Yes Dream’s remarkable racing revival

By Jordan Gerrans

Grand North Queensland galloper Yes Dream has staved off any retirement thoughts as he bids to return to the city for the first time in more than four years.

Racing as an eight-year-old, Yes Dream recorded his 18th career victory from just 42 starts on Friday afternoon at Ewan as he was a strong winner of the Country Stampede qualifier at the venue.

The race doubled as the annual Ewan Bracelet and offered a substantial $25,000 in prizemoney for the sprint event with Lacey Morrison in the saddle.

The smart sprinter has gone through the stables of the late Michael Lee, Ricky Ludwig and Fred Wieland across his career and appeared to be on the verge of retirement after he was not at the races between March of 2025 and June of this year.

Now racing for the father-and-son training team of Trevor and Peter Rowe at Cairns, the son of Dream Ahead has now won three races since late June in a career renaissance.

“He's quickly become part of the family,” co-trainer Peter Rowe said.

“He's just the most beautiful natured animal. Everyone that has anything to do with him just immediately falls in love with him. He's a real gentleman.

“He's just everyone's favourite. When everyone comes in, they give him a pat.

“We're getting messages from people asking how the old boy's going and stuff like, good to see him winning. It just adds a bit of excitement to the camp.

“He still enjoys his racing and whenever he's enjoying it and is sound, well, we'll keep going.”

Yes Dream is already a winner in town earlier in his career, scoring at Eagle Farm in July of 2022 during his three-year-old campaign, when he was prepared by his late breeder, owner and trainer Lee.

The Rowe team have Yes Dream on a path to the Stampede decider later this year, but will need to start their resurgent galloper in a few more country races to ensure he is eligible.

The sprinter has three country races under his belt and will get a fourth at Gordonvale this Saturday as the stable aims to get him to five bush runs ahead of the Stampede Final on the first Saturday in December.

“We're going to try and qualify him,” Peter said.

“Obviously, it's hard coming off 12 months off.

“If he gets there, he gets there. 

"We have full intentions of going, but we're not going to jeopardise his welfare just to get him there.”

After last racing for Ludwig in March of last year, Yes Dream was in the spelling paddock at Kensington Park in North Queensland before the Rowe camp took him on for another racing journey.

He is being raced by Peter’s mother Helen.

“We obviously only just took him on, but I believe he had lots of feet issues prior to coming to us,” Peter said.

“But, he's as sound as a bell now. His feet are phenomenal, his joints for an eight-year-old are immaculate.

“He's perfect in health and you don't lose ability even if you get older, but normally soundness catches up with them.

“The only thing with him that's probably going to go against him now is weight. The race at Ewan suited him perfectly.

“He's a funny old horse. He looked like he was just going to absolutely put them away, then he hits the front and pricks his ears.

“He only does what he has to and you don't get paid any extra to win by further, but he gives you heart palpitations halfway up the straight when he pricks his ears and looks like he's pulling up.

“But, he's always done that, apparently, from what we've been told and Lacey was, as she said, very confident a long way out of him.”

Yes Dream’s emergence in the Rowe stable has come at the perfect time following the loss of their former stable star Smart Image, who was retired late last year.

The Ewan meeting is a popular one on the NQ calendar, with the Rowe stable registering four winners across the two days of racing.

Across regional Queensland, 16 qualifiers will showcase the very best of country racing, with horses chasing their shot at glory in the $105,000 Country Stampede Final over 1110 metres.

The series culminates at Doomben on Saturday, December 5, as part of George Moore Stakes race day.

Mount Isa also held a Stampede qualifier on Saturday, with the Jay Morris-prepared Revolt claiming the race as a short-priced favourite.