Author: NZHarnessNews

Jim Geddes 100th training win Jim Geddes posted his 100th training success when Sods Law won at Blenheim on Sunday. Training partner and son James Geddes was also in the sulky to make the milestone win even more special. Jim has been training since 1979 with 29 on his account and 71 in partnership with James. Their most successful seasons wins-wise were the seven they had in 2020, 2018 and 2012. Sods Law has now won 11 races. Debut for young driver at Oamaru Twenty-year-old Brooke Fodie will her first…

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk Nearly a quarter of a century after last racing there, the Riverton Trotting Club will return home on Sunday. Forty kilometres from Invercargill, the “Riviera of the South”, as its affectionately known, will host 10 races including the two features, the $20,000 Riverton Rural Transport Riverton Cup and the Neville Cleaver Fishing Handicap Trot, both worth $20,000. “We have been very keen to get back to Riverton and grass track racing,” says Riverton Trotting Club Past President Bruce Stewart, “and we have had…

By Jonny Turner Great results on track are not the only reason cult hero Lord Forbes is proving popular with breeders. Lord Forbes was a fan favourite during his time on the track and moved into a much quieter life off it for his former owner-trainer-driver Gavin Forbes. The stallion retired with 11 wins, 28 placings and $148,707 in stakes earnings. Forbes bred one mare a year to the stallion in his retirement and the results so far have been outstanding. From just two starts, the sire has produced two…

A winning double at Blenheim has propelled Muscle Bank up to second in the Seddon Shields Trotters’ Series. The Tom Bamford-trained trotter was in imperious form in Marlborough and now has 22 points in the series, four behind Boyz Invasion who he beat into second place on both days (January 19 and 21) at Waterlea Raceway. Boyz Invasion now has a four point lead on 26. He’s the only trotter who has started in all seven races in the series so far. In its first year, the series, run by…

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk By his own admission Tom Bamford had “a ripper of a day” at Blenheim on Sunday. The 28-year-old recorded the first training double of his career when Muscle Bank and Millwood Indie both recorded strong and definitive victories at Waterlea Raceway. That also completed a double for Muscle Bank after her win on Friday, while Millwood Indie went one better than her second behind Tokyo Rose on the first day. “Sometimes you worry about how they are going to back up, especially Muscle…

The winners of Harness Racing New Zealand’s monthly breeder and owner awards have been decided for December. In an initiative to highlight those that help keep our sport going, HRNZ has been making the monthly awards since October last year. All owners and breeders who win a race during the month are eligible, with a random number generator selecting the two winners. December’s winners are breeder Mark Booth for Lizzie Richter’s win at Ashburton on December 21 and Shona Nairn, who is one of the owners of El Conqueror who…