Last Saturday, the Tony and Calvin McEvoy training partnership sent out their last feature race winner from their long-time base in South Australia when they triumphed in the Group 3 R A Lee Stakes at Morphettville.
Belle Plaisir was the horse to give them a fitting farewell.
The stable completed their move to Ballarat earlier this week and it marked a real end to an era when the stable door on the South Australia training facility shut behind them closing out the long, glorious racing history involving the property.
Barend Vorster, who rode Belle Plaisir to victory and who has enjoyed so much success with the McEvoy stable since moving to Adelaide from Singapore, has confirmed that he will not be relocating to Victoria, ending any speculation in that regard.
“I’ll be basing myself in South Australia, family-wise I’m not going to make a move,” Vorster told Racing.com.
“It comes down to family time, what I have here compared to what I’d have over there, I’d be spending more time in the car than anything else.”
But, Vorster hasn’t ruled out riding at interstate on certain occasions if particular opportunities present themselves … such as possibly riding McEvoy runners should they head north for the Queensland Carnival … and he even has his eye on the Spring Carnival.
But, that’s for another time. Right now, the big decision has been made.
“This season I’m just trying to get the premiership done with,” said Vorster, who currently leads the South Australian Metropolitan Jockey Premiership by eight winners (42-34) from Kayla Crowther.
Overall, this season, Vorster has ridden 76 winners in the state at a winning percentage of 18.20 with his runners having banked $2.8 million in prize-money.