She was owned and bred by Brian Healy and foaled in 1998. Sumthingaboutmaori was a daughter of Pine Chip, her dam Maori Princess (by Entrepreneur) was out of the famous Maori Miss family.
Her usual driver was Gavin Lang, although throughout her career other drivers were used. She was a horse that may not have had the success of other horses in other eras, but due to her racing nature she endeared herself to the harness racing public, which was highlighted in 2006 when she led out the field for the Inter Dominion final at Moonee Valley as highlights of her career were shown on a big screen.
Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait. They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australia and New Zealand, races with jockeys riding directly on saddled trotters are also conducted.
Pure Steel is the only pacer to win the A G Hunter Cup, a race over 3,050 metres and the richest handicap race for pacers in the world, three times, in 1977, 1978, and 1980. He was the first Standardbred horse to win A$500,000 in Australia. Pure Steel also won the WA Benson & Hedges Cup four times. Affectionately known as Steelo or the "Tungsten Terror", he raced from 1974 until 1983 and won just under $1 million, at a time when competition was strong, with the great horses Paleface Adios and Hondo Grattan as competitors.
Lyell Creek is one of New Zealand's best Standardbred trotters. Also known as "Creek The Freak", he had 113 starts for 56 wins, 15 seconds and 11 thirds, including an Australasian record 15 Group One wins. His fastest mile rate was 1.52.4 and he won $2,950,224 in stake money, which is an Australasian record for a trotter. Lyell Creek won the 2000 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship Grand Final at Moonee Valley in Melbourne, taking home $295,000 for his efforts. He also won New Zealand's two biggest trotting races, the Dominion Handicap and the Rowe Cup, both on three occasions. In the 1999-00 season Lyell Creek won the Dominion Handicap, Inter Dominion Trotting Championship and Rowe Cup becoming the first horse to win the three races in the same season. At the Inter Dominion carnival in Melbourne he won four Group One races including the Australasian Trotters Championship, Dullard Cup and Millennium Mile where he produced a remarkable winning performance after being trapped wide on the track. It was his sixteenth consecutive win. He won 20 consecutive races until being beaten in the New Zealand Trotting Free For All on Show Day in 2000. The defeat came one start after he had broken the New Zealand record for a trotting mile at Ashburton by winning in 1:55.6. Before racing in the Northern Hemisphere he won his second Rowe Cup and the Bill Collins Mile in Melbourne.
Harness racing, also colloquially known as trotting or the trots, is a spectator sport in Australia, with significant amounts of money wagered annually with bookmakers and the Totalisator Agency Board (TAB). In Australia there are 90 harness racing tracks, which hold over 1,900 meetings annually. There are approximately 2,900 drivers and 4,000 trainers with about 5,000 Standardbred horses foaled and registered each year.
The New Zealand Cup for standardbred horses, also known as either the New Zealand Trotting Cup or the New Zealand Pacing Cup is a Group One (G1) harness race held annually by the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club at Addington Raceway in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Maori's Idol was an Australian Standardbred racehorse. He was the first Australian trotter to break two minutes with a time of 1:59.3 on 19 November 1977 at Moonee Valley. Maori's Idol became one of Australia's greatest trotters, with a record 24 successive race victories before being placed third in the 1978 Melbourne Inter-Dominion Final. He is still the trotting record holder with 22 wins in a season. He was superior to his rivals. He could have gone through his career unbeaten had he been placed to advantage by his connections.
Scotch Notch (1977–1990) is an Australian Standardbred mare, the current world record holder for the Trotters One Mile Time Trial set 3 September or 9 March 1985 at Moonee Valley, Victoria, Australia. She won the 1983 and 1985 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship. Scotch Notch was named "Australian Trotter of the Year" in 1983 1984 and 1985. She was inducted into the Inter Dominion Hall of Fame.
Blacks A Fake is a brown Standardbred gelding that won the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010 Inter Dominion Championships, making him the only four-time winner of Australasia's premier harness race. He finished second, beaten by a long neck, in the 2009 Inter Dominion to Mr Feelgood (USA). His other achievements include wins in the Victoria Cup and Hunter Cup and three Australian Horse of the Year titles. He is Australasia's highest earning Standardbred, and was the world's highest earning pacer. He also was inducted into the Inter Dominion Hall of Fame.
Harness racing in New Zealand is primarily a professional sport which involves pacing and trotting competitions for Standardbred racehorses. The difference is the horse's gait or running style:
The Rowe Cup is a race held annually at Alexandra Park, Auckland, New Zealand for standardbred horses.
The Inter Dominion Trotting Championship Grand Final was a race for trotters within the overall Inter Dominion series. The series is held each year, and is a harness racing competition for both trotters and pacers that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand. The host of the series is rotated between the 6 harness racing states of Australia and the North and South Islands of New Zealand. However, in recent years the Trotting series has mainly been held in Victoria with other Australian states reluctant to host the series. It forms part of the overall Inter Dominion series for pacers and trotters.
Anthony Butt is a driver of standardbred racehorses in Australia and New Zealand.
Anthony Grant Herlihy is a New Zealand driver and trainer of standardbred racehorses. He was associated with many champions and has been a leading driver of harness horses in New Zealand. In 2014, he was inducted into the New Zealand Trotting Hall of Fame, and he has also been inducted into the Inter Dominion Hall of Fame.
The Inter Dominion Hall of Fame is an organization created to recognise and honour those whose achievements have enriched the world of the Harness racing industry, particularly in the Inter Dominion series. The hall of fame was created to honor the standardbred annual races of the Inter Dominion which includes the Inter Dominion Pacing Championship and the Inter Dominion Trotting Championship. The races are held in a rotating cycle in Australia and New Zealand. The 2020 race is being held in New South Wales.
David James "Doody" Townley was a driver of Standardbred racehorses in New Zealand. He was associated with many champions and was a leading driver of harness horses in New Zealand.
John Langdon is a former driver of standardbred racehorses in New Zealand. He was associated with many champions and was a leading driver of harness horses in New Zealand.
Gammalite was an Australian bred Standardbred racehorse who was the first Standardbred to win A$1 million in Australia. He was regarded as one of Australia's most successful pacers with 16 Group one wins. He won the Inter Dominion Championship twice and was inducted into the Inter Dominion Hall of Fame.
The Inter Dominion is a harness racing competition that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand.
Westburn Grant (1985–2020) was an Australian champion Standardbred race horse notable for being a three time Australian Harness Horse of the Year.
Natalie Clair Rasmussen is a driver and trainer of Standardbred racehorses in Australia and New Zealand. She has been associated with many champions and is one of the leading trainers and drivers of harness horses in Australasia.
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