Incredible Pride in Our Mare I AM ME Everest Performance

21 Oct 24

The result may have not been what the ownership team of I AM ME had dreamed about in The Everest, but that didn’t alter the immense pride we have in our super mare after she battled away for her share of the $20m in the world’s richest Turf race.

Mother Nature had smiled upon her at the first two races of the preparation as I AM ME was delivered a firm deck and showed what she can do when on top of the ground.

Alas, it would not be that way on Saturday, as Mother Nature chose to deliver a track that was a lot wetter than anticipated compared to the official rating, and playing damp and breaking up, helping horses drawn out and racing 5-6 deep in the home straight, and most importantly those who could handle give in the ground.

I AM ME having drawn barrier 1 was simply not in the race on Saturday’s surface and having drawn a position on the fence. It was a genuine go-slow lane and as humbly the saying goes “That’s Racing!”

Whilst it took away our hope of winning the race, it allowed stablemate Bella Nipotina the opposite, presenting her with her favoured conditions, having drawn wide and having the best ground in running on a surface she relishes.

Importantly, King Ciaron and his team at Ciaron Maher Racing took home the spoils and Bella Nipotina finished in front of I AM ME for the first time in 4 race starts.

Whilst it didn’t help matters when the highly strung 3yo colt Traffic Warden carried on poorly in the pre-race formalities and when loaded into gate 2 beside us, went off and reared and then sat down getting cast, causing a delay and I Am Me had been in the machines the longest and became agitated.

Then when the gates crashed back and she jumped away, I Am Me knuckled over costing herself track position and momentum and as the pressure came across from out wide, we were further back than anticipated and being scrubbed up to maintain contact but by this time she had lost her confidence in those conditions.

Turning for home the field fanned out to the centre of the track, but Nash tried to cut the corner and stick closer to the fence, and she made up a few lengths on the inside, but her wheels were spinning as she just couldn’t gain traction on the surface.

She was entitled to drop right out and finish a long way back however she showed class and courage and fought on despite an easy last 100m of the race, she finished 10th, 3.29 lengths from the winner.

Nash Rawiller came back and spoke to the owners:

“Obviously, I’m as disappointed as you guys, but I am incredibly proud of our mare.

“When the Godolphin horse got scratched it just upset her a little bit and she jumped a fraction awkwardly, and really I was forced to let them go pretty tamely to be honest but that was ok. They sought of got into a gallop and there was three in a line, we were there to really let down and extend, I tried to hold her together until we got through that rough area there on the home turn, which she got through quite well, but I just felt in those rain affected conditions, she didn’t let down with that same turn of foot. She’s done a good job to just get beat just over a couple of lengths under the circumstances. What you love about her is even with a furlong to go she’s still two lengths off them but all she wants to do is beat them home. She was full of heart; it was just not our day, but I’m sure we can win a Group 1 with her.”

Nash Rawiller was then interviewed post-race for the television audience and said: “She is as tough as nails.

“She has had the two hard runs in the lead ups. I think that softer ground meant she couldn’t let down with the same acceleration. To go down three lengths, it’s been a great effort considering it wasn’t our day.”

Importantly our mare has pulled up tremendously well.

So, her next assignment is likely to be the $3m Balding Stakes over 1300m at Rosehill in a fortnight or we may choose to wait another week and head down to Melbourne for the Gr1 1200m $3m Darley Sprint on the final day of the Melbourne Carnival.

We will wait and watch how the weather forecasts unfold and how she rebounds out of the race at her next piece of trackwork before zeroing on either option.

I AM ME put another $700,000 onto her overall earnings tally and she takes her record to:

24 starts: 11 wins: 3 seconds: 2 thirds and Prizemoney: $4,389,850

She has won between 1000m – 1200m.

1st Up: 6:4-0-2 and 2nd Up: 6:3-1-0.

However, its these next statistics that tell the tale that she is just not comfortable on a rain affected deck:

Good: 19:10-3-2 / Soft: 5:1-0-0 / Heavy: 0:0-0-0

Onwards and Upwards – Forever Forward!