V75® (jackpot): Ready for new victory tears
Last Saturday, the tears were gushing after the very first V75® victory.
Veikko Haapakangas is hungry for more.
"I would love to experience that again this Saturday," says the 23-year-old trainer.
Less than a year ago, Veikko Haapakangas took over the training duties for the big owner Stall Denco.
Since then, the stable has made several new exciting purchases.
The biggest one was when Crown Wise As was bought at an online auction for SEK 1,250,000 early this year.
The total number of horses in the stable is 45, with several more coming in.
A big responsibility for a 23-year-old.
"Of course, there is a lot of pressure, but not from anyone here at the farm, it comes from me because I really want to succeed. Therefore, the victory last Saturday was extra sweet. I won many V75® races when I worked for my dad as an assistant trainer, but it's different when you have all the responsibility yourself. Emotionally, it was my biggest win. Everyone saw that when I was crying on national TV," says Veikko Haapakangas, who was interviewed directly after the race with tears gushing, a cracked voice, and shaky legs. All this, after not only seeing Emerald Island win as the favorite but stable mate Gibraltar also finished second, completing the Haapakangas exacta.
"I think we have had a lot of unlucky bounces in V75 earlier so it was a relief, especially when we finished first and second. They both qualified for the final at the Elitlopp weekend, exactly what I trained for all winter. The first goal was to get there, now we just have to get them in top form for that day".
In his big brother's footsteps
Crown Wise As is also aimed at the Elitlopp weekend, but to get there, he also has to qualify for the finals, which is easiest done by winning on Saturday.
"He will race at Åby next week too, so we have two chances. But this is not a prep race when he finally drew well for Saturday," says Haapakangas about the 6-year-old who has made five starts for his new trainer. An easy win in an overnight and four starts in V75, where he has started from post 9, 7, 8, and 12 behind the gate. That has resulted in two third places.
How come you bought that horse for such big money?
"I wanted him and I told the boss (Berndt Denberger, the owner of Stall Denco) that if he was to buy a horse at that auction, that was the horse. I have worked for (Jean Michel) Bazire and knew they were very happy with the horse, despite things not working out in France, where he didn't have many races to race in this past winter. They were aiming for the summer with him and wanted to keep him. His big brother (Vivid Wise As, one of the richest trotters in history with SEK 30 million in earnings) has raced well as an older horse and even if this one is not at the same level, I believe in a similar development curve for Crown Wise. With the pedigree he has, he could also stand stud in the future".
Has the horse lived up to your expectations?
"Absolutely. We wanted a good horse that could compete in V75 and we got just that. He has some minor issues with his legs, but he has a lot of heart, he is an honest horse. You wish half the horses in your barn had that same attitude. In his most recent start, he was a bit rough gaited but he got himself together and fought well. He has been great but hasn't had any luck. Last time out he trotted the fastest he's ever done, that's at least proof that he hasn't gotten worse since we got him".
Room for more purchases
Will you continue buying horses or is the stable full now?
"It is definitely not full. With the broodmares and foals, we have around 50-60 horses now and the farm has room for 100. So, if you ask me, we could buy more horses. We also have no problem finding help. When I started, there were too few caretakers here, so I reached out to my old friends from school in Wången. Many of them have started here and they are all still here, we like working together. I'm not the right person to ask, you should ask the help, but I think all of them would say we have a good work climate and good hours. I try to do all that I can to make people enjoy working here and try so that if you don't want to go to the races, you don't have to. And we try to do fun things after work too, and celebrate when we do well".
How did you celebrate the win last Saturday?
"We all ate at Chop Chop, then we went home. When we got home, I had to shoe the horses that raced in Östersund the night before. There wasn't enough time for me to do it when we got home in the morning. So, I celebrated by shoeing horses. Then I slept great. There wasn't much sleep the night before, or the night before that when we left for Östersund. But we will celebrate this win properly, with everyone in the stable, that's for sure, I just have to find the right opportunity".
And already this Saturday there could be a chance for another victory party.
"That would be fine by me, I would love to experience that again. We are supposed to race on Saturdays. Now I broke my maiden, so full speed ahead. Sahara Peyote is chasing a check in a tough race, but Crown Wise As could win his race," says Veikko Haapakangas.
This is Veikko Haapakangas' thoughts on his V75 starters:
"3 Sahara Peyote (V75-3) is a very nice horse, but he had a lot of problems with his gait and was hard to figure out in the beginning. We have worked hard on that and his gait has been good in several consecutive starts now. He feels better and better so the form is on its way. He is in tough here, but from a good post I hope that he can get to the pylons and finish top five. He will race barefoot again and we are not making any changes from his last start. When he gets back into the overnights again, he should do well, but he won't win on Saturday".
"4 Crown Wise As (V75-6) was a bit sore in his last start and his gait wasn't great, so that considered, it was impressive for him to get a new lifetime mark. He had to visit the veterinarian after that. I trained him today (Monday), just slow Monday training, as he does before every start and I could tell the treatment had worked, he felt loose and smooth again. Earlier, he trained a lot of heavy interval training, but as he has gotten in better form, we have let up on the training. I count on him performing at the same level as he has done in his last starts. We will remove the blinkers he has raced with in his last two starts and go back to the can't-see-back bridle. With Combat Fighter inside of us, there is no chance of him getting to the lead, so we can save that gear, plus the post position should get him a better trip this time compared to his earlier V75 starts. No other changes and I think the horse is good enough to battle for the win here. The fact that he is racing next week again at Åby, means nothing for this start, we have to do all we can to win now that we drew well, since I really want to qualify him for the final at the Elitlopp weekend".