SOUTH Australian trainer Kane Post created a quirky little piece of racing history when his seven-year-old gelding Coraggio stormed to victory in Easter Saturday’s $30,000 CluBarham Kerang Cup over 1800m.
It was the Mount Gambier-based Post’s first cup win after five years as a trainer.
But it was his second Kerang Cup – he took out the 1991 running of the event as the jockey for his trainer-father Bob. He steered Wolflike to a course record of 1:49.6, which still stands 32 years down the track.
And while Post junior is a South Australian trainer, he is also Swan Hill-born and bred and was still based here when he and his parents took out that race all those years ago.
To complete this family fairytale, Kate Walter, this year’s winning jockey, is Post’s wife.
As delighted as he was with his first training cup win, Kane and Kate did not have time to hang around and enjoy the moment, they had six horses running at Penola on Sunday and had to complete the 430km drive home to get ready for the morning.
“I had half-set Coraggio for this race but when he ran at Edenhope on March 11, where I thought he would win, the rider didn’t handle him well, he can tend to charge out and takes a bit to settle,” Post said.
“When Kate rode him at Avoca two weeks later, she reckoned he might have been a bit knocked up in the previous run.
“Today, he sort of tried it again, but Kate did a good job to get him better settled and then she timed her run to perfection, because when she hit the line the horse finishing second was coming fast.
“That’s racing, lots of things can go wrong – and right. Like Bassons, a last start winner going in to the 1800m Gannawarra Handicap, also over 1800m, but instead of being held back after such a good start, should probably have been let to run free and instead of midfield, be right up there on pace.”
The family made the move to Mount Gambier looking for what Post described as a “new start”.
“I think the last straw was one day Dad and I were standing in shade out the back and it was so hot, maybe 50 degrees or so I think – we looked at each other and said ‘we’re outta here’,” he laughed.
The family swapped 1.5 acres in Swan Hill for about 60 acres in Mount Gambier and with room to move, business grew quickly.
Now the Swan Hill jockey has turned into a cross-border raider, sneaking back into Victoria and snatching races here and there – including the Kerang Cup.
With 14 horses currently in work, one of Post’s most immediate challenges is what to do next with his Cup winner.
“This is his eighth or ninth start for this prep and he still has a fair bit left in him, but I haven’t really got anything planned for him just yet,” he said.
“I guess I’ll have a look around and see what bobs up.”
Another country cup perhaps.
