Concert Hall Escapes Serious Injury

Trainer Roger James admits he feared the worst as he watched his star mare Concert Hall crash through the outside fence at New Plymouth on Saturday after escaping from the starting gates prior to the start of the Gr3 Powerworx Taranaki Cup (1800m), reports NZ Racing Desk. The last start Gr1 Zabeel Classic (2000m) winner was a hot favourite for the feature event on the card and was calmly being loaded into her barrier when she suddenly lurched backwards, dislodging rider Danielle Johnson, before careering away from the start at full pace. James, co-trainer Robert Wellwood and the large on-course crowd had their hearts in their mouths as the Savabeel 6YO crashed over the outside fence, where she lay motionless for several moments, before getting to her feet and heading into a public park area. When James made it to the capture point, he was unsure just what he would find. “It was heart in mouth stuff, but we were very very fortunate with how it turned out,” he said. Concert Hall will be on the easy list for the next few days as James and owner Joan Egan discuss their future options for the mare who was headed for a tilt at the Gr1 Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington on March 6. “We were heading to Australia but we’re not going to make a decision on that for a week or two,” James said. “There is a lot of bruising so we will wait until we know she is one hundred percent before we make any new plans for her.”

Concert Hall (pic: Race Images)