As it turned out the finishing prices with Read (11-4) and Racing Odds (4-1) were better that the starting price of 5-2 for the winner.

No.Nifty didn't grab the overs.

"I'm too stupid for that," he said.

First win

The trainer of Happy Hippy, Jason Coyle, of Broadmeadow, was stoked to be able to achieve Patinack Farm's first win at Taree at the filly's first start and with his only starter at the meeting.

Multi-millionaire Tinkler,the new "kid" on the racing scene after a windfall profit through a coal mining investment,has given about 15 racehorses to Coyle to train and Coyle reckons he should be able to get more winners with that team in travels north.

He only about 2.5 years ago decided to branch out by himself into training full-time and his first memorable win in his new profession was Overly which ran a field ragged in scoring by six lengths at Taree shortly after he settled into his new position.

Happy Hippy was being trained on the Gold Coast but those stables of Tinkler's were closed and the filly had only been in Coyle's care for about two months.

"I think she will be better with age as she raced greenly today.

"She spat the bit out at the wrong time but then showed she can be a real racehorse," he said.

Newcastle jockey Morgan Butler said the filly wanted to pull up on the turn until he got stuck into her.

Coyle said Happy Hippy will now go for a spell.

New TV

Scone trainer Peter Bloomfield may be looking for a new television set if you can take any notice of his jockey Robert Thompson from Cessnock.

The trainer had just led in his first winner at Taree,three-year-old filly Arbutus,when Thompson offered his thoughts about the race.

"His (Bloomfield's) wife is a better rider than me in the loungeroom.

"She would have been watching the race on television and throwing everything about as she urged me to the winning post...she'd be kicking the television,"said the jockey.

May be not,as Bloomfield's wife,Tracey,as the trainer said, was "feeling crook."

Still, she would have got a lift from her sick-bed by the win.

Bloomfield broke in the filly before she was sent to Sydney to be trained,it only to be sacked within a couple of days and sent back to him.

The owners, Geoff and Berryl White, prolific racehorse owners,bred the filly by Reenact from Firtree. Their son, Greg, told Bloomfield: "Win with it" and the three lengths barrier trial win at Scone recently was happily transformed into a raceday win at its first start.

Trainers can be left lamenting when they engage an apprentice rider with an allowance to reduce their horse's weight on raceday.

This was the case with Taree trainer Bindi Cheers when her youngster,two-year-old gelding Lucky Elmo, was beaten by Happy Hippy at Taree last week.

Stewards found that 2kg claiming apprentice jockey Michael Hellyer was a victim of circumstances on the unruly youngster, the gelding playing up so much that at the end of the race it crashed through a running rail and dislodged the rider.

Cheers wanted to get local apprentice jockey Vicky Schubert for Lucky Elmo but she was obligated to her master's entry, Dublette and rather than have senior rider, Patrick Ferris,who rode the gelding into fourth behind Movie at Rosehill, take the mount,the trainer decided on taking the allowance.

Ferris was heard saying to Cheers after the race: 'I told you,you should have put me on.'

One can only ponder after Lucky Elmo was an unlucky neck second because last Saturday Ferris was the jockey when the youngster ran a good second-this time in a rich two-year-old race at Rosehill Gardens.

Ferris always had Lucky Elmo under his control and it was only a belated run, after looking beaten, by favourite Wanted that denied the Taree visitor a win.

The first prize of $42,000 would have been great but second prizemoney of $13,300 and odds of 30-1 with bookmakers weren't to be sneezed at

In four starts Lucky Elmo has earned Cheers and her husband,Peter,$31,300-not a bad pick up for a racehorse which cost them $1200 (including the dam).

Compare this against the winner Wanted which cost $800,000.

Cheers was in a real quandary after four-year-old gelding Bear Cub, a ride for Schubert,came from near last wide out to score by a half-head in the next race at last week's Taree meeting.

"This is supposed to be his last race...perhaps he doesn't want to be retired."

She said it was some consolation for her loss with Lucky Elmo.

"It was a perfect ride...she should have been on the other horse (Lucky Elmo)," she said.