Caption: Ken Boody and his Country Cup winner Love You Peaches (Photos: Box 1 Photography)
By MIKE HILL
EXCITING sprinter Love You Peaches gave trainer Ken Boody and Rockhampton their first victory in the $23,700 Country Cup (520m) at Albion Park last month.
Love You Peaches showed strength and tenacity to outlast country Queensland’s best sprinters on a heavy track after several hours of persistent rain across Brisbane.
The blue bitch (Thirty Talks-New Abode) landed the $10,205-to-the-winner feature beating talented litter mates, the David Plummer-trained Little Ripper ($13) by one-and-a-half lengths, with the Ron Brook-prepared Easy Eddie ($6.50) a close-up third.
The winner clocked 30.87s, well below her personal best of 30.19s.
“It was a gallant victory,” a proud Boody said.
“It’s hard to be confident in this sport, but she was very strong and very brave.
“She ran into trouble on the first turn and it was a brave effort for her to run between the two leaders in the straight for victory.
“I thought she would lead and when she got into trouble I wasn’t sure if she could even win.
“She definitely didn’t win the way I thought she would.”
Boody had expected his kennel star to ping the lids and lead clearly as she has been doing on her home track.
But the early setback – in which Love You Peaches, the heavily supported $1.70 favourite, was lucky to stay on her feet – had her back in the pack.
She was involved in a three-dog mix-up on the first corner which resulted in Townsville rep, the Henry Parker-trained Sprightly Bro ($8), taking a tumble, and $71 outsider Inconsequential (Kerry Griffin), another north Queensland runner, copping a nasty bump.
As the Boody sprinter was regaining her balance, Bundaberg’s Easy Eddie took control, leading the field into the back straight.
Love You Peaches then pushed up to third behind Easy Eddie and Little Ripper, but was still trailing by five-and-a-half lengths mid-race with plenty to do.
However, true to her nature, she knuckled down and in the straight she dived between the leading pair to record a memorable win – her 21st (16 placings) from 51 starts.
It was also her sixth win from seven starts and it lifted her prizemoney above $61,000.
Boody only recently took over her preparation from relatives Mick and Amber Boody, who have decided to cut back their workload and do some travelling.
“She’s a very good Central Queensland dog,” he said. “She’s so versatile and she’s so strong.
“Uncle Mick brought her down yesterday because I had a team of 14 racing at Rockhampton last night and I came down today (race day).”
It was the cherry on the cake for Boody, who led in four winners at Rocky the previous night after landing a ‘Magnificent Seven’ at the same track in mid-January.
Boody said: “The kennel is firing at the moment. Everyone’s doing their job.”
Based at Dalma, west of Rockhampton, Boody believes Love You Peaches could run further than 520m.
“She has good box speed and is very strong at the end of her races,” he said.
The trainer plans to aim Love You Peaches at some Albion Park 600m races after next month’s $60,000 Rockhampton Cup.
“But first we’ll target the ($25,000) Rockhampton Wildcard (510m),” he said. The winner of the Wildcard (heats April 6, final April 13) will receive automatic entry into the rich Rocky Cup final (April 29).
