WINSLOW trainer Ciaron Maher has decided to bypass the $160,000 Great Eastern Steeplechase (4950 metres) at Oakbank on Easter Monday with star jumper Pentacolo.
Instead the young mentor will aim the seven-year-old brown gelding towards the $145,000 Warrnambool Grand Annual Steeplechase (5500m) on Thursday, May 6.
Maher decided not to accept with Pentacolo for a $30,000 steeplechase (3250m) or a $30,000 hurdle (2900m) at Oakbank on Saturday.
He preferred the horse to do a lap of the hurdles at Warrnambool last Friday with race day jockey Brad McLean in the saddle.
"We're going to miss running in this year's Great Eastern Steeplechase, instead we will run him in the $100,000 Von Doussa Steeplechase at Oakbank on Easter Saturday before bringing him back home," he said.
"The Warrnambool Grand Annual Steeplechase is our grand final. We want to win that race. Going to Warrnambool last Friday just saved a lot of travel with the horse. We know he's going to carry a lot of weight in the feature jumping races.
"If we had gone to Oakbank on Saturday and won he would get even more weight. We carried the minimum weight when we won the Great Eastern Steeplechase last year."
Maher said Pentacolo would run in the $60,000 Brierly Steeplechase (3450m) on the opening day of the Warrnambool three-day May Racing Carnival as a lead into the Grand Annual Steeplechase.
"A run in the Brierly should just top him off for the Grand Annual. We've done a lot of work with the horse. I think he's better at this stage this year compared to how he was at the same stage last year," he said.
"Brad McLean said the horse felt great on Friday. I would say he's a more seasoned horse.
"I thought his run on the flat at Warrnambool last week was very good. I think the horse has been more consistent in this preparation."
The former jumps jockey said he was pleased with Pentacolo's effort to run fourth behind Sir Pentire in last year's Grand Annual Steeplechase.
"I thought he did a good job. The track was a bit wet which didn't suit him. He's better on top of the ground.
''He just could not sprint when the other horses did in last year's race but as I said I reckon he's a better horse this year," Maher said.
"After the Grand Annual we'll keep him going for some of the $100,000 steeplechase races which have been programmed for Warrnambool at the end of the jumping season," he said.
Pentacolo's form card reads six wins from 42 starts with 10 minor placings to his credit.
His mostly Warrnambool-based connections have pocketed more than $198,000 in stake money from his efforts on the race track.
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