Landmark win for Reid as underdogs shine on Oaks Day

All but one of the feature races on New Zealand Oaks Day at Trentham on Saturday were won by trainers outside the top 40 on the premiership, including a special first black-type success for New Plymouth horsewoman Kim Reid.
Top billing went to Chad Ormsby (41st on the premiership with eight wins), who took out the Gr. 1 New Zealand Oaks with Pulchritudinous. The New Zealand St Leger was won by Testify Me for Janelle Millar (64th, six wins), while Canterbury raider Danny Frye (153rd, two wins) landed the Listed Lightning Handicap with Our Echo.
The only exception was the Gr. 2 Wellington Guineas, which was won by Grail Seeker for the third-placed training partnership of Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott.
But perhaps the most memorable of all the big wins at Trentham on Saturday was Hi Yo Sass Bomb in the Gr. 3 Wentwood Grange Cuddle Stakes. The daughter of Complacent has been the only horse in work throughout most of the season for Reid, who also bred and races her in partnership with her parents.
“It was pretty special,” Reid told RaceForm while still coming to terms with her big win. “I broke her in myself and ride her every day, and I own and bred her along with parents, so it’s very cool. She’s always been quite special, she’s shown a bit of X-factor from the start, so the Group Three win on Saturday really was a big thrill.
“Now we’re tossing up our options around what we do next. We might look at the Group One (New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders’ Stakes) at Ellerslie in a couple of weeks. She’s pretty tough and deserves a shot at a race like that.
“Before Saturday’s race, we talked to Joe (Doyle, jockey) about trying to get her up a little bit closer to the pace. It’s all very well flashing home late in the race with nice sectionals, but when you’re running in these better races, I think you’ve got a much better chance if you can take up a position a little bit closer.
“She and Joe did a really good job of that on Saturday, and that versatility in her style of racing might open up some better options for us in the future.”
Hi Yo Sass Bomb had shown real promise in her previous appearances at black-type level this season, finishing sixth in the Gr. 3 Thompson Handicap, fourth in the Gr. 3 Canterbury Breeders’ Stakes, a close fifth behind top mare Campionessa in the Gr. 2 Cal Isuzu Stakes, and a last-start second to Contribute in the Gr. 3 Taranaki Cup.
There was no denying the five-year-old’s dominance on Saturday, settling in third before pouncing and taking command in the straight. It also marked a century of wins for Doyle two-thirds of the way through his second season riding in New Zealand.
Hi Yo Sass Bomb has now had 15 starts for four wins, four placings and $163,520 in stakes. She has provided all but one of Reid’s five training successes, which have come from 35 runners dating back to the 2016-17 season.
This has been a family affair in more ways than one. Reid and her parents also bred and raced Hi Yo Sass Bomb’s dam Hi Yo Soo, who won five times in a 33-start career for, fittingly, fellow New Plymouth trainer and St Leger winner Janelle Millar.
Hi Yo Soo’s granddam Hi Yo Wassup was also raced by the Reids, winning five races and placing in the Listed New Zealand Bloodstock Air Freight Stakes at Riccarton.
“It’s been such a special family for us,” Reid said. “We bred and raced the mother, and it goes right back to when my mum went up to the sales and bought Hi Yo Wassup 20-odd years ago. So it really means a lot to win a stakes race with the latest generation of this family.
“For me personally, I’ve ridden horses for as long as I can remember. Around 20 years ago I had the opportunity to go and ride trackwork for Richard Otto in Te Awamutu. That’s when I got a bit of a bug for racing – it’s pretty addictive.
“And then it eventually came to the point of saying ‘Why don’t I jump in and have a crack at training?’ She’s mostly been the only one I’ve had in work in recent times, although an uncle (a four-year-old by Per Incanto out of Hi Yo Wassup) has recently come into the stable too.”
Although Saturday’s Cuddle Stakes was a landmark result for Reid and Hi Yo Sass Bomb, the pair were almost upstaged after the running of the $120,000 race.
“I had my daughter Charlise with me,” Reid said. “She’s an avid racegoer and is becoming a little bit of a film star! She loves it and is very keen. She calls Hi Yo Sass Bomb ‘Bomb-Bomb’ and knows her really well.
“We had Ciel Butler there on Saturday too. She rode the mare for a couple of wins earlier on and has had a bit to do with the stable. Charli absolutely loves Ciel – she’s her favourite jockey – so it was nice to have them there together after the race.”