Borrowdale Park Tote Favourites were conspicuously absent from the Number 1 Box on Sunday – in fact only two finished in the first four.  The penetrometer reading at the beginning of the meeting was 23 – a far cry from the 12 recorded on December 3 – and rain fell during the afternoon.

Bridget Stidolph saddled the winners of the first three races on the card and then followed up in the lucky last.

Windigo, trained by Kirk Swanson and with Randall Simons in the irons, snatched victory from Newton Power in the last stride of the 1450m Zimbabwe Challenge – winning margin 0.05 lengths.

By Windrush (USA), Windigo is owned by Colin Bird . His previous four wins have been over more ground but the five-year-old gelding produced a storming finish, after being rested for 155 days. He was bred by The Alchemy.

Phantom Major and Sherman Brown won the 1450m Novice Plate for owner John Koumides and the Swanson yard.  By Sarge, Phantom Major now won both his starts and he was bred by Mr D.G.M. Southey, who also bred the Stidolph winner Super Good.

By Announce and owned by The Sunmark Racing Three, Super Good, held off Cool Solution, Wylde Style and Tamarind in the  1260m MR 78 Handicap.  Fanie Chambers had the ride and he also scored with the Stidolph-trained Nemba Beach, in the 1200m Maiden Plate, and Milla’s Smile in the 1260m MR 59 Handicap – both horses owned by Newbury Racing.

Brendan McNaughton was aboard the other Stidolph winner, Megagram, in the third race, a 1800m Maiden Plate.  The three-year-old gelding, by Tamburlaine (IRE), belongs to Messrs M.S. Kajese and R.E. Davenport and was bred by Sunmark Thoroughbreds.

The remaining training honours went to Penny Fisher when David’s Flower and Ryan Munger  comfortably won the 1700m MR 63 Handicap.  The Australian bred gelding has won three of his last four starts – and three before that.  He is owned by Messrs C. Lafraisiere and D.L.G. Basnier.

The next Borrowdale Park race meeting is on Sunday, January 8, and features the Hachiman Sprint.

Windigo won the  2016 Zimbabwe Challenge