A Hydro Spa as well as an Infrared Solarium Lamps facility have been installed at Summerveld for the preventative and recuperative treatment of horses and one of the first to make use of it has been the former Equus Champion two-year-old male and Vodacom Durban July entry Kochka.

The Hydro Spa is an excellent training aid and this is the first one in KZN. Trainers have had one available to them in both Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth. Showjumpers and sports horses will also be able to make use of the one at Summerveld.

Mike de Kock’s chief owner Sheikh Mohammed bin  Khalifa Al Maktoum installed a Hydro Spa at De Kock’s Dubai stables in 2011. De Kock said  about it at the time, “Trainers in the UK are raving about it and we’ve put it to the test with good results.”

After the horse has been walked into the contraption and the watertight doors on either side closed, the spa, which has a capacity of 3000 litres, is filled with water infused with Epsom Salts. The water level covers the legs of the horse. A tiny amount of bleach is also put in the water to kill bacteria. The water is aerated and has a washing machine effect.

The hydrotherapy stimulates blood circulation for the prevention of injuries and also aids in increasing mobility and reducing swelling in the limbs before and after competitive racing and training. It treats such leg parts as ligaments, tendons, joints and stifles and typical conditions which respond well to equine hydrotherapy include tendonitis, suspensory ligament desmitis, soreness, stiffness, arthritis, hoof and foot problems including laminitis, joint conditions, soft tissue damage, sore shins, cuts and bruises.

The horses appear to thoroughly enjoy the hydrotherapy, especially once they are used to it.

Kochka is quite a highly strung sort and was introduced to the Hydro Spa early last week with a ten minute session. On Thursday he had a fifteen minute session and was clearly loving it. He munched on carrots and apples and blew contentedly. In future he will be booked for normal twenty minute sessions, which is the most effective usage time period.

Kochka was off the race track for about a year-and-a-half due to a tendon injury, which was fortunately caught at just the right time, meaning he was able to recuperate through rest. He returned in February with a decent second over 1 200m at Scottsville before winning his last start in March over 1 200m at Greyville. Those were fine performances considering he is looking for a lot further.

An injured tendon will never strengthen to the exact level it once was, as there will be a small percentage of scar tissue, and trainers tend to underwork horses with such weaknesses. Kochka’s trainer Alyson Wright was therefore thrilled with the arrival of the Hydro Spa, which she said was “perfect” therapy in his case.

As well as being used as an injury preventative measure before and after exercise, equine hydrotherapy has rapidly established a reputation for resolving lameness much faster than normal. It works effectively in conjunction with, or as an alternative to, conventional treatments. The Solarium Lamps treat the neck, withers, spine, hindquarters, coxix and glutes before and after excercise. It is a system

of large red lamps that give off infrared heat and provides deep muscle therapy. The lamp positioning is designed to treat specific muscle groups and helps the horse by improving performance, increasing circulation, and reducing the chance of injury. The heat, set at a pleasant temperature, penetrates the skin, and aids in warming up prior to exercise and loosening muscles after exercise. It can draw out lactic acid and is especially useful in the case where a horse has tied up. This form of infrared therapy is a safe method of natural health care and physiotherapy for the horse.

The Summerveld Hydro Spa and Solarium Lamps are owned by a company called Equine Spa and Wellness Centre run by Juanita Baxter and Leigh-Anne Dunkley and a grand opening demonstration will be given at 17h30 on Thursday May 14. The pair said that trainers can pay a monthly fee and tailor it according to what they need, but they emphasised that booking a time was important to prevent queuing.

By David Thiselton

 

Western Storm, the only dual winner in the field, faces a tough task giving weight to the might of the Ramsden battalions in the Somerset 1200 at Kenilworth tomorrow.

Brandon Morgenrood’s mount beat Tar Heel three-quarters of a length over 200m less last month with Ernie another a length and a quarter back third. He now has to give them 2kg, theoretically equivalent to slightly more than a length and a half over tomorrow’s distance.

So can he confirm the placings? “I’m hoping so,” says Glen Puller. “I thought he might have needed his last run – I ran him then because of this race coming up – and he won better than I thought he would. He has come on from that.”

However Tar Heel was slowly away that day, losing more ground than he was beaten, and having Anton Marcus on his back is virtually a guarantee that there will be no idling out of the pens.

Joey Ramsden, the colt’s trainer, is bidding for his third consecutive Somerset success and is responsible for a third of the 12-runner field, the biggest this race has seen for more than 13 years – and all but one of them are winners. Ramsden has also won six of the last 17 Cape Town two-year-old races.

The form book says Tar Heel is the one but impression suggests that Macduff might be better. Bernard Fayd’Herbe’s mount ran green on his Easter Monday debut but produced a tremendous surge of acceleration (a sure sign of a good horse) when his rider asked him to quicken.

He opened yesterday as the 28-10 favourite with Betting World who made Tar Heel next best at 7-2 and went 5-1 Western Storm and Ramsden’s Professor Brian with Ernie on 7-1.

Champery is 15-10 favourite for the Perfect Promise Sprint and the way she beat smart stable companion My Emblem last month suggests she should be able to confirm the placings with the 2-1 second favourite even on 2kg worse terms.

“Champery has very good acceleration and she won easing up,” says Eric Sands whose two-year-olds are doing well this season and who also expects this low-actioned filly to confirm the form “provided the going is on top.”

My Emblem is reunited with four-times champion Marcus and their running here in March makes R40 000 bargain buy Just Felicity (7-2) pretty much the same horse as Champery.

“She is a little filly and so it’s tough for her to give weight but she is very well in herself,” says Greg Ennion. “She has only been on grass the three times that she has raced and she will improve off each run because of that.”

– By Michael Clower

Greyville racecourse stages two mixed turf and polytrack meetings over the weekend on Friday night and Sunday respectively and the latter features the Non-Black Type Highland Night Cup.

One of the most intriguing races is the second on Sunday, a Conditions Plate for fillies and mares over 1400m on turf.

The three-year-old Banbury is 2kg better off with any other horse in the field and is drawn well in barrier two over a trip that should be ideal as she has always been up there over 1600m and, when settling well, has shown a good turn of foot.

She was looking fit and well at Summerveld yesterday and strode out well on her own in some fast work on the beach sand.

Trainer Gavin van Zyl said, “The trip should suit her nicely, her last two runs have been a bit disappointing although she did improve in the second of them and we hope to see her back to form here.”

Maybe Yes also worked on the beach and wasn’t being hard pressed to keep up with the useful sprinter Cuvee Brut, although the latter was also cruising. Trainer Brett Crawford’s assistant Barry Donnelly said that her last run over 1200m at Scottsville had just been a prep and added that she had “come on a lot” since then. She is drawn well in six.

Dean Kannemeyer said that Indaba had been injured on Met day meaning she had only been walked for a while, so would probably need it. However, he added that she would stay further and had lots of scope, so running fresh here could be interesting.

Justin Snaith sad that it would be a “prep” run for Acrostar and he was hoping for a nice run that could be built on.

Topweight Arcetri Pink has her first run for Kumaran Naidoo. She has speed and a fine turn of foot, but is known to prefer soft ground.

Neil Bruss said that the talented Red Flame had been doing well, but lamented her wide draw. She will be suited to the 1400m trip.

Maybe Yes is tipped to beat Banbury with Red Flame next best.

One of the most eyecatching workouts of the morning was put in by the Kannemeyer-trained Classy Fighter, who appeared to be getting the better of the Vodacom Durban July entry Solar Star on the beach sand. He runs in the sixth race on Sunday, a competitive 1400m race on the poly, having been raised three points for a narrow defeat over that course and distance last time out. He now has a wide draw to contend with but should go close.

This race provides another opportunity to take advantage of the Majmu Cape Fillies Guineas-winning form, which has been the form race of the season, as Grey Light was ten lengths back in that race. This big grey filly looked tailor made for the poly when scooting in by 7,5 lengths over 1600m last August. However, it is her first run since February and she is drawn very wide.

Gareth van Zyl said that Buffalo Bill had been prepared for this race, so will appreciate the step up to this trip and he had proven before that he could carry big weights. Garth Puller reported Fortissimo to be well and he was certainly looking in good shape. Alistair Gordon’s Mambo Master is 2kg under sufferance but he has a 1,5kg claimer up and Gordon was expecting a good run. Cat In Command loves the poly and should be right there.

The selection is Classy Fighter to beat Grey Light, with Buffalo Bill, Cat In Command and Fortissimo next best.

The Highland Night Cup has compressed weights and the two topweights Coltrane and Kolkata could fight it out. Jay Power is officially out at the weights but has struck as an up and coming sort who could go places, so he should be included.

The Sunday meeting begins with a Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1600m on the turf and the Garth Puller-trained Mr McSteamy ran a cracker last weekend on debut over 1400m and Puller said he would see how he worked today (Friday) before deciding whether to run him a week later. The Charles Laird-trained Team Guys should improve over this trip.

The third is a weak fillies and mares maiden over 1900m on poly and Dellavera is the selection from West Coast Star.

The fourth is also a weak 1900m fillies and mares maiden over 1900m on the poly and the Craig Eudey-trained Cakewalk is not only the one to beat on form but will love the step up on trip on pedigree  and has been working very well.

In the fifth over 1600m on the poly Guest El Grande could beat Danish Zealot and Popular Blues.

In the eighth over 2400m on the turf, Bratislava should enjoy the step up in trip and is tipped to beat Yearofthedragon and Le Chat D’Amour.

A horse to strongly consider at the Friday night meeting is the Puller-trained You Bolt. This strongly built filly was looking a picture yesterday and returns to the poly on which she won her maiden well. She could produce a storming run from a wide draw over 1200m in the fifth.

– By David Thiselton

Phumelela Gaming will give amateur horseracing in the Eastern Cape a boost by staging three races for horses, trainers and jockeys that compete on the rural racing circuit in the region.

The initiative flows from talks between the Eastern Cape Amateur Horseracing Association and Phumelela management in the region.

It has been agreed to stage three races at Fairview – a 1000m sprint on Friday 15 May, an 1100m race on Friday 12 June and then a 1200m race on Friday 10 July.

There are normal Fairview race meetings on those dates and in each case the amateur event will be carded as Race 1 on the programme.

Trainers, jockeys and horses will score points across the three races and awards will be presented in each of the three categories at the end of the series.

Phumelela will provide transport from selected pick-up points on the day before each race and all horses will undergo a veterinary examination to ensure they are fit to compete.

Prize money will be paid to the connections of the first five finishers in each race. All equipment for the horses and owner silks will be supplied by Phumelela.

All horses currently on the rural racing circuit will be eligible for the three races.

“It’s taken some time to put together and we are delighted that the series is now in place,” said Luciano Passerini, General Manager of Phumelela Horseracing in the Eastern Cape.

“Amateur racing takes place regularly in the rural community and we have wanted for some time to play our part in making it as safe as possible for all participants, as well as giving it the recognition it deserves,” he added.

– Phumelela Racing

Picture: Ingwe Municipality Racing (Nkosi Hlophe)

Summerveld trainer Alyson Wright had her big Western Winter gelding Warcraft on a float to her home country of Zimbabwe a day or two after he had galloped the field into the ground under apprentice Tristan Godden in a handicap over 1900m on the Greyville polytrack on Saturday, and on May 16 he will attempt to land a third Castle Tankard trophy for the yard in the space of four years.

The Gr 1 US$50,000 Castle Tankard over 2000m, run at Harare’s world class Borrowdale racecourse,  is  Zimbabwe’s most prestigious horserace and the Wright’s went within 0,5 lengths of claiming hattrick of wins in the big race last year. They won it with Code Rock, ridden by Francois Herholdt, in 2012 and A King Is Born, by a facile four lengths under Deon Sampson, in 2013. A King Is Born failed by half-a-length to repeat his win last year.

A feature of all three of the aforementioned runs was that the horse came in with bottom weight of  52kg and of them only Code Rock was under sufferance and then only by 1kg. The Wrights have gone one better this year as the weights were published before Warcraft’s win on Saturday and according to the official merit ratings he should be carrying 1,5kg more than his bottom weight of 52kg.

Borrowdale is at high altitude, so a lot will depend on how well Warcraft travels. He followed the same travel plan as Code Rock did in 2012 and arrived in Zimbabwe yesterday (Wednesday).

He will be taken care of by Alyson’s mother Penny Fisher, a fine trainer in her own right, and her brother Alistair Fisher.

Alyson’s husband and assistant trainer Kevin, a many-times Zimbabwean champion jockey, said, “Too many cooks spoil the broth so we leave it to Penny and Alistair.”

Kevin is happy with the draw of nine, “It’s a big course and has a long back straight, so there is a lot of time to get over and Athandiwe (Mgudlwa) knows how to ride him.”

Warcraft is a galloping type and Kevin said he should love the course, “as long as he’s handy.”

– By David Thiselton