The Centenary Syndicate celebrate after the Candice Bass-Robinson-trained Furture Variety won the Listed HKIR In December Umngeni Handicap at Hollywoodbets Greyville (Candiese Lenferna Photography)
After thorough deliberation and consultation with the Race Coast team, leading trainer Candice Bass has confirmed the expansion of her family operation with a permanent satellite base at the Summerveld Training Centre in KwaZulu-Natal.
Bass Racing has secured 27 boxes at Summerveld, which will be overseen by long-time assistant trainer Terry Fripp, now a permanent member of the team. The plan is to send suitable candidates from Candice’s Milnerton yard to KwaZulu-Natal to optimise year-round earning opportunities. In time, two-year-olds will also be considered for KZN campaigns, further boosting the stable’s strike power for its patrons.
Terry has enjoyed great success in two seasonal KZN Champions Season stints with the yard, and has some seriously impressive stats to show from the 2025 term. With just a small number of runners, the operation produced a 20% winning strike rate and a 70% place record from 29 starts, for stakes of R1.8 million. These included the dual Grade 2 victors Rainbow Lorikeet and Tenango, as well as Listed winner Callmegetorix, and the ever-popular Centenary Syndicate horse Future Variety, who closed off on Gold Cup Day with a Listed feature for his 130 shareholding owners.
Candice comes off a runner-up position on the Western Cape Trainers log last seasonand finished 4th on the National Trainers Log with gross stake earnings of R12,447,513, her 8th successive Top 6 finish since she took over from .
With a strong client base in KZN eager to see their horses compete locally, combined with the popularity of their ever-growing Centenary Syndicate, this expansion is a natural and exciting next step for Bass Racing stables.
Candice shared her thoughts on her expansion and said: “Our team enjoyed a fantastic Champions season and having worked closely with Terry Fripp over the last two Champions seasons, I have full trust and confidence in his ability to head up my KZN operation.
“With Race Coast having expanded their own interests from the Western Cape into KwaZulu Natal, our following suit was a natural progression. Having a yard at Summerveld creates a gateway for us to freely move horses between centres and seasons, as well as opportunities to compete with a larger contingent of raiders. The weather has caused havoc in Cape Town over the last few months – not dissimilar towhat happened last year – so this has really been an easy decision for me.”
Candice added: “Race Coast’s Justin Vermaak has welcomed our planned transition and also kindly incentivised our choice to have a dual presence under the Race Coast banner which we are most grateful for.”
The yard will initially house a select string of around 10-15 horses relocated from Milnerton, with plans to steadily grow over time. Syndication opportunities will also be made available through the Centenary Syndicate, which has already secured two horses at the BSA August Two-Year Old sale that will soon be opened for shareholding to KZN-based patrons. These will also qualify under the Race Coast Syndicate incentive programme.
Candice concluded: “This new chapter marks an exciting step forward for Bass Racing. We look forward to establishing firm roots in KwaZulu-Natal.”
