Trainer Shannon Price has headed overseas hoping to turn her fortunes around.
The astute mentor was happy to see stable star Terror Time end his season in winning form after making it back to back victories at Albion Park on Saturday night but the question still remains.
What if?
The Group 1 winning juvenile looked set to be a major player in all classics this season but the Western Terror gelding missed most of his targets this season through niggling injuries and untimely setbacks.
This conundrum left Price frustrated.
“We had such high hopes this season for Wilson (Terror Time) but it didn’t pan out like anything we expected but that’s racing. You play the cards your dealt.” Price said.
Terror Time was being touted as a Derby prospect after a stellar rookie term which netted him the Group1 $150,000 Garrards Nursery Pace Final at Albion Park downing Victorian colt Soho Valencia.
Highly regarded four-year-old Caesars Folly also struggled this term with similar problems while American Legend and American Promise didn’t achieve like most expected.
Caesars Folly won 15 from 19 as a three-year-old.
So, Price and her husband Scott Miller have headed to Hong Kong for a week long holiday hoping to clear their heads and focus on the new season which starts upon their arrival home.
“It wasn’t all doom and gloom but I think it’s fair to say we didn’t reach our marks or goals that we set out for ourselves at the start of the season.
Tiny (Caesars Folly) just had a wipe-out season. He only raced five times throughout the whole term after succumbing to an injury at the start of the season so that proved very disappointing.
Our younger stock also struggled with little issues but it just kept us on the back foot all season long. The three-year-old’s were always facing niggling issues while our two-year-old’s didn’t measure like they did the previous season but everyone has those runs and we just need to regroup and focus on the new season coming up.”
Price has sent most of her racing team to the paddock while some have been moved on to different homes.
The new crop of juveniles continue to be worked up in preparation for their racing season which will begin next year and expectations are positive at this early stage.
“We had a clean out before we took off but every stable needs to re-evaluate. It’s a healthy thing for any stable.
We have plenty to look forward with and hopefully we can bounce back and play a hand in the features that we missed this season. Wilson will be set for the 4YO QBred Triad feature while Tiny will graduate to open class and chase some of the bigger races.
The rising two-year-old’s look good at this point and I have high hopes for a Bettors Delight colt that we purchased from the New Zealand Yearling Sales in Auckland earlier this year. We haven’t screwed them down but they’re all doing what is required at this point, time will tell.”
Price trained 11 metropolitan winners this season, half the amount of the previous season.
RACING Qld web news by Chris Barsby
Photo by Corey Pearce
