Sam Payne claimed a Racing Rewards SA feature race double to highlight a career best season in the saddle at Murray Bridge on Saturday.
Payne won both Racing Rewards features and was quick to label Surprise Coming as the best horse he’s ridden since making the move to SA in February 2023.
“I’m just grateful for the opportunity,’’ Payne said.
“He’s probably the nicest horse I’ve ridden since I’ve been in South Australia.
“I thought I might have hit the front a bit early, but the quality helped him across the line late and he was too good for them,’’ he said.
Trainer Kylie Schulz’s said the talented galloper could be poised for a tilt at the Murray Bridge Cup later in the year after his impressive win in the three-year-old feature.
“He’s only going to have the two runs, have a freshen and get ready for the spring,’’ Schulz said.
“I’d like to be back here on Cup Day,’’ she said.
Payne rode a confident race aboard the ultra-consistent Colmar in the two-year-old feature, the horses previous experience on a soft track proving crucial as they were able to dictate up on speed before powering away to score a 1.5 length win.
“He was just too good for them,’’ Payne said.
“I thought I’d make it testing for the rest of them and get them off the bit and chasing and he’d be hard to run down. And that was the case,’’ he said.
Colmar, trained by Ron Daniel and Trish Stanbury, has proven a durable youngster in his first season of racing banking connections more than $150,000 from his seven starts.
It could have been an even bigger day for the talented rider who finished second on both Bamyan Buddha and Katim’s Club.
It was a day for doubles, Rochelle Milnes producing another riding double with The Great Baby for Wayne Francis before winning the last of 10 races with Tippa for the Shayne Cahill stable.
Milnes now just 10 wins behind Jake Toeroek on the South Australian Jockey Premiership.
Jacob Opperman landed a double of his own winning with the Matt Seyers-trained Test The Law before helping Klabel to a solid second-up win for the Richard and Chantelle Jolly stable
Todd Pannell pulled one win back on Jake Toeroek, now trailing by three, in the Metropolitan Jockey Premiership with his win aboard Riverplate who was impressive first-up in SA for the Michael Hickmott stable.
