Australian jockey Jake Bayliss got a painful winning bonus after riding Xcuses Xcuses to win at Cromwell yesterday.
After guiding the John Blackadder-trained galloper to victory in race 9, he was handed an unpleasant surprise by Mother Nature.
"I got stung by a bee after I rode Xcuses Xcuses and I got a bit of a swollen elbow."It is not the worst thing that has ever happened."
The bee sting was the only dampener on a brilliant first day riding in the lower South Island for Bayliss.
He scored a hat-trick of wins at the meeting.
"It is my first trip down here and I have really enjoyed it.
"There’s a good crowd, great fun, good prize money, and the track was in perfect condition."
Bayliss rode Touch The Sky to win race 6 for trainer Ashley Frye and Khorabella to win race 10 for trainer Andrew Carston.
The jockey is on his second New Zealand riding stint and plans to stay here until May.
He is keen to ride in Otago again, but must serve two suspensions before he makes plans to return.
Patience paid off when Aboli produced an impressive win in his first attempt at a middle distance yesterday.
The Terry Kennedy-trained galloper clung on for victory in race 7 despite over-racing throughout the 2030m event.
Aboli, who is raced by Eric Parr’s Parr Bloodstock, has always shown talent but looks set to show his true worth now that he has stepped up in distance.
All he needs to do now is learn how to settle better for rider Shankar Muniandy.
"He will definitely get better. He is lucky that he has got an owner that knows the game and has been patient with him," Kennedy said.
Yesterday’s victory puts Aboli a step closer to Otago’s newly improved summer feature race, the Tapanui Cup.
The race is an attractive target for middle-grade horses after a big stakes boost, to $40,000, this year.
Kennedy said he might need to start Aboli again before the cup to qualify him for the race.
