The Moonstone back in winning form

[Wandering Eyes]

By Jordyn Bublitz

For Cambridge trainer Nicky Chilcott, it wasn’t the stature or the stakes of The Moonstone’s Silk Road victory on Thursday night at Cambridge Raceway that mattered, it was the sense of relief and accomplishment in finally getting the mare to return to a glimpse of her former self.
 
Many may remember The Moonstone for her standout performances as an early two-year-old, when she impressed spectators on debut at Alexandra Park with a remarkable victory, despite missing away from the mobile and giving herself a considerable handicap in the process.
 
That night it looked as though a top-class trotter was emerging. Her subsequent starts only reinforced that belief, with several remarkable runs against some of the best two-year-olds in the country at the time.
 
It’s a commonly held superstition that ‘only the good horses’ seem to find themselves in a spot of bother, and unfortunately for the talented filly, that seemed to be the case. Toward the end of her two-year-old season, the team at White Star Stables noticed an issue with her gait.
 
“Something was wrong with her,” said trainer Nicky Chilcott. “She went from trotting beautifully to having a glitch in her gait.”
 
“After various checks with the vet, we found she had a fairly serious problem in her stifle. It was one of those things that could come right with time or might’ve required surgery.”
 
After a spell, it appeared the injury had resolved. But a new obstacle emerged.
 
“Her manners just went pear-shaped,” Chilcott said. “The injury itself looked to have come right, but she just lost her brain.”
 
What followed during the mare’s three-year-old season was a battle, balancing her behaviour with a campaign that included starts in the Group 3 Northern Trotting Oaks and the Group 1 Northern Trotting Derby.
 
“It was devastating,” said Chilcott. “We potentially had one of the best 2/3-year-olds in the country. I ended up saying to her owners, ‘As much as we want to aim her at these big races, I think we just need a complete reset.’”
 
After a lengthy holiday in the hills, The Moonstone returned to campaign for her four-year-old season. With the mare initially threatening to return to her old ways, the team around her reached a tipping point.
 
“In last week’s heat she broke heading into the first turn. She was pulling so hard she pulled herself off her feet,” Chilcott said. “So, we went back to the drawing board, and to be honest we almost sent her off to the breeding barn.”
 
In a last-ditch attempt to bring the mare back to form, Nicky made some changes, adjusting her gear and increasing her workload.
 
“I made some gear changes through the week and upped her work,” she said. “She was a lot kinder, more respectful, and I just thought, if she could carry that attitude into the races, we’d be a real chance in the final.”
 
The changes worked the oracle. The daughter of Monkey Bones delivered a faultless performance.
 
She was all business from the start, handling the mobile with precision to secure the trail. Turning for home, Nicky peeled her off the fence and the pair let down powerfully to break their 812-day dry spell.
 
Understandably, it was an emotional moment for Chilcott.
 
“For me, it was just pure relief, it was pretty emotional,” she said. “A lot of people go through hell and back with horses, and I’ve been to hell and back with her. To have everything fall into place, it was more relief than anything else.”
 
As for what’s next, the team is taking it day by day, looking for more mobile starts to get miles back under her belt.
 
“Maybe the threat of telling her she was going to become a mummy made her behave herself,” Nicky laughed. “But for now, she’s bought herself some time.”

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