There was a time when Annabel Tuthill wondered whether Tetbury (NZ) (Tavistock) would ever get to the races, but that all became a distant memory when the homebred mare became her first winner at Timaru on Wednesday.
The daughter of Tavistock was having her 12th start and had placed on several occasions, and despite a wide barrier draw in the Power Farming Timaru 1600, was backed into clear favouritism in the hands of Bridget Grylls.
She went back from the gate and settled into a good rhythm, while Happy Story (NZ) (What’s The Story) ensured a genuine tempo out in front. Grylls started to circle the field turning for home and Tetbury looked likely early in the straight, but had to fight hard in the closing stages to narrowly get up over Shakabrah (NZ) (Darci Brahma), a photo finish favouring the mare by a nose.
Tuthill, who bred Tetbury alongside her husband Olly, was elated with the result.
“I’m just so thrilled, it was really exciting,” she said. “Training is more of a hobby for us, but one day she’ll be in the broodmare band so it’s great to get a win with her.
“She was feeling so good at home so I was gutted when she got the wide draw, I thought that was our chances gone, but I said to Bridget to settle back at the start and get her into the race.
“She rode her so well, she gave her every chance and she (Tetbury) tried really hard, it was great.”
The North Canterbury couple, who operate thoroughbred nursery Beaufort Downs, initially planned to sell Tetbury through their draft the Karaka Yearling Sales, but that plan was derailed by an untimely injury.
She was retained by the family to race but struggled to adjust into a stable environment in her earlier years, so Tuthill decided to bring her back to the farm and train her around their breeding operation.
“This win means a lot because she has been tricky over the years, she’s a pretty quirky mare,” she said.
“We think she minorly fractured her pelvis as a yearling so she didn’t make it to the yearling sales, and we didn’t think she ever would make it to the races. Eventually she did come right, but she didn’t quite handle a stable environment, so we decided to potter around at home on the farm and see if that would work for her.
“When the ground is good at home, I spend as much time as I can working her around the farm. She is very relaxed cantering around the paddock and I do quite a bit of galloping at the beach, which she really enjoys.
“She gets quite stressed out going to the track, so I avoid that as much as I can. I just do what works for her, she’s a quirky thing and travels with a wee pony, which is quite funny.
“She gets fitted in around everything else, with school drop-off, the mares and foals, she just slots in where she can. We’re lucky to have the farm and the opportunity to do it like that, she’s my one horse so I can fit her around our lives.
“All of our family are involved, we bred her and the stud owns her, then we’ve leased her to the family to race. It’s really fun, we get to do it together which is great.”
Tetbury will be a welcome addition to Beaufort’s broodmare band when the time comes, as a daughter of well-performed mare Dazzling Lady (NZ).
From three foals to race, Dazzling Lady has produced Australian Group One performer So Dazzling (NZ) (So You Think), Tetbury, and Dazz (NZ) (Microphone), who was a debut winner for Kevin and Stephen Gray in the autumn.
The Lonhro mare recently foaled a colt by Satono Aladdin and she had another mating booked with the Rich Hill sire this spring.
“We gave her a break last year because she got a bit late, then we sent her to Satono Aladdin, and she’s just had a gorgeous colt by him,” Tuthill said. “We are sending her back to him, which seems like a nice mating for her because she’s not the biggest mare.
“We’ve had some really nice foals on the ground, it’s such a nice time of the year when all the grass is growing and the foals are here.
“It’s exciting having a few in the foaling paddock ready to foal, it’s like Christmas waiting for them to come.”