Excitement in the Jungle

EXCITEMENT IN THE JUNGLE 
Morning trackwork can sometimes be a very quiet affair, especially approaching a big race day such as the Singapore International, and especially in the humid heat of Singapore. Most of the raiding internationals usually complete their work prior to arrival and therefore trackwork is often nothing more than a leg- stretching exercise–seldom exciting and with most of the horses going so slowly that they would look perfectly at home in the show ring. To add insult to injury, the trackwork slot for the international contenders starts at 5 a.m. here in Singapore. Getting up at 4 a.m. may seem perfectly normal for jockeys, workriders, stable staff and trainers, but us journalists prefer to see the sun firmly in the sky as we head to the track. 
Yet here in Singapore, where the horses loom out of the dark like mythical creatures, things are never quite as they seem. Wednesday morning's trackwork at Kranji Racecourse was certainly no exception. It all started perfectly normally with Krisflyer International Sprint entrant Lucky Nine (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) appearing on the TV screens in the media room shortly after five. Downing the last dregs of that much-needed first coffee, the assembled media dashed out to the brightly lit track. Lucky Nine, however, was nowhere to be seen. 
The sprinter was still on the big screens, trotting around with a lovely swinging stride, but that is where he stubbornly remained. Hence, all I can tell you is that Lucky Nine did leave the quarantine barn and he appeared somewhere on the course, but quite where, nobody is too sure. Fortunately, Singapore Airlines International Cup contender Limario (Ger) (Areion {Ger}) cantered by on the turf track, getting the morning's trackwork underway. The colt looked good as he galloped 800 meters, thus completing his last piece of fast work, followed in quick succession by globetrotting Balmont Mast (Ire) (Balmont). And from here onwards things went decidedly south. The 6-year-old Balmont Mast decided to spice things up a bit by trying to take off with his rider, Declan Quirke. Quirke sensibly decided the only chance of maintaining control was to turn the gelding's head firmly ninety degrees to the right. And, with his head hanging over the running rail, Balmont Mast proceeded as fast as he could around the track. French entrant Smoking Sun (Smart Strike) returned a modicum of decorum to the humid morning with a sedate lope, but the peace was short lived. 
Military Attack (Ire) (Oratotio {Ire}), on paper the clear favorite with a rating of 124, astounded the watching crowd as he simply refused to work. Having completed a warmup lap at a steady canter, his rider politely asked for a change of gears as the gelding entered the home straight. With his tail doing a sterling imitation of a windmill, Military Attack said no. The persuader was firmly applied, but to no avail, as Military Attack dug in his toes, slowing down even further, leaving his embarrassed rider no option, other than to continue at the gelding's chosen sedate pace. Military Attack is renowned for his trackwork antics and he loves nothing better than to put in a buck or two as he first steps onto the all-weather, but a flat refusal is definitely a new tool in his arsenal of tricks. 
Stablemate Dan Excel (Ire) (Shamardal) in turn decided that seeing as he was in the jungle, the large blue tractor parked next to the track was clearly a crouching tiger in disguise. With a buck and a neat canter pirouette, he unseated his jockey, who fortunately just managed to prevent the 'terrified' Dan Excel from fleeing back to the safety of his stable. This did not comfort Dan Excel at all and he completed his work with several hops behind, just in case that tiger was coming after him. 
Eventually, it was left to the laidback bunch from down South to restore order to what was fast becoming the most entertaining morning's trackwork in a long time. Australian bred Sterling City (Aus) (Nadeem {Aus}) and Argentinean importJohnny Guitar (Arg) (Lode) both put in solid pieces of work. Sterling City did a warm up lap before stretching out slightly in the home straight, while Johnny Guitar blitzed down the turf, much to trainer Pat Shaw's delight. Johnny Guitar looked mighty impressive under Barend Voster, and if the other Cup contenders fluff their lines, he might just be the one to snatch the SIA Cup trophy from under their noses.