Bits and Bridles

Full brothers Bruntwood Brigade and Iron Brigade quinellaed the Rangiora Winter Cup recently and both harness racing sons of Art Major were having their forty second start.

Four year old Bruntwood Brigade trained by Robert and Jenna Dunn, has been one of the stars of the late summer/early autumn racing and has now won ten races, while older brother Iron Brigade trained by Steve and Amanda Telfer has won seven.

Iron Brigade was a $67,500 NZB Standardbred Yearling Sales purchase while Bruntwood Brigade was bought by Diamond Racing for $30,000 at the NZB Standardbred Weanling Sales.

Both are out of Trigirl Brigade, a Mach Three mare whose first foal was Classie Brigade which won twenty one races for Grant Eynon.

Since Bruntwood Brigade, Trigirl Brigade has left Bruno Brigade, a two start Lazarus gelding which is also owned by Eynon while her next foal, a full brother to Bruntwood Brigade and Iron Brigade was bought for $20,000 by Jason Teaz and named Majorteaz.

The breed goes back to a very successful Southland breed developed by AD Campbell of Browns.

Trigirl Brigade’s fourth dam Girl Brigade won eight races for the late Harry Cox (Jonny’s grandfather). Her best winners were Alpha Girl (7), Paula Brigade (6) and Lord Paul (5).

From just twelve foals in this country, Somebeachsomewhere stallion Poster Boy has left his second winner in New Zealand.

Boyzone is trained by Graham Court and won at Rangiora on Sunday, joining Lous Pinup Girl trained by Steve and Amanda Telfer.

Poster Boy has 73 three year olds and 100 two year olds in Australia and stands at Llowalong Farms.

Six Pack is another stallion with limited foals on the ground. He also left his second winner at Rangiora when Party Pack won for Steven Reid and owner Ronnie Dawe.

Reid doesn’t train many trotters and his last winner in that gait was Matty A at Alexandra Park in November 2023.

The Muscle Mass stallion has only eight foals on the ground and his other winner was Brewster Baker.

Macca Lodge in Northern Southland is the home of Six Pack.

Tomorrow night the time-honoured Rowe Cup will be run in Auckland.

The top two drivers in the race’s history are Tony Herlihy at six and Peter Wolfenden at five wins.

Lyell Creek is the only horse to have won the Rowe Cup three times – in 2000, 2001 and 2004.

The longest handicapped winner was Recruit in 1957 who started off 132 yards which is 120.7 metres.

Stent was the first Rowe Cup winner to break the 4-05 mark when he won the 2015 edition. His winning time of 4-03.6 was a race record until Bolt For Brilliance trotted the journey in 4-01.2. This is the current race record.

Easton Light will be honoured at Alexandra Park tomorrow night in the Group One Young Guns Easton Light Classic.

Easton Light’s trainer Eric Running emigrated to New Zealand from Ireland in 1922 and initially worked for his father in Alfriston near Auckland.

It was the depression years and Running travelled all over the country looking for work. He learned the fundamentals of training standardbreds from Jack Brophy when working at the Freezing Works in Timaru.

In late 1959 one of his sons Dennis nearly died of double pneumonia and other complications. While recuperating, Eric bought his son an eight year old standardbred named Graham Logan.

The gelding raced and had placed once in fourteen starts for his previous connections, but he had a deformed foot.

Running hacked him round the roads and the horse made his debut for his new stable in the 1962-1963 season. After winning three of his ten starts the Running family became hooked on the game.

Around the same time Running was offered a half share in Easton Light. He was unable to train the gelding himself because he’d been badly shaken by a bolting horse a few years earlier so initially Easton Light was trained by Dannevirke trainer Dave Davidson. He was then moved to Te Awamutu trainer Jack Davies. From there he won his maiden race before being transferred to Alan Martin’s barn where he won at Manawatu and Hawera.

After a dispute over his lease, Easton Light returned to Runnings stable but Eric was unable to work him so he was turned out for a lengthy spell. Eric’s son Bruce returned home from working for Gore trainer Keith Barclay and Easton Light was recommissioned, thereafter beginning his journey to stardom.

By the time he’d finished his career, Easton Light had started 167 times between the ages of four and thirteen, winning thirty six races, finishing second thirty one times and third twenty eight times.

He won two Dominion Handicaps, two New Zealand Trotting Free For All’s, the Lyell Creek Stakes (known then as the Invitation Challenge Stakes) twice, the Rowe Cup, the National Trot and the New Zealand Trotting Championship.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink