finish again tomorrow and i hope we're fighting it out with her. That said i reckon there's other genuine chances in any one Speedy Natalie, Aloha, No evidence needed, Salinas as well. It's just one of those races that's very even.

Thanks for the article and the weel wishes EF, i knew he did that story but just hadn't got a chance to see it. We are going over tomorrow morning for sure and can't wait. It'll just be a hit and run thing and fly back tomorrow night. I hoping if she makes it to those races in Sydney we'll make a weekend thing of those. Great price at the $10 which is what i got. I've been looking around and just curious to see what price she's at now and the best i've seen is $8.50 atm down to $7 and everything in between. Lets hope she can get us the chocolates ;-)

 

[Evenflow]

Is it just me or was that race run at a ridiculously slow pace? They were fair dinkum walking and as soon as i saw the tempo i knew it was always going to be hard if not impossible for any horse coming from behind to make enough ground to win. I haven't seen the time/sectionals yet as i can't find them but i'd be very surprised if it was a decent time for a 2000m race on a good rated track.

It's just very frustrating to watch any race let alone a group 1 run at such a slow pace and not giving all horses every possible chance in the race. It wasn't just your horse that was a victim of it either, My Emotion who finished right beside Absolute Faith was in exactly the same boat and the 2 of you were the only ones to make any real ground though it was never going to be enough given the way the race panned out.

How did she pull up Ice? It looked like Brad didn't give her too much of tough run so hopefully she's well and you head off to Sydney like you had planned. I'll definitely be backing her again, she only finished 3 lengths off them in a race run that clearly didn't suit horses coming from the back half of the field and she'd have been right in the finish if it wasn't run at such a farcical speed. I know that's racing and there's always a risk of these things happening but if she gets a truly run race which is arguably the way they should be run she'll give it a real good shake.

 

[Ice777]

I'm glad you came in and said that EF because if it were me it'd look like i was making excuses lol but yeah, you know your racing and you summed it up pretty much spot on. On face value it might've looked a bit disappointing but in reality with the slow tempo the race was run from barrier to the top of the straight she or anyone else in the back 3/4's of the field had no chance of winningwhich was by far the most disappointing thing.

Like you said, us and My emotion were pretty much the only ones to make any sort of ground from the back but we were never going to make up enough ground to win and we finsished virtually side by side. Mick Kent the trainer of ME said to Johnny after the race "How the f**k are we meant to have any chance to win that f**king boat race?" Those were his exact words and i reckon it's fair to say he wasn't real happy lol He said he gave instructions to his jockey to track us into the race and take off when we did because he knew we would come home from behind but they got stuck with us as well and finished right beside us.

They know that's racing and how it goes sometimes but as they said, it's one thing for your horse just not to be good enough which is much easier to cop, but it's a whole other thing knowing their horse is good enough to win but not having the chance to do so especially in a big race. I can understand their point because having a group 1 winner is just a massive thing for their stables in regards to bringing in new clients and things like that.

Brad said it was incredibly frustrating and while it's not unusual for there to be a slow tempo, it rarely stays that way for the majority of the race and they usually quicken much earlier. He waited and waithed for them to take off but they just never. If they did then she and all the others would've had their chance but again that's just how it goes sometimes. He said the best thing after all that happened she still only finished 3 lengths away from the winner and he hardly touched her as he didn't want to give her a hard run knowing he wouldn't have been able to make up enough ground.

As for how she pulled up, Johnny and i went to see her after the race and after he checked her over he said to me we could throw the saddle on her again and run her around in the next race, she wouldn't even blow out a candle and it was like she only had a track gallop. She also travelled back well and was floated up to Sydney last night and arrived there this morning where she'll to Storm Queen stakes (Arrowfield) at Rosehill on Saturday week. given the clockwise way of racing it was better to get her up there much earlier to help her try and get used to it in her prep for the race.

To be perfectly honest i'm not sure we can win it. Not because anything to do with the other day, the main reason is because Faint Perfume is running in it not to mention Valedemoro who ran the quinella in the VRC Oaks last year. I think FP is a pretty special horse and has a massive future ahead of her. There'll also other very nice horses in it as well preparing for the Oaksand it's a wait and see if our one will handle that way of running.

But as Johnny was saying she'll only 3 once and there's be no Storm Queen or Oaks for us to compete in next year so as long as she still wants to race this prep then she will. He said we have nothing at all to lose, worse case scenario we take her up there costing a couple grand (which she's more than paid off anyway) and she misses a top 5 place and out of the prizemoney, if we don't go onto the Oaks we'll spell her to get ready for the spring where the trainer thinks she'll be a better horse anyway.

Or if she finishes in the top 5 it easily pays for her trip and if we can't/don't win, even if we could sneak a place in a G1 race and get some more black type in her, according to John that alone will add between $50-$100k to her value as a broodmare if we decide to sell her down the track and if we decide to keep her it'll make her a more attractive option for other owners to breed with her given she has black type in group races. If she showed any sign of having enough or something gives us any indication she doesn't want to go on this prep we won't hesitate for 1 second to tip her out for a break but if she's still right to race we'd be mad not to at least give Sydney a go given there's much more to gain than there is to lose.

 

[Evenflow]

Mate you're hardly making excuses, anyone who has even half a clue about racing would know when a race is run at such a ridiculously slow tempo for the vast majority of the race horses coming from behind have no chance of winning. I think you made a good point when you said "it's one thing for your horse to not to be good enough but it's a whole other thing knowing your horse is good enough to win but not having the chance to do so"

I say that because if you put Extra Zero in that race last week (if he was elligible) if all things being even he would've won pretty easy against the ones that beat you home last week. Your filly lost to it by a nose and arguably would've won it if she hadn't have found trouble so that form certainly stands up.

I agree it'll be a harder assignment in the Storm Queen next week against the locals and running the opposite way but i think she deserves her chance against them and i've no doubt she can finish in the top 5 with all things being equal. I just wanted to ask if she's settled in ok and if she's done any work the clockwise way yet how did she handle it?

 

[Ice777]

I spoke to Johnny yesterday EF and from all reports she's working pretty well the Sydney way of going but as he said race conditions against a full is a lot different to working alone in a track gallop. The fields are out and as you would expect being a G1 it's a tough one.

We're under no illusions, we know we aren't as good as the ones above us and we'd need every bit of luck in the world to topple them but racing's a funny game and anything can happen. There's been plenty of horses rougher than ours that've won big races so you never know. All i'm hoping for is for her have a good run and finish within a few lengths of them to justify her having a crack at the Oaks. That's probably me being a bit selfish as well wanting to get another weekend at the races in Sydney as much as anything else :lol:

But seriously i'd love her to run well enough to keep her there for the Oaks. She might not win that either but as John said they're only 3 once so you have to take the chance while it's there. I doubt very much i'll ever have another G1 runner in my life so why have a crack at them if she still feels like running. She's drawn well in this one and he says Brad will sit closer to the speed a few lengths off them if possible and see how the race pans out.

We've been keeping a close eye on the forecast up there at this stage it looks like it's gonna be a real bog and in all honesty we don't know how she's going to handle it being so wet. We're hoping she relishes it obviously because if she does there's many others with question marks over their wet track form and might just even it out a bit, she might hate it and finish last who knows. All i know is i can't wait to get up there and enjoy my first Slipper day and wherever she finishes i'll be rapt to have a runner in such a great race on a great race day.

 

[hineyrulz]

I spoke to Johnny yesterday EF and from all reports she's working pretty well the Sydney way of going but as he said race conditions against a full is a lot different to working alone in a track gallop. The fields are out and as you would expect being a G1 it's a tough one.

We're under no illusions, we know we aren't as good as the ones above us and we'd need every bit of luck in the world to topple them but racing's a funny game and anything can happen. There's been plenty of horses rougher than ours that've won big races so you never know. All i'm hoping for is for her have a good run and finish within a few lengths of them to justify her having a crack at the Oaks. That's probably me being a bit selfish as well wanting to get another weekend at the races in Sydney as much as anything else :lol:

But seriously i'd love her to run well enough to keep her there for the Oaks. She might not win that either but as John said they're only 3 once so you have to take the chance while it's there. I doubt very much i'll ever have another G1 runner in my life so why have a crack at them if she still feels like running. She's drawn well in this one and he says Brad will sit closer to the speed a few lengths off them if possible and see how the race pans out.

We've been keeping a close eye on the forecast up there at this stage it looks like it's gonna be a real bog and in all honesty we don't know how she's going to handle it being so wet. We're hoping she relishes it obviously because if she does there's many others with question marks over their wet track form and might just even it out a bit, she might hate it and finish last who knows. All i know is i can't wait to get up there and enjoy my first Slipper day and wherever she finishes i'll be rapt to have a runner in such a great race on a great race day.

Good luck mate i'm sure she'll run a good race, she always does. There are some classy horses running in this field it should be a thrill just to have a runner on Slipper day. If she gets through the going she has got to be chance, enjoy the day i'm sure it will be a cracker.

 

[Evenflow]

I'm with Hiney and wishing you the best of luck and hope she runs a cracker for you. Well for me as well because i took the $34's about her on Sportsbet Australia. I know she's up against some better horses this time but i think that's overs for a G2 place getter against the colts. Not sure if you saw this article but i just found it and pretty much sums up what you told us. Have a great day and enjoy the ride mate ;-)



http://www.superracing.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/McArdle-chasing-another-Sydney-Group-One/13395

McArdle chasing another Sydney Group One


Victorian trainer John McArdle will be hoping lightning can strike twice when he starts Absolute Faith in the Vinery Stud Storm Queen Stakes at Rosehill.

Victorian trainer John McArdle will be hoping lightning can strike twice when he starts Absolute Faith in the Vinery Stud Storm Queen Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday. McArdle won the Group One 2000m feature - then known as the Arrowfield Stud Stakes - with Hollow Bullet five years ago.

Absolute Faith may not have the same credentials - Hollow Bullet came to Sydney a proven Group One performer having won the VRC Oaks the previous spring - but McArdle is adamant she has her share of ability. The filly was second to Victoria Derby placegetter Extra Zero at Caulfield two starts ago then settled a long way back in the Australasian Oaks before running on for seventh to Small Minds.

McArdle says a better draw on Saturday will enable Absolute Faith to be ridden more positively. "She had a bad gate last time and was unknown at 2000 metres so we rode her a bit conservatively," McArdle said. "From barrier four she should be able to jump and be ridden to suit the tempo of the race." The Storm Queen is a traditional lead-up to the AJC Australian Oaks (2400m) run at Randwick two weeks later and the top five fillies in Oaks betting will all clash on Saturday. Heading the charge are Faint Perfume and Valdemoro, first and second in the VRC Oaks, along with Run For Naara and Set For Fame who were placed in the Rosehill and Australian Guineas respectively.

The Australasian Oaks quinella of Small Minds and No Evidence Needed will also tackle the Storm Queen in what McArdle sees as an open race.
"Class-wise she's as good as any of the fillies from Melbourne," he said. "It looks an even race. "There is different form from different areas and she deserves her chance. They're only three once." The Storm Queen will be new territory for Absolute Faith who has not raced in the Sydney direction nor been on a track worse than dead.

McArdle was in Sydney on Tuesday morning to watch her work on the course proper at Warwick Farm and said she appeared to handle both the track and conditions well. "She seemed to get around on it and handle it but we'll find out on race day," he said."She's from Victoria so she's never seen rain. It's a complete unknown."

 

[Evenflow]

Sounds like the weather has improved so hopefully the track drys out a bit.







.

 

[andrew057]

Fantastic run again mate. Each way all day.

 

[coolsteve]

great work , guys. stumbled across this thread couple weeks ago, lost and backed up this week , scored the tri as well , lovin it

 

[hineyrulz]

great work , guys. stumbled across this thread couple weeks ago, lost and backed up this week , scored the tri as well , lovin it

I had nice bet eachway on her and Got the tri after having Faint perfume as the banker. Wasn't looking pretty at the top of the Straight :lol: Just so glad she ran a ripper of a race Ice and not talking out of my pocket


Unlucky for her she is up against a couple of very classy Fillies in the Oaks hopefully for you they decide to go for the cash and the Derby.

 

[andrew057]

Shes racing again. Big odds at Flemington to, got a little on her for the place.

Whats the latest with her Ice? Hows she been going?

 

[Tom155]

Shes racing again. Big odds at Flemington to, got a little on her for the place.

Whats the latest with her Ice? Hows she been going?

without having to reading the whole thread, who are you talking about?

 

[andrew057]

without having to reading the whole thread, who are you talking about?

Only have to read any of the past 30 posts.

Absolute Faith, which Ice owns a share in.