Five-year-old mare Electric Impulse ($18) got a ripper from jockey Ben Allen to take out the Melbourne Cup Carnival Country Series Final at Flemington on Oaks Day. The talented daughter of Cable Bay left from gate fifteen of sixteen, but Allen managed to find cover in the three-and-four-wide running line throughout, straightening-up in clear air and setting out to chase race-favourite Oh Too Good ($3), who had pinched a break at the 300-metre mark. Electric Impulse drew level at the fifty before hitting the front, brushing her rival as she swept past and found the line a short-half-head to the good of her rival. It was a reversal of the result in their qualifying heat at Geelong, where Oh Too Good was able to pinch it under a light weight and back to 1500-metres.
Connections of the runner-up lodged a hopeful protest, but after a short hearing the Stewards correctly recognised that had contact not been made, the Dwyer-trained mare only wins the race by further. The appeal was swiftly thrown out, leaving the hoards of winning connections in raptures as the party continued in the Winning Owners Room.
“We didn’t want to die wondering today (from the wide barrier)…so we thought we’d roll the dice”, Allen said post-race.
“I was quietly confident without getting too carried away from that gate. But all’s well, ends well”.
Henry echoed the thoughts of his rider.
“I would have been really, really confident coming here if she had drawn a gate, but as it turns out, eighteen came out at acceptance time, and we were gutted.
“Ben did a lovely job”.
He went on to praise the determination of his mare, who kept surging right through the line.
“She was going to run a lovely second at the hundred, but she really pinned the ears back and had a crack, so it was great”.
Electric Impulse went into that race on Oaks Day as the only Flemington winner in the field and, funnily enough, left the course with the same title. The popular mare will likely have one more run this preparation, a mile race at Ballarat on Cup day, December 7th.