Perfect Season End for No Excuse Needed

No Excuse Needed ended his season on a high note when his son Snow Excuse grabbed his final chance at black-type for the season. The WS graduate was a deserved winner of the Listed Ryder Stakes when he inflicted a first defeat on the filly Testa Secret in a driving finish at Otaki on Saturday.

Trained at Cambridge by Ralph Manning, whose parents Bob and Kathleen share in the ownership, Snow Excuse had won on debut at Ellerslie in April and was then unluckily when third in the Listed Castletown Stakes at Foxton where he was tightened for room in the straight. His only other appearance resulted in a runner-up finish at Awapuni where he struggled with a deep and testing track.

A measure of his ability was regular rider Michael Coleman’s willingness to forego mounts at Te Rapa to continue his association with Snow Excuse at Otaki. They now look a genuine pairing to challenge for early season three-year-old honours in the 2011-2012 term.

Snow Excuse was purchased as a weanling by Manning at WS’s unreserved auction at Karaka in 2008 for $4500. He is out of the stakes-winning Mighty Avalanche mare Kirkberg and is a half-brother to three winners, including Johnny Knoxville who won nine races in New Zealand and Australia.