Spirit Of Boom finally wins a carnival feature race

SPIRIT Of Boom made good on his long-time promise to win a carnival feature race in Saturday's Group 2 Caulfield Sprint.

THE frustration of so many near misses was erased in just under 65 seconds as Spirit Of Boom made good on his long-time promise to win a carnival feature race in Saturday's Group 2 Caulfield Sprint.

Spirit Of Boom was a Listed winner at both three and four years, but after winning the Magic Millions Cup in January 2012, the stallion had notched placings twice at Group 1 level and five times in Group 2s without winning.

“He’s deserved something like this for such a long time and it’s just so good to see him get one on the board,” trainer Tony Gollan said.

Yesterday’s win also enhanced his stud appeal, where he will eventually retire to Eureka Stud, the McAlpine family farm on the Darling Downs at which he was born and raised.

Spirit Of Boom and his brother Temple Of Boom have taken Gollan across the country and allowed him to scale racing’s greatest heights.

It’s a far cry from the $5000 maiden win which kickstarted the whole story at Dalby in 2003.

“I owe a hell of a lot to the McAlpine family,” Gollan said.

“They have put so much faith in me.

“It started when I spotted Temple Spirit (the Boom brothers’ dam) in a paddock with seven other young horses at Eureka and took a liking to her.

“They were good enough to entrust me to train her when I was just starting out and it’s all gone from there.”

Temple Spirit won another seven races after that Dalby debut and her two boys have gone on to win 17 races and $2.5 million.

Eureka Stud’s Scott McAlpine said Spirit Of Boom had come close to being gelded early in his career.

“We certainly talked about gelding him but after a while we just had to leave him,” McAlpine said.

“We had been desperate to win a race like this to help his stud career and it’s thrilling to have secured it now.”

Spirit Of Boom completed week-to-week Group race wins for his sire Sequalo, following Missy Longstocking last week.

Spirit Of Boom

Gollan, who had near misses at Doomben with Whiskey Allround and Theft, said Spirit Of Boom would run next in the Salinger Stakes, providing the track was dry.