Pipers Creek-based Kyneton trainer Charles Cassar says his gelding Tax Evader ($17) was “over the odds” when he won  impressively at Geelong on Sunday.
The win came on the six-race program transferred from Ballarat with metropolitan stake money.
Cassar said the six-year-old Ad Valorem gelding had got bogged down at his previous two starts and was “a sensational run in the Swan Hill Cup the run prior”.
At Geelong, Tax Evader was a 2¾-length winner of the $35,000 Sportsbet BM78 Handicap (1500m), defeating Let’s Be a Star ($5) with Mahan Prophecy ($6.50) a half-length away third.
“He’s only a little horse and Jordan Childs’s 2kg claim helped,” Cassar said. “It was a super ride by him,” he added.
Tax Evader was having his sixth run for Cassar. He was previously in the hands of Caulfield trainer Peter Moody.
“He can roam around the paddocks most of the day, whereas he was boxed up in the city, and he’s really enjoying this life,” Cassar said.
The gelding is raced by the trainer’s wife, Sherree, along with a number of stable clients and a Moody client who “came for the ride”.
Cassar said his gelding has pulled up “super” and would have his next start at Flemington early in the month in a benchmark 90 over 1700 metres.
“Hopefully we can keep him going for a country cup like the Kyneton Cup,” Cassar said.
Tax Evader has now won eight races with seven minor placings from his 38 starts.
Synthetic double for SOD
Kilmore’s Simon O’Donnell finished last week on a solid note.
The blue and gold bands and white sleeves of OTI Racing, which O’Donnell manages in partnership with Terry Henderson, were seen crossing the line first at Pakenham’s Racing.com Park synthetic track with Red Shift ($6) last Thursday, and the following day on the synthetic at Geelong with Osteria ($11).
Red Shift, a six-year-old Lucky Unicorn gelding, was a narrow winner of the $30,000 Racing.com Showcase BM70 Handicap (2200m).
Trained by Archie Alexander and ridden by James Winks, the gelding defeated Boogielicious and Black Tie.
Lightly raced due to tendon injuries, Red Shift has now won three races with eight minor placings from  27 starts.
Osteria’s win on Friday was the four-year-old Rakti gelding’s second on the synthetic this prep.
The Darren Weir-trained gelding took out the Adroit Insurance Group BM64 Handicap (1200m).
Ridden by the in-form Brad Rawiller, Osteria defeated Sullivan’s Paddock ($17) by a half-length with Topkapi ($6.50) third.
The gelding has two wins and one minor placing from six starts.
It’s Not too good
Seymour trainer David “Butch” Bourne produced a nice debutant in It’s Not Easy ($2.90 equal favourite) at Swan Hill on Monday.
The three-year-old gelded son of US Ranger and Love a Win was a narrow but impressive winner of the Swan Hill Bus Lines Maiden Plate (975m).
The second of Brad Rawiller’s five winners for the day, the gelding defeated the other equal favourite, Diamond Dossie.
“He’s been a bit immature and has had shin soreness but he’s a nice little horse,” Bourne said.
“We’ll just put him through his grades — he might have a bit of a future.”
The gelding was bred and is raced by the Boxall family.