Thrills and spills as improving pacer Simply Sam rockets home again for excited owners

Priscilla Edmunds is no stranger to racing good horses but even she was impressed by Simply Sam’s breath-taking finish to win at Alexandra Park on Friday night.

And the exciting night was capped for Edmunds, 79, when Lincoln Farms’ boss John Street later passed on to her the winning trophy.

Edmunds has just a 10% share in the partnership that races Simply Sam but she’s just the kind of small investor that Street delights in seeing enjoy the thrills of harness racing.

And Friday night’s event literally had all the thrills and spills for just as Simply Sam arrived 100 metres out with his now trademark late burst, the driver of leader Take The Miki fell out the back of his cart.

Steven Reid was lucky to escape injury when his seat collapsed - while fellow drivers Sailesh Abernethy and David Butcher manage to take evasive action, Ben Butcher on the tailed-off Enjoy Me didn’t see him lying on the track and ran right over the top of him, crashing heavily.

John Street presents Priscilla Edmunds with the race trophy.While ambulance and track staff attended to the stricken drivers, who escaped with bad bruising, Edmunds was celebrating with some of her fellow owners.

Edmunds, who most recently has had shares in three horses with Stonewall Stud, incuding 5% of eight-race winner Alta Wiseguy, said she had been round horses all her life.

Her father J C Edmunds owned 1967 Franklin Cup winner Southern Silver who scored from a 24 yard handicap for driver Peter Wolfenden and trainer Roy Purdon.

“I used to drive horses round Jim Smith’s training track and he won seven races for me with Tradeland, six in one season alone (1973).”

Edmunds said she loved how Lincoln Farms’ trainer Ray Green let her walk Simply Sam round the stable block at Alexandra Park.

She was attracted to the horse after watching him run fourth on debut in January last year.

Maurice McKendry … “when I pulled the plugs he came alive.”The horse’s progression since then hasn’t surprised Green who said last night that he kept getting better and better.

“He’s got to do a little more before we label him for Queensland Derby but that’s still on the radar.”

Driver Maurice McKendry was again taken by the horse’s speed, describing his win as even more impressive than at his previous start.

While it looked like Simply Sam was in trouble after showing no gate speed, getting back in the field, and still having only three horses behind him approaching the home turn, McKendry wasn’t panicking.

“It might have looked like he was going nowhere at the 500 but they were really ripping into it then.

“And when I pulled the plugs he came alive, he really swelled up. They were coming back to him turning in and it’s lucky there was a bit of a gap for us.

“He’s got a really good sprint on him and he’s getting better.”

Simply Sam has made up what looked an impossible deficit to score by two lengths. PHOTO: Megan Liefting/Race Images.Simply Sam gathered in the leaders so quickly at the 100 metre mark, he was two lengths clear at the post, clocking 2:43.4 in the squally conditions.

The American Ideal three-year-old, who cost just $25,000 as a yearling, is raced by Edmunds, John and Lynne Street, Robert and Donna Best, Kim Miller and the South Island’s Red And Blue Syndicate and Green Machine Racing Syndicate.

* Stewards adjourned an inquiry into the crash and the use of Reid’s whip in the run home. Take The Miki received a graze on his off hind leg and Enjoy Me had grazes on her off fore fetlock and near stifle. Trainer Steve Telfer advised the mare would be retired to stud.