Split may have been the sole maidener and the $70 outsider in Tuesday’s NZB Airfreight Road To The Jericho (3200m), but that didn’t stop him from outstaying his rivals and booking a ticket to the Australian feature for Jo Rathbone.
Initially set to be run at New Plymouth on September 14, the Road To The Jericho was rescheduled on two occasions as a result of abandonments at that meeting, and at Waverley on Sunday. A final field of 12 assembled after scratchings, with Split the first off the ballot in the Rating 75 contest.
Split carried just 51 kilograms courtesy of Toni Davies' three-kilogram claim, but that was where the favours stopped for the five-year-old, who faced a tough trip three-wide throughout the race from his wide barrier draw.
Star hurdler Berry The Cash was favourite for the contest at $4.80 and followed proceedings from the outset before making a sweeping run at the 800m, while fellow jumper Dictation also made his claim and lead the field into the home turn. While many started to weaken, Split continued to improve and hit the front at the 200 metres, holding off Dictation and Berry The Cash to bag the upset by just shy of two lengths.
The son of Turn Me Loose had 11 starts on the board prior and finished in the first five on eight occasions, without picking up that elusive maiden victory. Rathbone, who owns Split alongside Simon Harrison, saw the staying potential in her charge and was duly rewarded.
"Toni rode him really well, she got stuck out wide but there wasn't too much she could do about that," Rathbone said.
"He's not the sort of horse that you can pull back, he's one-paced and just keeps on going, so she had to keep him in that rhythm and he just kept on kicking."
Rathbone hadn't initially intended to start Split in the New Plymouth edition, but closer to her Wanganui base, the rescheduling mapped out perfectly for her charge, who is set for a career over fences.
"He raced on the Awapuni Synthetic the day after (New Plymouth), so it was really an afterthought when it was shifted to Waverley," she said.
"The distance really appealed, he's been schooling over fences all year and had a jumping trial in Cambridge, so our plan has always been to jump him and get out to that range.
"He jumps very well but we wanted to wait until next year before he races over jumps, and in all of his 2000m starts, he'll always be the last one to pull up and hardly be blowing."
The winner of the Road To The Jericho earns the North Island's golden ticket (ballot-free entry) into the A$300,000 Jericho Cup (4600m), to be run at Warrnambool in Victoria on December 1. Last year's winner of the race, Nassak Diamond, went on to win the Jericho Cup, an opportunity that Rathbone intends to take up with Split.
"We definitely intend to go, the extra distance in the Jericho will suit him because he'll just keep on going," she said.
"Even today after the two miles, he's pulled up really well."
Co-bred by Wellfield Holdings, Split is out of an unraced Street Cry mare in Cry For Terre, and was sourced by Rathbone through Peter Didham.
"We got him through Wellfield when they were dispersing, but I had spoken to Peter Didham about horses that needed a bit more time and he quite liked him," she said.
"I think he'll still improve, he's still a long-legged type of horse."
Rathbone's team had a successful outing with Billy Boy and Mr Twinkletoes also placing in their respective contests on the card, with the former putting in a bold performance over 1600m following a win over hurdles last-start.
"I've always quite liked Mr Twinkletoes, he's had to race on quite heavy tracks recently and I just think he appreciated the slightly better surface today," she said.
"I think he'll go over ground as well, so that's something for his future.
"Billy Boy really impressed me today, it was great to see him get back and run on so well only over a mile.
"He always seems to go really well for Amber (Riddell) too."
