V86® (jackpot): Reijo is hoping for a nice ending
Not a single start in three months.
On Wednesday, Reijo Liljendahl hopes for a kick-start on V86®.
"The horses are well prepared and should be considered right off the bat," says the Solvalla trainer.
It has hardly escaped anyone who follows the news. This fall, Reijo Liljendahl will move to the United States and when we reach him, he is on site at the other side of the Atlantic Ocean to set up things for the future.
First, he will make sure that he gets a nice ending, and he does not leave anything to chance for these upcoming months that are left in Sweden. So far, he has not raced a single horse this year. His season starts this Wednesday when he races five horses at Solvalla.
"We have trained all winter and I'm very pleased with the horses. This is all according to plan, racing in the winter is hard on the horses and you can't race all year around," says Reijo Liljendahl.
Reijo trains 12 horses today, and he prefers quality over quantity.
"I aim to race in the bigger races with the horses I train. This year I hope to race in the King's and Queen's Trophy, maybe the Sprint Championship for mares and Breeders Course to mention a few. I have several Italian-born and US-born horses and they are shut out of the Swedish stakes, but for a good horse, there are always races to race in".
Should be good enough right off the bat
The V86® card this Wednesday comes with a jackpot of SEK 19 million to a sole winner and three of Liljendahl's horses are racing in the popular pick 8 races.
The first one out is 7 Eteria (V86-2) who has won four of her six career starts so far.
"She's a very nice mare who had a great start to her career. She had some throat issues last fall, had surgery, and was given a lot of time. As I said, this is a mare I expect a lot from in the future and I aim to race her in the Queen's Trophy eliminations. I have trained her in 1:17.5/2,100 meters at Solvalla and I think she is good enough to have a chance to win right off the bat".
1 Lavender (V86-4) has raced once in Sweden and won for Örjan Kihlström.
"She got a perfect trip and won easily. She came in good condition from Marcus Melander and after that start, we chose to give her a break and train. She has done a lot of heavy training in the pressure cart and has also grown quite a bit. She has a good post and she can leave fast and I think she should do well here".
Reijo also has 7 Eleven As in V86-2 and she is a mare that the trainer has some hopes for going forward.
"She hasn't had the chance to show all that she's capable of yet and her earnings don't mirror her talent. Something spooked her in the field last summer and she hurt her knee, which cost her the remainder of last season. She is, as my other starters, well prepared and I have trained her in 1:18.5/2,100 meters at Solvalla in a pleasant way. I hope she too can race in the Queen's Trophy eliminations, even if she hasn't earned a lot of money so far. She's also a nice mare and I think she is ready to deliver a good effort," says Reijo Liljendahl.