Mackinnon aims for more city success with Ring Bearer

By Glenn Davis

Sunshine Coast conditioner Taylah Mackinnon will forever remember her metropolitan winner after branching out on her own to train at the start of last season.

Her first city success came in a joint training venture with her father, Stewart Mackinnon, when former Kiwi mare Contribute won a Class 3 Handicap at Eagle Farm in September of 2023.

However, her new favourite horse Ring Bearer scaled new heights when the gelding gave the 25-year-old her first city win since training on her own in a Class 1 Handicap at a metropolitan meeting at the Sunshine Coast in September of last year.

It was Ring Bearer who later provided Mackinnon with her second city winner in her own name at Eagle Farm in March.

It is again Ring Bearer who will be shooting to provide Mackinnon with her third city success since ending a training partnership with her father in the Class 5 Handicap at Doomben on Wednesday.

“I suppose he would have to be one my favourite horses right now after winning twice in the city since I’ve been out on my own,” Mackinnon said.

“We bought him as a tried horse off Ciaron Maher at an Inglis digital sale and he’s done a good job for us.

“He was thrown into the deep end in some of his races down south and I’m hopeful he’ll be hard to beat again.”

Mackinnon only keeps a small team of 12 horses in work and is hopeful Ring Bearer can extend his winning record for the stable.

The five-year-old hasn’t raced since finishing fourth in an 1800 metre Benchmark race at the Sunshine Coast in the middle of August.

“He’s won two metro races for me after Dad and I won our first race together in town with Contribute,” Mackinnon said.

“He gets good weight relief in this race with only 54.5kgs and he had a couple of weeks out after his last run.

“He hasn’t carried this weight for a long time and he’s had a barrier trial.

“He’s been a handy horse for us and he’s more or less part of the family now.”

Mackinnon started off in the racing game working for leading Sunshine Coast trainers Stuart Kendrick and Darryl Hansen.

She then began a brief training partnership with her father who was a successful trainer in his own right for many years at the Sunshine Coast before retiring.

Stewart Mackinnon was once the right-hand man when foreman for former champion trainer, the late Bruce McLachlan.