Herb Renall, who was granted an owner-trainer licence nine months ago, produced Propel to win the $40,000 Whyte Handicap at Trentham on Saturday.
The 9yr-old Propel was having his third start for Renall after almost two years away from racing. Renall and his co-owner in Propel, Karen Morris, train a small team at the Opaki racecourse, Masterton.
Propel won six races including the 2010 Winter Cup at Riccarton when trained at Awapuni by Mark Oulaghan.
"Two weeks after the Winter Cup he [Propel] did a suspensory ligament.
"We put him out for a year and brought him back into work in December and gave him a slow build-up," Renall said.
The Lord Ballina gelding resumed racing five weeks ago.
Renall had his first training win with Canso at Otaki in May.
Propel has the Winter Cup on his programme again when he will attempt to emulate Mount Boa who won the race as a 10yr-old in 1933.
Lisa Allpress rode Rising Tide (Parliamentary Handicap) and Carnival Queen to win on Saturday. She has moved to 154 wins for the season and taken a one-win lead over Matthew Cameron in the jockeys' premiership.
Ann Browne trained her third Wellington Steeplechase winner when Tom's Myth outstayed his rivals on Saturday.
Browne won the race with Royal Hush (1990) and Flash Hunter (1997) in partnership with her late husband, Ken.
It was the biggest win for rider Shaun Phelan, who had the gloss taken off the occasion.
He was fined $300 for a celebratory gesture short of the winning post.
