06 March 2020 | Duane Ranger
Vicki Rasmussen, has two short-priced pacers lining up at Albion Park on Saturday night, and the Logan Village trainer believes both are equal winning chances
Rasmussen will line up $4 second favourite, De Voyage from gate three in race six at 8.13pm, and then $2.80 favourite, Lucky Unlucky from the outside of the front line (7) in race nine at 9.40pm.
They are her only two starters and they will be driven by Chantal Turpin and Kylie Rasmussen respectively.
“Both can win with a bit of luck in the running. The black mare has the draw and the gelding is the better horse, so they are much of a muchness on Saturday.
“I’m going to the track thinking we can get two winners,” Rasmussen said.
Asked if she would be giving her drivers any instructions, Rasmussen replied:
“No that’s their job. I got the horses to the races and I’m just gana sit back, relax and watch. Have some fun. It’s not going to be easy for Kylie from gate seven, but it would be great if they could both win for ‘Team Teal’.”
The younger of the three Rasmussen sisters (Kylie, and Natalie) is working 13 horses in South Brisbane.
She said she had trained a couple of winners since being falsely accused of race fixing allegation that stemmed from the second race at Albion Park in July 2017. She was acquitted in late September.
“Kylie drove my first winner this time in (December 3). It was our 3-year-old Changeover filly, Which Hunt, who won from gate two at Albion Park.
“That was probably my best win yet. She’s only a little filly but she goes along okay. That was her first win in four starts,” Rasmussen said.
Rasmussen’s comments about her two runners can be viewed below.
The talented trainer doesn’t have a starter in the feature event on Saturday night – the Group Three $25,740 Jim McNeill Trotting Championship.
That 2,647m stand is the sixth event and starts at 8.43pm.
According to the Albion Park Harness Racing Club, Jim McNeil was a successful horseman who played a crucial part to the establishment of the trotter as a racing reality in Queensland.
The Club said McNeil invested a large sum of money in loosely assessed trotters, which he purchased in New Zealand and flew to Queensland, where he saw that they fell into the hands of trainers who were keen to see the gait go forward.
It was instant racing, and over 20 years later the gait is still forging steadily ahead.
The memorial race has been held since 2011 however this year the club has also honoured his wife Ruby with a feature race after she sadly passed away in recent months. The family were very generous sponsors to the Club for many years.
The ‘2020 McNeil’ boasts an even lineup with six horses paying single figure dividends, and with $6 joint favourites any of the $10-$15 shots could also get up.
Those fancied by the TAB are the Terry Hancock trained and Narissa McMullen driven The Reaper (2) $7; the Grant Dixon trained and Adam Sanderson driven Skyline (7-10m) $8; the Grant Dixon trained and Paul Diebert driven Aveross Don (8-20m) $9; the Darren Garrard trained and Kylie Rasmussen driven Heart Of Change (13-30m) $6; the Grant Dixon trained and KerryAnn Morris driven Astral Ruler (14-30m) $6; and the Chantal Turpin trained and driven Majestic Simon (15-30m) $6.
Meanwhile, Rasmussen’s comments about her two starters on Saturday (with race, horse, draw, form, driver, and opening odds) are:
Race 6: DE VOYAGE (3) 14253 (Chantal Turpin) $4. “Four-year-old Major Bronski black mare, which I also own and bred. I’m happy with the draw but she is not as speedy as her stablemate. She has been a model of consistency of late and a bold run would not surprise me here. She had 20 days away from the races before finishing third here last Saturday night. If she can get a nice sit in the race she can be in this.”
Race 9: LUCKY UNLUCKY (7) 43322 (Kylie Rasmussen) $2.80 favourite. “I also own this fella but did not breed him. Although he paces well he doesn’t win too many out of turn, and that’s probably why I can see him running a place again. He’s ran second in his last two Tuesday races from gates three and one at Albion Park. Consistent, but tougher draw this time.”
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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