NZ HARNESS NEWS
Christchurch trainer Michael House was celebrating a “career day” after preparing six winners at the Manawatu meeting in Palmerston North on Tuesday.
His driver, Blair Orange, reined home five of them for another stellar haul, continuing the unbelievable success of both men at the track this season.
“It’s just dawning on me, the fact that it’s a career day,” said House after the meeting finished.
“I can’t thank all my staff enough, as well as the people around me and the other trainers who have supported me with horses, Jamie Gameson especially.”
Horses previously prepared by Gameson won three races on the card with Idealagain, Nova Time and Twitter Bromac all victorious.
Two recent additions to House’s stable, Dynamo and Dream Big, also both won while Nerve Of Steel, on his second trip to Palmerston North for House, got the chocolates too.
Incredibly, the stable also recorded three second placings on the ten-race card, including a very narrow defeat for another former Gameson horse in Proud Bromac.
“We were a nose from making it seven and joining the likes of Mark Purdon and Natalie Rasmussen in rare company,” said House.
“And he (Proud Bromac) was extremely unlucky, too.”
It’s a big undertaking, sourcing horses, trucking up across the Cook Strait, keeping them happy and settled and ready for two races in 48 hours.
“It takes a lot of people to pull this off,” said House
The six wins elevated House to a clear third on the trainers’ premiership for the season with 40 wins, second only to Purdon/Rasmussen and Robert Dunn.
Remarkably, 30 of those wins have come at Manawatu Raceway.
The team will mostly back up on Thursday and then House will set about planning for the final two two-day meetings there in May.
“I don’t know how I’m going to go in May, I’ll need to find some more.
“Mind you, we’ve got others at home that have been here previously and are now ramping up again.
“The weather in May makes it harder, because the ferry crossing could be a lot riskier if the seas are rough.
“It could cause havoc.”
House says once he sets his mind to something, he goes after it with full enthusiasm.
“I do everything to the extreme, be it this, or the ready to run sales or the stud business.
“I haven’t set any goals for the rest of the season, but I’m going to see it through as the club have been good to me and it’s been profitable.
“Next year I plan on training Sires Stakes colts from this year’s sales but if I can find someone to drive the truck up and come away for four days, then I might keep it going.
“I just couldn’t be more thankful to everyone for their help this season; a day like today makes it all worthwhile.”
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