Victoria’s most improved horse Let’s Be Happy will be after her fifth straight win and seventh for the season in Saturday’s Swettenham Stud Summer Championship Heat Two at Sandown.
Horsham trainer Mick Clark has booked three-kilogram metropolitan claiming apprentice Katelyn Mallyon for the mare in the 1500m race in which she’ll carry 52kg.
Let’s Be Happy, with six wins, has won more races in Victoria this season than any other horse, one more than Atlantic Jewel, Freereturn, Full Peal and Sepoy.
The Brief Truce five-year-old has won nine races and been placed in another seven of 29 starts for just under $200,000 in prize money.
Clark, a former apprentice jockey, combines training a small team of three horses with his job as manager of a disability and mental health support program.
He is still struggling to explain the improvement shown by Let’s Be Happy who, since late October, has reeled off successive wins at Moonee Valley and followed up with victories at Sandown and Flemington.
Her Sandown win was her first at 1400m while the Flemington success was her first at 1600m.
She has had 13 runs so far this campaign which started poorly with lasts at Mildura and Hamilton and a sixth at Bordertown.
“I had her blood done and she had a little cough so we decided to give her a course of antibiotics and she ran a good second at Mildura,” Clark said.
Since then she has won six of nine including victories at Swan Hill in August and Murtoa in October.
Let’s Be Happy then ran last after being held up for a run at Horsham which would explain the $31 she was sent out at at her next outing when winning at a Valley night meeting.
Raced on lease by stable clients of Clark’s from owner-breeder Peter Howell, Let’s Be Happy has earned more than $145,000 from her last four starts.
“She’s up from mares’ grade and this class is stronger,” Clarke, who hasn’t ruled out backing her up in Tuesday’s $100,000 Lord Stakes (1600m) at Mornington, said.
Dean Holland, who has won twice on the mare, has been booked to ride her in the Lord in which she will carry 55.5kg.
Trainer Peter Snowden has brought Scarf down from Sydney for Saturday’s race and the grey Lonhro four-year-old is $3.30 favourite with TAB Sportsbet with King Cobweb at $4, Let’s Be Happy at $6, Veewap at $8 and Bocuse at $8.50.
AAP TURF
