First training win for Macnab

Accomplished horsewoman Kayla Macnab added another string to her bow at Waverley on Friday when winning her first race as a trainer courtesy of Early Times (American Pharoah).

The former jumps jockey, and now high weight rider, took out her trainer’s licence at the start of the season and had several placings from six prior starts, including when riding Early Times to a runner-up result herself at Woodville a fortnight ago, before Friday’s breakthrough win.

Early Times was duly backed into $2.90 favouritism in Friday’s SRVS – Equine (2200m), and under jockey Kelly Myers he ran out a one length victor, much to the delight of Macnab who was in the uncustomary position of cheering from the sideline.

While rapt with the win, Macnab said she was a bundle of nerves throughout the running.

“It was awesome,” she said. “He has really strengthened up and his last start was pretty good when he ran second in a high weight, so we were trying to think positive and he delivered, so that was great.

“I think I get more nervous watching than being in the saddle because you can’t control it, but when you have got someone like Kelly on you have got the best.”

While new to the training ranks, Macnab has spent most of her life in racing, beginning her journey as a fresh-faced teenager at Awapuni before she went on to work in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan, experiences she said have helped shape her as a horsewoman.

“I was 14 when I started riding track work in Palmerston North for Mike Breslin, and then I went to Stephen Marsh (Woodville),” Macnab said. “Bruce Marsh (Stephen’s father) then took me to Singapore with him when he first started over there. It was a pretty cool experience and they had awesome facilities.

“I was there for about two years and then I came back and went up to Cambridge with Stephen and helped him start his Cambridge stable. When I was in Cambridge I went to Hong Kong and did the sales with Bruce Harvey, and then I did a couple of years in Japan.

“In Japan I was with a pre-training facility, and you get really cold winters and really hot summers there. They have a hill track and we were on the horses for an hour each, we did a lot of walking with them and then their work and then a lot of cooling down, so you only rode about three or four a morning.

“It definitely helped me and showed me there are different ways of doing things.”

Returning to New Zealand, Macnab still had an itch to scratch and she was intent on becoming a jumps jockey, and she returned to the Central Districts to pursue that dream.

“In the back of my mind I have always wanted to be a jumps jockey so where else to go than Kevin Myers,” she said. “I did a few years with him.”

Macnab enjoyed plenty of success in the saddle, particularly in the 2013/14 season where she claimed two prestige jumps titles when winning the Great Northern Hurdles (4200m) aboard the Mark Oulaghan-trained Harvest The Gold (NZ) (Stark South) and Grand National Hurdles (4200m) aboard the Kevin Myers-trained Mahanadi (NZ) (Tiger Hill).

Macnab took some time away from racing to have her children before making a return to riding, but quickly elected to solely ride in high weights, a pursuit she maintains.

“I still ride in some high weights, but I don’t do the jumps anymore,” she said. “I had one too many concussions. After having my kids, I went back and had a few wins and then got another head knock and it wasn’t worth it anymore for me.”

Macnab developed a pre-training business, and it has been a natural progression to take out her trainer’s licence this year.

“I have always done a bit of pre-training for Kevin Myers and Bill Thurlow, who is in on Early Times,” Macnab said. “He (Thurlow) has always helped me out a lot with horses that he wanted to jump, so I have schooled them up for him and done pre-training because I live on more of a hill farm, which is great for the jumpers.

“I was doing that for quite a few years, and I thought I should get my own licence and have a crack.”

Macnab pulled the trigger at the start of the season and her first horse to the races was Early Times, who she had acquired off Thurlow with a jumping future in mind.

“I had his jumper Whiskey Tango (NZ) (Proisir) up here and I did quite a bit of work with him,” Macnab said. “He said that he had another there (Early Times) that he thought would make a good jumper too and he sent him to me.

“After a while he said we should go halves in him and we would put him in my name because I was doing the work with him. I was very fortunate that he was willing to help me out.”

Early Times has gone on to win one and finish runner-up in three of his six starts to date for Macnab, who is pleased to be tasting success so early in her training career.

“It is awesome to get a nice horse going,” she said.

Macnab said she is fortunate to be able to work her horses on the farm she and her husband, David, own, with the hill country being a key asset.

“They mostly do hill work and have a few gallops during the week in town just to get the speed work into them,” Macnab said. “A lot of mine do schooling too because that is my background.”

Macnab also has Derryn gelding Hill Billy (NZ) in work, with the six-year-old also racing at Waverley on Friday where he was unplaced in the Anthony Bell – Agronomy (1650m).

“He probably needs more distance,” Macnab said. “He is a late starter, but I will put him over 2200m and we will see how he handles that.”

In the meantime, Macnab is enjoying life as a trainer and is hopeful of growing her team in the near future.

“It is awesome to do a little bit for myself now and get a few results, and hopefully we pick up a few more along the way,” she said. – LOVERACING.NZ News Desk