By Garry Dell
A pint-sized pony had a giant role to fill at Townsville's Cluden Park races on Friday.
An 11-year-old spotted grey mare - Sweet Pea - was a travelling companion and "tie-up" stalls guard for 18-hands high Vancouver Lights, trained by Renee Schluenz of Innisfail.
Schluenz, who has trained 37 winners in her career over almost 30 years, told how the situation evolved.
"Vancouver Lights is such a big horse and takes up so much room in the float that we can't fit another one in with him for the four hour trip from Innisfail," she said.
"But, we thought we could get a travelling companion and then configurate the float.
"Sweet Pea is owned by my neighbour Bailey, son of fellow trainer Krystin Allender, and I asked him if he would loan her to me for the day.
"He said "Yeah, okay if you come to my birthday party".
"Actually Bailey recently had his third birthday party but I gave him a promise I'd be at his next one."
Unfortunately, the day didn't end with a fairytale as Vancouver Lights failed to run into a place in the maiden event won by the Jared Wehlow-trained Campione.
"That was his final start for us as we're placing him with a woman who really wants him for dressage work. He's a beautiful big quiet animal so he's headed for a new career, which I'm sure he'll do well at," Schluenz said.
Schluenz and partner Justin Lewis supervise a team of five from stables at the Innisfail race course.
Their best horse at the moment is five-year mare Little Red Pepper, who has put together two wins and a second from her 10 career starts.
She broke her maiden at Townsville on September 30 last year and followed with another win at Innisfail on December 22.
"She's a lovely little mare and is almost ready to resume after an 18 week spell," Schluenz said.
Schluenz is a full-time teacher at Innisfail High School while Lewis is a boilermaker.
Neighbour Allender, who has had 12 career wins in her much shorter training career, has won two races at Cluden this season.
She was successful with veteran Inching Closer on January 13 and followed up by winning a two-year-old maiden with promising colt Lucky Jim on January 21.