Sunrise will be the headline contender for the locals at the Illawarra Turf Club’s showpiece race day.
Training partners Mitchell Beer and George Carpenter are hoping to deliver the Kembla Grange locals a feature race win when they saddle up speedy mare Sunrise in The Warra.
With no Kembla-trained horse contesting the $1 million Gong (1600m) this year and fellow local Cani Cancan a $151 outsider for The Warra (1000m), $5 second favourite Sunrise appears the best chance for the Illawarra community to land one of the main races.
Formerly based at Albury, Beer relocated to the provincial track two years ago and in September this year, Carpenter became his official business partner.
"Kembla has fast become home. It's terrific," Beer said.
"We've got a pretty big day socially (on Saturday). We have about 300 people in our marquee on-course, so as new as we are to Wollongong and the club, it feels like our big day pretty quickly.
"This meeting is quite new, the club is new in terms of the CEO and track manager. We all arrived around the same time and it's great to be involved and aligned with a club trying new things and not just resting on good horses turning up for the Gong."
Sunrise started her career in New Zealand and was identified by two of Beer's staff as a suitable acquisition.
Paying $45,000 for her at the 2024 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale, Sunrise has since posted three wins, including a 7-1/4 length romp over The Warra course and distance in March when she set a track record of 55.58 seconds for the 1000m.
"We're a stable that loves getting hold of tried horses," Beer said.
"Her form in New Zealand was good, and I thought if she could take good physical improvement, she would stack up OK.
"It would be nice to be taking her back through that sale in a couple of years as a stakes winner."
It has been a long road to amend Sunrise's racing manners and then overcome several hurdles at the start of her current campaign, including a bout of colic and a virus.
But Saturday's race has been a target since she finished fifth in the Listed Denise's Joy Stakes (1100m) at Scone in May and Beer is content she will arrive there at the top of her game.
"For us, she is a track record holder here at Kembla over 1000 so it's a perfect race for us to really target and she couldn't be going into the race in any better form," he said.
Given the retirement of stable stalwart Mnemeth earlier this year, Sunrise has the opportunity to emerge as the yard's latest star and Beer is hoping she can prove up to the challenge.
"Someone has bloody got to. He carried the stable for a long time," Beer said.
"I think she can go to that level. She's not a week-in, week-out Group horse, but she is a genuine Saturday class to Listed mare, and she has really found her right race."
