Bright Future For Talented Hera

14 May 2013

Promising filly Hera showed a measure of her family’s two-year-old ability with a strong win at New Plymouth on Saturday. The Garry Chittick-bred daughter of O’Reilly handled testing track conditions with ease to post the first victory of her career.

A $28,000 yearling purchase out of WS’s Select draft at Karaka last year for trainer Roger James, she is out of the Centaine mare Corsica and is a sister to the Hong Kong winner Telecom Top Star. It is also the family of the former champion juvenile and dual Gr 1 Ellerslie and Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes winner Ballroom Babe.

Placed at her three previous starts for James’ long-time owners Ron and Fran Dixon, Hera was given the perfect ride today by Darryl Bradley. They sat fourth on the outer before lengthening stride in the run home to win comfortably.

The Corner with Garry Chittick

I don’t know if the two of you have ever had the thrill of travelling at high speed across the water on a single ski, totally dependent on the driver of the boat. Fall off and you are left treading water, reminds you of racing. Here we are, with multiple hints of navigation hanging on to the rope hoping for salvation.

20 May 2026

Icebath’s half-sister goes back-to-back

Well-bred mare Superfabulistic (Super Seth ex Fabulist) continued her rise through the grades at Warwick Farm on Wednesday, making it back-to-back victories with a strong performance in the Precise Air Handicap (1600m).