Riga Doon is one of those horses that most harness racing enthusiasts would love to own.
His wins are spaced a fair way apart but he puts in 110% every start and is never far away from the action.
Lacking a bit of high end speed, he is often put into the race early on which does leave him a bit of a sitting duck in most of his races.
Yesterday was one of those times where things fell into place for Riga Doon and he notched up win number three on the second day of the Westport Christmas meeting.
A bold second on the first day of the meeting to Albuquerque, Riga Doon showed further improvement with the run
Restrained by driver Ricky May from his wide draw, Riga Doon settled last in the eleven horse field before Ricky sent him forward three wide to find the death seat with just under a lap to go.
Parked out for the rest of the journey, Riga Doon just kept on giving and prevailed in a tight finish by a neck over the highly regarded Bettor Be Smooth.
Bred by Cavalla Bloodstock, Riga Doon is a full brother to the brilliant racemare Carabella 1:55.2 ($693,615) but was able to be leased by Judy May and the Phillips brothers as he had a major gait issue when first tried.
Driver Ricky May can't believe the changes in the horse since they first got him
" He use to hit his knees fairly hard when we first got him and that was the only reason we were able to lease a horse with his breeding."
" Kerry Estreich has done an unbelievable job with his shoeing to the point he doesn't touch a knee any more and the spreaders are no longer required."
" I brought the spreaders over with us just in case he didn't handle the tricky turns at Westport but he paced beautifully the whole way both days."
" He is no star but he gives his all every start so he is always a chance to get some money," Ricky said.
The five year old son of Bettor's Delight is never going to reach the heights of his illusturios full sister Carabella but there are still a few more wins in him yet.
Harnesslink Media