Well, that's one way to get the season going in the right direction. How good was it to see the Wingatui gang - I hesitate to use the word ''mafia'' as I haven't seen any shady-looking violin cases out there - grab some feature-racing success?
Firstly we had High Forty's classy effort to outgun his rivals in the Koral, then Jake Lowry extricates himself and Scapolo out of a tricky spot to win the premier sprint.
... you intend . . .
But the particularly tasty icing on the carnival's first day cake had to be Timy Tyler's win.
I didn't have a punt in the race, so was just interested to watch the action unfold.
I know others who did though, and collects of several hundred dollars were the norm, as Timy bolted in at the good old blow-out odds.
He's a horse that has shown a little extra ever since he debuted in May 2013, but he has been perfectly managed by Kelvin Tyler down there at Riverton over the past few months.
Meanwhile, Jake has received plenty of plaudits for his rides on Saturday, and also the way he presented himself in interviews.
Many young jockeys, drivers and trainers know the importance of putting their best words forward in interviews these days.
Luckily for me, some of the youngsters around here are as good as any in the country.
... to continue
Once you throw in Courtney Barnes' win on Cody Cat in Saturday's last race, there was a fair bit of stake money heading south down State Highway 1.
So now we wait for the final day of the Grand National Carnival.
High Forty has to be worth a look in the Grand National Steeplechase based on his almost dominant Koral win and if he happened to snare the win for Brian and Lorraine Anderton and Terry Burke, maybe - just maybe - we are starting to emerge from the mist that was 2014-15.
Unsung heroes
Here's a quick reminder to those of you involved in Otago harness racing clubs.
The annual awards are next Saturday (August 15), and nominations are still open for the significant contribution award sponsored by the Forbury Park Trotting Club.
Please contact John Ayoub at Forbury Park if you think there's someone who puts in untold hours in a voluntary capacity and deserves to be recognised.
Lazy Fiver
I managed to stop Shadow Tower last week - I thought the talents of the Rogersons would be good enough to overcome that, but I was wrong.
Canardly Lover MUST go close in race 7 at Ascot Park on Sunday after his second in the Kurow Cup.
• Check out Matt's two-minute racing tips video at www.odt.co.nz every Friday.
