Mr Pooe at the HDJ Final Field Announcement and draw ceremony (Candiese Lenferna Photography).
Owner Mr S S “Stincky” Pooe has his first runner in the Hollywoodbets Durban July, the Robyn Klaasen-trained Second Base.
Mr Pooe’s love of horseracing began in the townships of Nigel as a Kid where he and his friends used to attend rural horse racing meetings every Saturday.
“It was fun for us and that is where the whole thing started,” he said.
He owned horses some years back, but gave up because he was not getting results.
However, he has made a strong comeback recently.
He owns the useful Billy Ruiters-trained Miss Daisy, a Bush Hill Stud-bred Crusade filly who beat the like of Feather Boa, Gimme A Shot and None Other when winning the Gr 3 HSH Princess Charlene Starling Stakes over 1400m last October.
That was one of four wins for the speedy filly.
He recently took a share in Second Base after Klaasen purchased him for R150,000 on a BSA Online auction.
It soon paid dividends.
The five-year-old Gimmethegreenlight gelding bounced back to his best when a hair’s breadth second to Puerto Manzano in the Gr 1 Premier’s Champion Stakes in his first start for Klaasen.
That got him into the July.
Asked how it felt to have a July runner, Mr Pooe replied, “At last!”
He went on to say he had been “dreaming of it” but had not expected it to come so soon after his comeback.
Mr Pooe will be bringing his family with him to the big race on July 1.
