Since joining the fun as an owner, Gerry Muller has enjoyed good results with the Craig Weeding stable.
Muller and Weeding raced the late Dark Legacy, and the Wangaratta galloper delivered memorable victories.
The Highland Reel mare won her maiden at Adaminaby in November 2023 (Connor Murtagh, $2.30) before returning a week later at Hay (Connor Murtagh, $3.10).
Dark Legacy, an ever-consistent galloper, won the 1600m Benchmark 50 Handicap at Tumut in February 2024 (Jake Duffy, $4.60) before taking out the Holbrook Presidents Cup 1400m Benchmark 45 Handicap in April 2024 (Jess Booth, $4.60).
Finishing with four wins and 14 minor placings, Dark Legacy was always thereabouts during her 32-start career.
Unfortunately, the popular mare was lost to injury late last year, but Muller still has fond memories.
“She was a great mare, and she’s what took me up the high country,” he said.
“She won at Adaminaby, Hay, Tumut, and Holbrook, and she was a real character; it was her way or the highway.
“She was a bit of a funny bugger, but we had a lot of fun with her.”
It wasn’t just Dark Legacy that led Muller to join the Weeding Racing camp, with the Jerilderie-based thoroughbred enthusiast also buying into the in-form Yam.
A handshake between Muller and Weeding finalised the deal in September 2023, and moments later, Yam won his maiden when on debut in the 1150m Maiden Plate at Leeton.
“I wanted to get into a horse, and had a bit of a health scare, so I thought, why not?” Muller said.
“I went and looked at three horses, and one I picked out was Spud (Yam).
“It was only half an hour before the race, and I asked Craig for the figures, and I said no worries, so we shook hands, and then he won.”
Another consistent campaigner, the 4YO Pluck gelding, has won four races and placed seven more times.
A horse that loves the wet, Yam won on a heavy 10 at Albury in August 2024, taking out a 1400m Class One Handicap.
Weeding purposely turned the galloper out in anticipation of winter and taking on rain-affected surfaces, and his decision has proven smart.
Recently, Yam went back-to-back, triumphing in a 1175m Benchmark 58 Handicap at Albury on May 27 before a superb victory in the 1300m Benchmark 64 Handicap at Swan Hill on Sunday.
“It’s been good,” Muller said.
“I’ve only got 2.5% and carry on as if I’ve got 100%, but I just love it.
“Craig and the staff are fantastic, and he has made it affordable. I’ve normally got three in work, maybe four, and I’m just a pensioner with a little bit of cash, so it’s good fun.”
Muller grew up around racing, and now travelling around in his campervan, he loves getting to different tracks to watch his runners go around.
“My Parents, brothers and sisters all raced horses, and I’ve always been around it,” Muller said.
“I’m at Jerilderie, but I jump in the campervan and get to most places.”
Muller and Weeding will head to Wangaratta on Sunday, with Yam aiming for a third consecutive victory in the 1170m Benchmark 64 Handicap.
The tenth and final race on a big Wangaratta program, Yam has the services of stable jockey Jake Duffy but has drawn awkwardly with gate 14.
It’s going to be another big day for the Victorian stable on their home track, with The Village Fox (Jake Duffy) and Tristania (Justin Stanley) racing in the 1100m Maiden Plate, and Acantilado (Jake Duffy) and Girls Gambit (Justin Stanley) taking on the second of the 1100m Maiden Plates.
Wangaratta tips – June 15
Race 1: #13 Tribal Lands
Race 2: #7 Star Rapper
Race 3: #8 Touxlove
Race 4: #7 Yes I Know
Race 5: #3 Fisherman’s Beach
Race 6: #12 Empress Of The Sun
Race 7: #1 Lord Domino
Race 8: #6 Reasonable Point
Race 9: #8 Jammin Jimmy
Race 10: #8 TizTime
Track Conditions
Rail Position: True Entire Circuit
Dual Track Meeting: N
Track Type: Turf
Track Condition: Soft 6
Weather: Fine
Track Information: Inspection 8AM 13/6
Acceptors: 179
