PATIENCE is a virtue that is often required by owners and trainers of racing animals.
One such horse that required the utmost amount of patience and devotion was Khrushchev Leis that repaid his owner-trainer Gary Hayes with an impressive win at The TOTE Racing Centre in Launceston on Sunday night.
Khrushchev Leis was partnered by Andrew Arnott who had the four-year-old gelding settled in the one-out-one-back position early before sending him up to face the breeze with just under a lap remaining.
When Arnott called on the gelded son of Aces And Sevens to extend turning for homer he bounded clear an d went on to defeat outsider Hello Not Bad by seven metres with Brown Paige over two metres astern.
Hayes said he has been “working on” Khrushchev Leis since January last year.
“He’s typical of his breed, in that he can get a bit fiery so when that’s happened I’ve had to back off him for a while and then start again,” Hayes said.
“Then in November, he broke down and we thought we’d lost him.”
“He had a problem with his off-side hoof but the X-rays showed nothing and (vet) Michael Morris suspected it might be a deep-seated bruise.”
“Late I found congealed blood in the frog (on the underside of the hoof) so Mike was right on the money,” he said
When Khrushchev Leis recovered fully from that hoof ordeal Hayes was able to get the gelding to the trials.
On the strength of his most recent trial effort leading to last Sunday night’s race punters who were aware of the trial performance backed him in late in betting from about $14 to start $7.60.
It was Hayes’ first winner since Mister Storay won in 2005, although he has had only a handful of horses pass through the stable since that triumph.