The addition of headgear at Te Rapa enabled Dashwood to return to winning ways on Sunday.
The son of Westbury Stud’s Redwood proved in a class of his own over 2200 metres, surging clear in the run home in the hands of regular rider Sam Spratt to comfortably beat his Rating 75 rivals.
Redwood was also in the action at Sunday’s all-weather meeting at Awapuni where his son Vittorio Veneto accounted for his Rating 65 rivals over 1400 metres.
From the family of champion performer Might And Power, the Peter Lock representative finished resolutely from fourth on the turn under Leah Hemi for his second win from just seven starts.
Dashwood lobbed along in third spot near the rail before Spratt angled him into the clear 600 metres from home.
“That was great to see, we’ve been toying with the idea of blinkers and after his last start Sam said to put them on,” Cambridge breeder, owner and trainer Jon Miller said.
They took control at the top of the straight and the gelding stayed on strongly to score by two and a-half lengths.
“He settles and doesn’t over-race, it was a great effort and a very good ride,” Miller said.
The gelding has been patiently handled by Miller and now has three wins and eight placings from his 20 career appearances.
“He’s a pretty easy horse to train and we don’t do much with him between runs,” he said.
Dashwood is a son of the Elusive City mare Pace Setter, who was successful on three occasions for Miller, and she is out of a half-sister to the G2 Peter Pan Stakes winer Huge Jet.
