Broadhurst "over the moon" with first Manawatu win

By Jordyn Bublitz 

A trip north that began as a long-held ambition turned into victory for Kaikoura-based trainer David Broadhurst on Thursday when Ester Lucy delivered  in the Happy New Year Mobile Pace at Palmerston North.

Broadhurst made the journey north with his small team of two horses. 

Competing in the central northern districts had been on his wish list for some time, with last year’s attempt thwarted by rough Cook Strait conditions.

“It’s been on my bucket list,” Broadhurst said. “Last year we went to come north and then we got held up at the ferries with the seas being too rough.”

Making the trip this time proved worthwhile, with Ester Lucy producing a dominant front-running performance to give Broadhurst his first training success since 2024. 

“We were pretty thrilled, my partner and I, we were over the moon about it,” he said.

Driven by Kate Coppins, Ester Lucy made full use of her barrier one draw, going straight to the lead and dictating terms throughout. 

The pair controlled the tempo before holding off a determined late challenge from Bell Fire to score by a neck. 

Broadhurst wasn’t surprised by the mare’s performance.

“She’d been working very well, and we expected a good run from her,” he said.

With Ester Lucy thriving, Broadhurst plans to continue travelling north, taking in different tracks as part of what he describes as more of a racing holiday. One venue in particular is firmly on the radar.

“Ester Lucy is named after my grandmother. She and my grandfather won a race at Hawera in about 1935, so I thought I better give it a crack with her namesake,” he said.

For Broadhurst, the trip has been about more than results.

“I’d never raced a horse at Palmerston North before. It’s my first time there and there’s some very kind people. Everything’s been great, the horses look good, so we’ll travel on and complete the circuit, and then we’ll be off home.”