By Tayler Strong
Alan Mason and Neville Simpson, life members of the Oamaru Harness Racing Club, have extended their association as owners of Majestic Connies, the 2-year-old trotter who qualified for the Harness Jewels with his win at Invercargill on Saturday.
Majestic Connies joined his stablemates Majestic Man and Springbank Lachie among qualifiers for the $100,000 Harness Jewels. The trio are trained at Oamaru by Phil Williamson, who has also qualified on a time basis the 2-year-old trotter The Commando (CR Commando – Castleton’s Jewel) this season.
Majestic Connies, Majestic Man and Springbank Lachie are by Majestic Son, who has seven progeny qualified for the 2-year-old trotter section of the Harness Jewels.
Majestic Son has sired Harness Jewels trotting winners King Denny(at three and four) and One Over Da Moon (at two).
Williamson bought Majestic Connies for $9000 at the PGG Wrightson premier yearling sale last year when the colt out of Sunny Connie colt was offered by Mike Stevens and the estate of his wife, Glenis.
Mason, Simpson, Peter Evans, a member of the committee of the NZ Metropolitan Trotting Club and the Wagovi syndicate (managed by Gordon Stewart, of Cromwell) subsequently became the owners.
“I have now won 21 races racing trotters out of the Williamson stable,” said Mason.
Lets Get Serious, Galleons Triumph, All Action Man and Hengroen are among his winners. Lets Get Serious has been the star performer with 10 wins, including the 2006 NZ Trotting Championship. Lets Get Serious, whom Mason bought for $2500 as an unraced rising 3-year-old at a mixed sale in Christchurch was sold to Joe Muscara, of New York when rising six. Lets Get Serious was exported and won 28 races in the United States and Canada. He returned to NZ to win two races as a 9-year-old at Alexandra Park for Mark Purdon and Grant Payne before returning to North America to win another four races, taking his total to 44 and $1 million in stakes.
Simpson, who has been involved with the administration of harness racing in Oamaru for 50 years, won races with the trotters Supernatural (four) and Royal Braemar (three) in the 1980s. He bred Supernatural (by Jack Chance), a half brother to Royal Braemar (by Regal Yankee). Supernatural was trained at Duntroon (north Otago) by Stewart Sutherland and won his first race at Invercargill in 1983.
Majestic Connies is the second foal of Sunny Connie, who won two races, both at Forbury Park as a 4yr-old in 2011 when trained by Robert Anderson. She was driven in those wins by Matthew Williamson, who drove Majestic Connies in his win. Her first foal, Sunny Monarch (by Monarchy) qualified as a 3-year-old last season.
Sunny Connie is a half sister by Continentalman to Dragons Den, who won six when trained by Anderson and one in Perth.
Driving engagements for the Williamson 2-year-olds in the Harness Jewels have yet to be decided.
“I have three sons (Matthew, Brad and Nathan) and they will have first call,” said Phil.
Matthew also drove BJ Lindenny to finish second to Majestic Man, driven by brother Brad in the $55,000 NZ Sires Stakes Championship at Addington last Friday. That win justified the $6000 late entry fee by owners the Griffins syndicate. Brad has also driven Springbank Lachie to win the NZ Trotting Stakes. Springbank Lachie was showing symptoms of a cold after he finished second, eight lengths from One Muscle Hill in the Yearling Sales Final at his subsequent start and he has been treated.
Zoey’s Gift, the winner of two of her five starts and third in the NZ Trotting Oaks last time out for the Williamson stable has been transferred to Australia by Sydney owners Emilio and Mary Rosati. Zoey’s Gift was sent to Auckland for the Northern Oaks but she did not come to hand in two workouts.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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