Valley Forge kicks off at Sandown

Trainers Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr will get their first look at imported galloper Valley Forge under race conditions at Sandown.

An out-and-out stayer, Valley Forge steps out in the Tobin Brothers Celebrating Lives Handicap (1600m) on Saturday.

Valley Forge was purchase for 100,000 Guineas at the Tattersalls Horses’ In Training Sale last year and was sent straight to Matthew Williams at Warrnambool to commence his training once clearing quarantine.

Saturday’s race will be the shortest he has contested after 13 starts, including three wins, in the UK for Andrew Balding.

“He’s an out-and-out stayer,” Kent Jnr said.

“He hasn’t run below 2300 metres in his life, so this is a means to get him fit.

“It’s a long way short of his best distance, so he will be out there getting a feel of Australian race conditions.”

Kent Jnr said he and Price send the majority of their imported gallopers down to their stable at Warrnambool and into Williams’ care early in their preparations.

“We like our imports to go via the beach in their first couple of preparations to allow their bones to adapt to the different conditions here,” Kent Jnr said.

“He’s a beautiful sound horse, but he’s going to need a lot further to be competitive.”

Valley Forge has won over distances ranging from 2400m to 3260m in the UK and ran in the Ebor Handicap at York, one of the UK’s most prestigious handicaps.

Working in tandem with Import Racing, Price and Kent Jnr were able purchase the son of Dansili.

“He wasn’t an expensive horse by their standards as they are hard to buy over there,” Kent Jnr said.

“He didn’t run too bad in the Ebor and with these types of horses we hope to build speed with our training.

“So long as he’s finishing off on Saturday we’ll be happy and then we’ll be getting him up in trip fairly quickly.”