Cole has 48 years of history at Ruakaka

By Garrick Knight

Veteran Puni horseman, Jim Cole will be taking a trip down memory lane when he trips to the Ruakaka grass meeting on Monday.

Cole, who lines up Eyre I Will and Clouding Over in the day’s two feature races, has a long history of success at the track.

In fact, he drove a winner at the very first harness meeting held at Ruakaka, back in 1978.

“I remember it clearly – it was Milford Marina in Race 4,” said Cole.

“It was the first of a two-day meeting and on the second day, Delightful Lady won the Northland Cup.”

Cole, trained in partnership with his late father, George in Kumeu at the time, said the former Ruakaka all-weather track wasn’t for every horse.

“A lot of horses didn’t sort of handle it because it was scoria on sand but that was similar to the Kumeu track and horses trained there seemed to always handle it.

“It was at its best went it had rained and that packed it down nicely.”

One year later, the Coles would win the Northland Cup themselves with the good mare, Elite Dream.

“We had a lot of success up there – we also won their feature 4YO race with Te Puke Expects (14 wins).”

Back then, the two-day meetings drew large fields, heaps of sponsors and plenty of people.

“It was quite a highly promoted meeting that was well-supported by everyone.”

Cole remembers fondly when champion pacer, Young Quinn made his return to New Zealand racing at Ruakaka as a 10-year-old after a five-year American odyssey.

He ran second to Trevira in the Whangarei Flying Mile before winding up his stellar career with a fourth in the Auckland Cup just over a week later.

Fast forward nearly five decades and Cole has a chance to win do it all over again with Clouding Over in the $15,000 Ruakaka Beachfront Motel Northland Cup.

She’s been a perennial placegetter at Alexandra Park in recent years but Cole has always had a hankering to get her on a grass surface.

“I think it will suit her; she’s the type of pacer that has a bit of action which is suited to the grass.

I had planned on going down to Hawera with her earlier in the year, but the road closures put me off.

“When this meeting popped up on the calendar, I pencilled her in.”

Joining her will be stable newcomer Eyre I Will, who has first start for Cole in the $20,000 Neville Bros Watch Me Trot Cup.

He’s won eight races and over $140,000 for Jeremy Young and before that, Mark Jones, but a recent ownership restructuring saw him join Cole.

“I’ve only just got him and it’s a little bit of ‘uncharted waters’ for me.

“The bloke who owns him says he goes good on the grass and Maurice McKendry drove him to win at the trials the other day and said he would go north to drive him.

“So, that’s a good sign I suppose.

“He’s not a big-framed horse but he’s done a hell of a job and seems to go best right-handed.”