By Duane Ranger
One of the North Island’s most promising squaregaiters will revert back to his original heavy shoes in order to win Friday’s feature trot at Alexandra Park.
The Ross Paynter trained Lemond will be vying for his sixth career win, and fifth at ‘The Park’, in the $14,999 Dawson Harford & Partners Handicap for the R55 to R109 trotters.
Lemond is ranked R81 and will start from the unruly mark on the 20m handicap.
“He’s the best horse I have trained and he can go a long way if we can just get him to go away with them cleanly. We have tried to lighten up his shoes this week and have gone back to the original heavy ones he used to wear.
“He needs weight to trot away and we are hoping this will solve the problem. If he steps cleanly I definitely think he can win on Friday,” Cambridge-based Paynter said.
Because of his tardy beginnings, Paynter said he would target mobile races as the season developed.
“Our main goal is the mobile (Group One $80,000) Anzac Cup at Alexandra Park the week before the Rowe Cup. I’ve spoken to his owner (Charlie Hunter) and we both agreed that because he’s just four he will have plenty of time to race in a Rowe Cup.
“He needs to improve his standing start manners before we even think about taking on the guns over two miles. It’s not completely written off though. It will depend how he goes in the Anzac Cup,” Paynter said.
Paynter said he had kept the work fairly light on this week following a tough couple of runs at Alexandra Park earlier this month.
“He followed up his win and third there with a gallop a couple of hundred metres after the start a fortnight ago. Then he put in a big run for third before he was disqualified.
“We took his blood after that race and nothing came back. We are hoping a change in shoes will do the trick this week.”
Lemond was favourite last start and ran on well behind Temporale (Tony Herlihy MNZM) and Prime Power (Todd Mitchell). Temporale isn’t in this week’s field but Prime Power will start from the 40-metre back mark.
“If he behaves himself I know he has got the speed to go close. He’s got a big motor and lovely gait once he’s up and running. He seems bright and ready to go, so here’s hoping,” said Paynter.
Lemond has raced 19 times for five wins, six placings and has banked $57,961. The Love You – Cipollini (by Sergio Hanover) gelding has had 14 starts at Alexandra Park for four wins and three placings. He is yet to win over Friday’s 2700m stand but has placed twice from seven attempts. He has a won three times and placed on four occasions from 12 standing starts.
Maurice McKendry will again do the driving.
“He’s my best winning chance on Friday, but my 3-year-old filly goes all right, but will probably need a run or two to warm into it,” Paynter said.
That filly is Rave Nation – a daughter of Muscle Mass and Merckx (by Dream Vacation) who will start from gate 12 in the first event – the $8,113 Annual caduceus Club Golf Day Mobile for the maiden trotters.
Rave Nation broke and finished last when third favourite on debut on October 14 last year.
She was driven by Herlihy that night and the Ardmore maestro will do the steering again. The filly did win a three-horse Workout at Cambridge on March 11 with a 2:15.7 mile rate.
“I think it will take or two or three runs for her to find her feet but when she does she also has the gait to win a few,” Paynter said.
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