The Beach Master Overcomes Hurdle To Claim First Win at Albany
Wes Andrews and his partner Denise with The Beach Master after their win. Photo Credit- Photography by Jodie Hallows
The Beach Master may have had 2-and-a-half years away from the racetrack, but that didn’t stop the rising five-year-old from dominating the last on the card at Albany, leading all the way for Mount Barker based trainer/driver Wes Andrews.
Suffering a tendon injury at just two-years-old and with Max and Jan Liddelow, making the decision that they were retiring from racing, Andrews was presented with an offer he couldn’t refuse.
“I used to drive for Jan and Max, and I used to treat their horses with Bowen Therapy, and they wanted to give something back to me,
“They actually gave me two horses, but unfortunately the other one, who was odds on favourite, I had to scratch him, also injured himself, so I made the decision to retire him, he’s older,
“They gave me that one (Lucky Sensation), and when he injured himself, they gave me this one (The Beach Master),
“He was a gift from friends, we sit on the phone and call each other about our horses all the time,
“They’ve been amazing to me.”
Lucky Sensation is still a special part of Wes Andrews team, officially his partner Denise’s riding horse, who is an influential part of his training.
After making the decision to give the gelding (The Beach Master) an extended spell in the paddock, he made an attempt last season to bring him back into work as a three-year-old, but with the old injury once again flaring up, he tipped him back out.
“I broke him into the saddle, and I just ride him in the bush,
“He looked good, so I thought I’d start training him again this year, and he’s come a long way.”
Confirming that the horse has a few issues that they’re working on, Andrews is confident he has a smart horse on his hands, and he believes he will go a fair way.
The Beach Master will line up in the Harry Capararo Memorial Prelude next Friday night, December 22 at Albany.
A seasonal harness trainer and driver by night, Wes Andrews is a Grader Operator for the Shire of Cranbrook by day, but his introduction to harness racing is less conventional than most, only getting involved by chance as an 18/19-year-old man.
“I applied for a job in Capel at Dr Manea’s horse stud (Marden Stud Farm), and I didn’t get the job but one of my friends did and they actually had holidays booked and said could I do the job for the fortnight and there was a trainer there called Neil Lloyd and he said if you want to give me a hand, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”
Andrews made his debut to race driving in the 2002/2003 in his early twenties, and with driving a full-time job at one point, a life-threatening race fall at Gloucester Park in 2007 saw him on the sidelines for a year.
“The horse itself broke his head check right at release point and fell, and I basically got catapulted and landed on my head,
“I was in hospital for about six months and then had to wear one of those skeleton suits when I got out for about three months,
“It took a fair while and then obviously to get confidence back to get on a horse again took a bit,
“But Gary Hall Snr helped me there, he got me coming and track working at Guildford with him, so that helped.”
A distant memory now, Wes Andrews no longer has any confidence issues in the cart, and with harness racing now firmly engrained into his life, there looks to be no end in sight for his passion.
Ashleigh Paikos