WARRNAMBOOL hobby trainer Chris Ryan says victory would be a bonus when he saddles up Angelou at Colac tomorrow.
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Ryan has accepted the five-year-old mare for a 0-62 handicap for fillies and mares over 1200 metres, one of seven races at Colac Turf Club’s Christmas race meeting.
Angelou will resume after a 19-week spell and has attracted 57 kilograms.
Warrnambool hoop Nikita McLean has the ride.
“She’s first up from a spell. It’s a nice race to kick her off in, 1200m,” Ryan said.
“She’s essentially a 1600m horse, but 1200 is a nice race first-up for her. She’s ready to go and this is it.
“Her first-up form is not great, but she generally improves with a run. She doesn’t take long to come to hand, but usually needs a run first up.”
“In saying that, I’m very happy with her. She’s been working nicely and she’s been looking well.”
Ryan said Angelou was “a little unlucky” in seven starts during her last preparation in winter.
Her best result was a second at Swan Hill, while three fourths came after she was well back with 800m to go.
However, her back-running style goes against the confines of the tight Colac track, which is downhill from the 800m mark.
“She generally gets back in the running and horses that come from the rear need a bit of luck,” Ryan said.
“In a couple of starts she didn’t have much luck.
“I think she’d be giving them a start.”
Ryan, who has four horses in work, said he had no major ambition with Angelou. He said he would be guided by her performance at Colac when determining where her next start would be.
“We’ll just see how she goes and go from there,” he said.
“I haven’t got really high expectations with her.
“She’s a nice filly and she tries hard.”
Colac Turf Club officials hope to attract more than 2000 people to the Christmas race meeting, which is the best-attended of the club’s four meetings.
Daryl Cannon and Mark Young will fly the home-track flag, while a host of south-west Victorians have starters in the seven races.
Warrnambool trainer Paul McKenna will start Dinner on Tiges in the same race the five-year-old won at the meeting 12 months ago — a 0-58 handicap over 1000 metres.
The first race is at 1.05pm.