Seven horses killed in Australian bushfire

Amid raging bushfires in Victoria, Australia, Lindsay Park – the Hayes family’s vast property at Creightons Creek near Euroa, about 160km north of Melbourne – was destroyed on Jan 9.

The prominent racing family, headed by Hall of Fame trainer David Hayes and his three sons Ben, Will and J.D., confirmed that seven horses died in their iconic training property as a result of the bushfire sparked by a massive heatwave.

In a press statement issued on Jan 11, Lindsay Park Racing said they died from injuries sustained in the fire. Five of them were spelling horses while two others were retired horses.

One additional horse remains in critical condition and is receiving intensive veterinary care.

Lindsay Park Racing did not reveal the names of the horses, but stated that affected owners have been notified and that 320 horses have also been brought to safety.

“Through the combined efforts of our staff, the CFA (Country Fire Authority), and family members, 320 horses were brought through the fire safely and their ongoing wellbeing is assured,” it said.

“Every possible measure was taken to protect all the horses and the property under extremely difficult and rapidly changing conditions. The priority throughout the event remained the safety of people and horses.

“We extend our sincere sympathies to the owners who have suffered losses, and our thoughts are with the broader community and all those affected by the fires.

“The Lindsay Park team who work tirelessly to care for these horses every day are devastated by the events, and we will be ensuring they are supported.

“We would like to acknowledge and thank the CFA and emergency services for their support, as well as our staff for their commitment and courage during this event.

“We are also deeply grateful to the wider racing community for its overwhelming support — from those who assisted on the farm and helped float horses, to Inglis (bloodstock auctioneers) for housing 128 of our horses, and to the many people who have opened their homes and businesses to our staff while they are unable to return to the farm.”

Ben, Will and J.D. Hayes kept racing operations as usual at the races, sending out 12 runners at Flemington on Jan 10, albeit the closest they came to winning was with Sneaky Sunrise in the Henry Byron Moore Handicap (1,600m), where the mare finished ¾ length behind Welcometotheshow ($60).

They had no runners in the highlight event at the 10-race meeting, the A$200,000 (S$172,000) Group 3 Standish Handicap (1,200m), which was taken out by the Bjorn Baker-trained Disneck ($45).

Ridden by Daniel Stackhouse, the Trapeze Artist five-year-old settled back but surged clear at the 200m mark to score by 1¾ lengths ahead of Extratwo (Jamie Melham), who had a similar run with Contemporary (Craig Newitt) a further long head away in third.

Race favourite Hedged (Harry Coffey) was nearer the inside and never came on, beaten 6¼ lengths into 10th, finishing ahead of the Daniel Meagher-trained former top Singapore galloper Lim’s Kosciuszko (Luke Nolen), now a rising nine-year-old.

While Disneck’s best win previously had come at Benchmark 94 level, he finished fifth behind stablemate Caballus in the Group 3 Rising Fast Stakes (1,200m) three starts ago on Nov 1.

A seemingly poor trial at Hawkesbury leading into this campaign, when beaten 6¾ lengths despite being under the whip had perhaps deterred punters, but Stackhouse was happy to back the stable in on the day.

“I spoke to the stable representative this morning and he said, ‘just ride him cold, give him his chance and just be patient’,” he said to Racing And Sports.

“He’s got a great turn of foot. I wasn’t too concerned about his first-up trial.

“I thought he’s really good when he’s fresh. He’s ran really well down the straight and I thought back on top of the ground, we mapped right, being out wide, trained by Bjorn Baker.

“A lot of ticks there, so I was very confident going forward.”

Stackhouse also noted that the horse has run some strong races when ridden quietly and said that the race worked out perfectly.

“The plan was to get back obviously and follow Mark Zahra (aboard Aviatress, fourth),” the rider said.

“I knew his horse would give us a good run into the race.

“He’s really effective when he’s ridden cold like that. He’s got a great turn of foot and you can see that he got there too early.

“He pricked his ears when he got there, but he was going so well and put himself into the race that quickly, but it was a nice win and that’s a good start to his preparation.”

sharonzhang@sph.com.sg