Apprentice Beau Appo, pictured by the Justracing camera at Gatton a few weeks ago, had his first day of riding at Esk last Saturday and he had the distinction of riding a winner at his first day in the saddle when he scored in the last race aboard Marc The Magpie. Beau is the son of jockey Lyall Appo and his charming wife Michelle and he's got the bloodlines to go okay, as it's a fact that Lyall is regarded as "the best jockey living in Redcliffe" as he's the only jockey domiciled there. 18YO Beau, who is apprenticed to Mick Lakey at Deagon, told me he weighs "47 kilos stripped". The youngster who can claim four kilos for his first five winners also told me that he is riding at Bundaberg next Saturday, so let's make sure he has a full book. Maybe Beau should have ridden a double at Esk, as his very first ride in a race, Husani, reared as the gates opened before finishing a close third. In a memorable day for the Appo family, Lyall rode Esk Race 2 winner Pukekura Boy.

Eagle Farm hosted the Queensland Cup – now called the Queen’s Cup – last Saturday and the result of that race again proved why race clubs need to have more free buses to transport angry punters straight to the Gateway Bridge after Brisbane meetings to leap to their death, when Spechenka won the Queen’s Cup easily with his ears pricked, with the hardly exciting form of 5-5-3-0-9-7-7-0-0-0-0-4-0-2-0-8-4, meaning he had been incapable of winning a race in his last 17 starts and in fact he’d only run two placings in those 17 starts as well, so I reckon that there should have been a running and handling inquiry into why the horse only started at 8/1 and not 80/1. The previous Saturday the horse had got beaten just 10 lengths in the Caloundra Cup and even if you can forgive the horse for that run, as the race was run on a heavy 10 track, can someone give me a valid excuse for his other 16 previous defeats? Last Saturday’s Eagle Farm race meeting was run on a “dead” track. Now let me see when Spechenka last started on a “dead” track at Eagle Farm. Yep – three starts back on 9/6/12 in the Brisbane Cup over 2400 metres he settled last, just like he did Saturday, but didn’t make any ground and ran seventeenth of 18 at 40/1 on a “dead” track to Lights of Heaven beaten just over 14 (in words that’s fourteen) lengths. Then two starts back he ran eight of 16 on another “dead” track in Tattersall’s Cup to the ordinary Ginga Dude, who had run unplaced in the Ipswich Cup at his previous start. Chief Steward at the meeting, Daniel Aurich, saw no reason to query anyone on the improved performance of Spechenka, or to ask jockey Jay Ford why he took off three wide at the 700 on the runner-up Maythehorsebemagic. Fair dinkum, sometimes I just shake my head.

Today on www.brisbaneracing.com.au there’s the talk about pacers under saddle becoming a betting medium at harness meetings in Queensland, then on www.sydneyracing.com.au there is the story of the top horses and jockey produced at Muswellbrook in its 150-year history, whilst on the revered www.melbourneracing.com.au website, Matt Nicholls looks at the career of So You Think.

From the Eagle Farm betting ring last Saturday, leading rails bookmaker Lindsay Gallagher reported:

Race 1 – Liesele $2.00, Golden Cash $17.00, and Hidden Kisses $8.00
The opening race was won by the favourite Liesele who finished up in a good position, which she always looked like getting and she got the split and won. She got out to $2 and there was cash money for the Exceed and Excel mare at even money.
There was money for War Charm, but no money for anything else in the race.
So we started off the day with a losing race.

Race 2 – Angusroy $11.00, Eureka Jack $13.00 and Cyclone Al $6.50
There was no money for this winner Angusroy.
Noisy Ocean was hard to lay and was actually a bit disappointing as he probably didn’t get the 1800.
Just About Ready was specked at long odds, but he led and compounded.
The best backed runner in the race was Contract Caterer and he was well backed on the phones. The gelding hadn’t started for quite some time and it was surprising when the money came for him, but he ran accordingly finishing down the line.
It was a winning race.

Race 3 – Straight $15.00, Night Chills $6.00 and Royal Jester $11.00
The third race was won by Straight, but there was no money in the ring for the Lonhro colt.
Night Chills was specked and there was some money for Chilean Plume and he was backed from $3.50 to $3.10.
Beaufort Gyre who led and had every chance had no admirers.
There was money on the phones for the Fastnet Rock filly Love Somebody.
It finished up a winning race.

Race 4 – Saluter $4.80, Discreet $2.70 and Caliente $7.50
There was no money around the ring for this winner Saluter who got out to $4.80 at the jump.
Discreet was always solid in the market at $2.70.
Fantisha had plenty of admirers but got back like she always does and didn’t have much luck.
It wasn’t a big betting race, but nevertheless a winning race.

Race 5 – Fire Up Fifi $4.00, Hour Of Peril $17.00 and Emmertt $8.00
Fire Up Fife was always solid and was backed from $4.20 into $4 and is in a purple patch of form and racing good.
Dusty Gold eased in the market when there was no money of note for the gelding, nor was there any money for the New Zealand mare St Germaine.
Vipera Gold had some specking from $9 into $8 but she sat three wide and had no hope as a result and finished down the track.

Race 6 – Spechenka $9.00, Maythehorsebemagic $2.30 and Fantastic Blue $14.00
Spechenka won the Queen’s Cup and there was good cash money for the horse at $10.
The favourite Maythehorsebemagic was always solid in the market and there was money in the ring for him.
The topweight Booming was hard to lay and he got out to $3 at the finish.
It looked a limited race on paper and you could only lay the two horses who ran the quinella but it wasn’t a big betting race.

Race 7 – Adnocon $3.10, The Sixties $6.00 and Bold Glance $10.00
The betting in this event was turned upside down with the late scratching of Audacious Spirit at the barrier when he couldn’t be replated. He was the biggest go all day and was $3.80 to $3.10.
There wasn’t much money about for the winner Adnocon and Griffon was hard to lay, so the race fell away really and became a non-event when Audacious Spirit came out.

Race 8 – Divine City $4.20, Revitalise $26.00 and Black Magic $5.50
Last race winner Divine City was solid throughout betting at $4.20 in what wasn’t a big betting race.
There was some money about for third placed Black Magic and there was also cash money in the ring for Volkhere.
It looked a tough race on paper and correspondingly there wasn’t much action on it in the ring.
There wasn’t much in the result between bookmakers and punters at the end of the day.

Lindsay will be fielding at Eagle Farm on Wednesday, Ipswich on Friday, then he’s off to Doomben on Saturday and the Sunshine Coast on Sunday.

Don’t forget if you would like to visit Lindsay on the web you can do that by going to www.thevipclub.com.au.