OH BROTHER: Justin Wood kicks well-behaved Cariad clear to win the Nudgee Quality at Doomben yesterday. Picture: Peter Bull
Source: The Sunday Mail (Qld)

A CRASH course in dressage has reformed erratic Cariad and the mare showed why trainer Steele Ryan regards her as the best horse he has trained with a breathtaking win in yesterday’s Listed Nudgee Quality at Doomben.

It also completed the big southeast Queensland weekend Listed double for apprentice brothers Justin and Mitchell Wood.

Justin turned in a perfect display on Cariad after younger brother Mitch took the Listed Summer Cup on rank outsider Dalzar at the Sunshine Coast on Friday night.

“I wasn’t going to let my little brother show me up and this was my only good chance for the day to match him,” Justin said.

“This horse gives me nightmares. I have ridden her a couple of times and Steele put me on the other day at trackwork and it was a dreadful looking workout.

“But this morning I cleared my head and said ‘no I can do this’ and she was just too good for these.”

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After a promising start to her career, Cariad had not been delivering her best on raceday and Ryan decided to think outside the square.

“We have a dressage arena at Deagon and I got a trainer to instruct my riders on getting her to respect them,” he said.

“She used to race fiercely at trackwork and on raceday, and she wouldn’t ever give a rider respect.

“We taught her to respect them and it’s made a massive difference.

“She’s had three starts since. The first was at Ipswich over a half mile, where she wouldn’t charge the bit so we thought we had her right then and she’s just gone bang bang since then.”

With her mind on the job, Ryan is confident the daughter of Sequalo can add significantly to her record of four wins in 10 starts.

“I have said it for 12 months now that she is the best horse I have ever trained,” he said.

“Throw (multiple Group 2 winner) Chinchilla Rose in, throw them all in. This filly can do things that I’ve never seen before. The last two starts I have been able to get her head right and she’s proven she’s a little bit better than average.”

THE Sue Grills stable gave 21-year-old apprentice Jessica Drury her first city winner when Ollie Vollie ($2.80) won the Brothers Junior Rugby Club Handicap (1110m).

Ollie Vollie had finished on the heels of Pinwheel and Whitefriars at Listed level in Sydney at his previous start and ran right up to that when reeling in the flying Monashee Dancer in the last 100m.

The eight-year-old has won 15 races and given Grills some memorable moments.

“He’s been a super horse to me,” Grills said. That’s his fourth win in Brisbane now and he’s just a marvel. When I originally got him they said I might win a couple of races with him, but he just keeps coming up all the time.”

Drury’s 3kg claim brought Ollie Vollie very well in at the weights and the youngster was able to navigate a trouble free path.

“Jess rode her perfectly. The good barrier helped but it’s great for Jess,” Grills said.

“Jessica is a very good rider. A lot of apprentices in the bush don’t get a chance in town, but I would bring Jess to town any day.”

Drury described the win as “the best moment of her career” to date.