HARPER HANOVERS – SATURDAY SOLVALLA
05/25/2024 – LARGE FORMAT – 24H at the Trot
Normally, the two races in the same day are for Sunday in the Elitloppet or Saturday for the Sweden Cup (Gr.2 over 1,640m). But certainly not for the Harper Hanovers marathon (Gr.1). However, this is exactly what happened this Saturday in Solvalla, without everyone knowing of course, following an accident leading to a horse escaping during the first part of the race. The organizers decided to run the Gr.1 an hour later, without Bolt Kronos, the escaped horse, nor Lady Silver, found guilty of the collision, nor SIP, declared a non-runner by his trainer. So many obstacles placed in the way of the Frenchman Izoard Vedaquais! But he knew how to “like a world champion”, to use the words heard in the Solvalla stands, overcome them all. With brio. Benjamin Rochard and Philippe Allaire’s team too. Horchestro, the other Frenchman in the running, was able to take 3rd place.
The laurels for Izoard Vedaquais – ©Pauline Lefaucheux – Province Courses
Horchestro: from hell to heaven
For the other Frenchman, events turned out incredibly in his favor. Got nervous during the first start which was also delayed and in front of a white-hot crowd, HORCHESTRO (Sam Bourbon) had lost all chances, being disqualified. But what happened happened and, showered and tackled, during the inter-race, it was a new Horchestro who appeared on the track an hour later with David Bekaert. Guillaume Huguet testifies: “It’s an incredible scenario. We went from nightmare to dream… It’s crazy. We knew he was capable but now, it’s done, he took a place in a Group 1 abroad! David told me that if he had only run once, being like he was the second time, we would have been second.”
Nine of the twelve starters in the Harper Hanovers Lopp (Group 1) were from a French trotting stallion and the podium was for them: 1-Izoard Védaquais (Bird Parker), 2-High On Pepper (Ready Cash), 3-Horchestro (Sam Bourbon).
As an extension, it must be emphasized that the three French trotters at the start, namely Izoard Védaquais, Horchestro And Kid Jaba (Késaco Phédo), are, as they say, in the four. Cock-a-doodle Doo !
Izoard Védaquais succeeds his father on the race list, BirdParker 1’09” having won there, at 5 years old, in 2016, for the same Philippe Allaire. In the watermark, there is Ready Cashauthor of BirdParkerand of High On Pepperthe dolphin of the day.
Group shot, therefore. Let us not forget that Izoard Védaquais was the great rival of Idao de Tillard, in their younger days, and that his success today can bode well for his contemporary’s attempt tomorrow. There are signs like that… These can, moreover, just as easily be oriented towards Hohneck 1’08”, defending champion in the Elitloppet and candidate for his own succession, Sunday. A Hohneck who is none other than the very close relative ofIzoard Védaquaisfrom the same breeding of the Guay family, having the same Ready Cash for grandfather and the same Bamba of the Chair (1989-Florestan) for ancestor.
The Izoard Vedaquais team, the Allaire couple and the Guay family – ©ProvinceCoursesRead also
