Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Four-year-old New Zealand-bred mare Aardiebytheseaside, sold as a weanling for $1500, is destined to become one of harness racing’s greatest bargains.
She made an auspicious Australian debut when she won the Group 2 $75,000 TABtouch Empress Stakes at Gloucester Park on Friday night to boost her record to 22 starts for nine wins, six seconds, two thirds and $263,741 in prizemoney.
Aardiebytheseaside is owned by Canadian Mike Tanev, an Ontario businessman and keen harness racing enthusiast, who sold a half share to leading WA trainers Greg and Skye Bond’s Team Bond after her victory in the Group 1 New Zealand Oaks at Addington in December.
Adding to the enjoyment of Tanev’s Gloucester Park triumph with his first runner in Western Australia even more memorable was the victory of another of his mares, Aardies Express in the Group 3 Sibelia Stakes at Menangle on Saturday night when the five-year-old, trained and driven by Jack Trainor, put up a terrific performance at her first start in Australia.
Greg Bond said he had not met Tanev, who races pacers in Canada, America, New Zealand and Australia.
“He rang us to see if we were interested in training Aardiebytheseaside,” said Mrs Bond. “We said yes and bought half of her. He loves watching his horses race in New Zealand and Australia.
“Aardiebytheseaside will now be set for the feature events for mares and could even be a contender for the Golden Nugget. She is a big mare with a lot of depth. She is tough and strong, and running those (fast) sectionals tonight was right up her alley.
Aardiebytheseaside was the $3.10 second fancy from the No. 1 barrier in the Empress Stakes, with speedster Steno the $1.60 favourite from barrier four.
Aardiebytheseaside began well but was beaten for early speed by Steno, with Deni Roberts happy to take the sit behind that mare, who overraced and sped over the quarters of the final mile in 28.7sec., 27.7sec., 28.4sec. and 28.6sec.
Roberts eased Aardiebytheseaside off the pegs 250m from home and the mare sprinted strongly to hit the front 110m from the post to go on and win by a length from Steno, rating 1.54.6 over the 2536m to smash the race record of 1.56.5 set by Major Reality when she won by a length from Tricky Styx in February 2016.
“She is a big mare who wears hanging gear, and it’s always a query when a horse comes here for the first time,” said Roberts. “So, that’s why we took her for a trial at Byford to make sure we had everything all right with her.
“I thought we were always a chance to get crossed. She came out well and handled the track well, and I was happy with the way she went. She will get better.”
Greg Bond admitted that he thought he was going to the races two weeks early with Aardiebytheseaside, and was delighted with her performance, saying: “We’ve started off with a bang.”
Tanev races his pacers under the Aardie banner, explaining that this was his nickname when playing baseball in Canada.
Aardiebytheseaside is by American sire Downbytheseaside and is the eleventh foal out of the unraced Christian Cullen New Zealand mare Divine, whose younger full-brother Davy Maguire earned $285,948 from 23 wins and 30 placings from 159 starts, with 17 of those wins being at Gloucester Park between 2009 and 2014.