Golden Lode Poised for Breakthrough at Gloucester Park
Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
The New Zealand-bred pacer Golden Lode has competed in six group feature races without a top placing. However, his driver, Deni Roberts, believes the gelding is ready to claim a major victory in the $200,000 Group 1 Retravision Golden Nugget over 2536 meters at Gloucester Park this Friday night.
Race Details and Strategy
Golden Lode, trained by champions Greg and Skye Bond, will start from the coveted No. 1 barrier. Roberts commented on their tactics:
“I’ll be trying to get out of the gate as quickly as I can, and if he leads, I’d pretty much say he will win.”
Roberts also noted the horse's recent form despite tough draws:
“His past couple of runs from unfavourable draws have been really good.”
Performance History
This season, as a four-year-old, Golden Lode has won only once out of eleven starts. That victory came six races ago from the outside of the back line, where despite battling headwinds, he defeated Gully Gum and Rockandrollartist. He posted an impressive final time of 1:54.9 over 2130 meters, with the last 400 meters covered in 28.7 and 28.6 seconds.
His latest run was in the Group 2 Four-Year-Old Classic held over 2130 meters. Starting from the inside of the back line, he followed the pacemaker Im Lightning Banner, but when the leader faded in the final lap, Golden Lode was shuffled back and faced traffic issues, eventually finishing a narrow fourth behind Franco Motu.
Summary
Golden Lode is a fast New Zealand-bred horse with consistent performances and a strong chance to break through in an upcoming Group 1 race.
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