Silhouette Noire
Kenton Wright Race Images
Former southerner Silhouette Noire showed her penchant for left-handed racing when she turned her form around at Te Rapa.
The five-year-old tailed the field home at her previous appearance in the Listed Tauranga Classic, but trainer Lee Somervell was expecting major improvement from the mare on Saturday.
"She's still got to prove that she can handle the right-handed way of going," the Cambridge horseman said.
"She became unbalanced at Tauranga from the 800 metre mark and into the straight and Trudy didn't knock her around when she wasn't in it so she freshened up nicely for this."
Thornton was again in the saddle at Te Rapa where she stalked the pacemaker before staying closer to the rail into the straight and Silhouette Noire responded gamely to claim a narrow victory.
A daughter of Dane Shadow, Silhouette Noire began her career with Terri Rae at Riccarton and she won five races and was placed in the Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes before she joined Somervell's team in the hunt for further black type.
That hasn't happened yet, but she has now added two wins to her record since the move, having won at Te Rapa in April.
Silhouette Noire is raced by renowned Christchurch beauty therapy entrepreneur Anne Marie de Spa and her husband Charles Hall.
"They are lovely people and I met them the first time I went down for the Coupland's Mile with Addictive Habit," Somervell said.
"She's a magnificent-looking mare with a lovely attitude. She's a pleasure to have around." – NZ Racing Desk.
The five-year-old tailed the field home at her previous appearance in the Listed Tauranga Classic, but trainer Lee Somervell was expecting major improvement from the mare on Saturday.
"She's still got to prove that she can handle the right-handed way of going," the Cambridge horseman said.
"She became unbalanced at Tauranga from the 800 metre mark and into the straight and Trudy didn't knock her around when she wasn't in it so she freshened up nicely for this."
Thornton was again in the saddle at Te Rapa where she stalked the pacemaker before staying closer to the rail into the straight and Silhouette Noire responded gamely to claim a narrow victory.
A daughter of Dane Shadow, Silhouette Noire began her career with Terri Rae at Riccarton and she won five races and was placed in the Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes before she joined Somervell's team in the hunt for further black type.
That hasn't happened yet, but she has now added two wins to her record since the move, having won at Te Rapa in April.
Silhouette Noire is raced by renowned Christchurch beauty therapy entrepreneur Anne Marie de Spa and her husband Charles Hall.
"They are lovely people and I met them the first time I went down for the Coupland's Mile with Addictive Habit," Somervell said.
"She's a magnificent-looking mare with a lovely attitude. She's a pleasure to have around." – NZ Racing Desk.