Balnarring picnic win the highlight of huge weekend for Giga Kick owner Jonathan Munz
It was a big weekend for powerful owner Jonathan Munz, who won a Group 2 with a comeback mare and had his first ever winner at the picnic races.
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Powerful racing identity Jonathan Munz had four winners all over Australia last weekend, but it was a win via FaceTime at the Balnarring picnics which gave him as much enjoyment and satisfaction as the others.
A day after scoring the $500,000 Group 2 Challenge Stakes in Sydney with comeback mare Passive Aggressive, Giga Kick’s owner Munz unleashed Domain Gardens in the $5000 Maiden Plate at Balnarring on the Mornington Peninsula.
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Munz’s racing manager Rod “Rocket” Douglas was deployed to the track and turned amateur video cameraman, screening the race to the prominent owner via FaceTime.
Wearing the Giga Kick colours, the Clayton Douglas-trained galloper started $1.40 and won like a good thing, with horses having to race around a row of witches hats in the home straight.
Douglas takes up the story.
“There were 10 bookies there and I was marching in to back the horse, but the power went off so there were no bets,” Douglas laughed.
“It was 38 degrees in the shade, it was bloody hot.
“We FaceTimed the race to Jonathan, we did a video of the race and went live on FaceTime.
“There had been a pipe break in the straight so the horses had to go around the witches’ hats, I have never seen horses race around witches’ hats before.
“If you went inside the witches’ hats, you were disqualified.
“So when the horse bolted in, I said to Jonathan, ‘I hope it hasn’t gone inside the witches’ hats’.
“We had never had a runner at the picnics before.
“It was only $4 a can to have a beer there. How good.”
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It was the cherry on top of a golden weekend for Munz whose other winners were Isthmus (The Valley, Friday night), Passive Aggressive (Randwick, Saturday) and Houston Rocket (Ipswich, Saturday).
Meanwhile, Douglas gave a fresh update on some of Munz’s best horses.
He indicated Passive Aggressive would most likely be deployed in the Group 1 Galaxy at Rosehill next Saturday on Golden Slipper day.
As for the champion Giga Kick: “After he does a long and intensive rehab program, you will hopefully see him back early in the spring.”
Originally published as Balnarring picnic win the highlight of huge weekend for Giga Kick owner Jonathan Munz
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