BIT OF A LEGEND _ HE IS !

West Melton trainer Cran Dalgety smashed the $1 million barrier in seasonal winnings in the best possible fashion at Addington on Saturday, May 12.

Lightly-raced Bit Of A Legend came from out of the shadows two months ago to win the biggest jewel in the NZ 2YO prize gallery, the $243,743 PGG Wrightson NZ Yearling Sales 2YO Open Pace.

Photo: Champion driver Dexter Dunn displays a rare show of emotion as he wins the big Yearling Sales Open pace race with Bit Of A Legend.

Cran said the plan had been to give the half-brother to former big winner London Legend (25 wins, $456,124) a start at Invercargill on April 22, then turn him out until next season.

However, Bit Of A Legend's good first-up second to Supreme Mach was enough encouragement to keep the Bettor's Delight colt going.

"He's only a small guy so our plan was to win a maiden, or a two-year-old race, then turn him out," Cran said.

"He ran a super second at Invercargill when he was taking ground off Supreme Mach at the finish. He went better than I thought he would, then ran a great second (maiden) at Ashburton."

"Then we flopped into this race and the rest is history."

Photo: Seconds earlier, Bit Of A Legend dashes inside Five Card Draw (yellow Harness Jewels colours) and Alta Christiano (blue & gold colours).

Cran selected Bit Of A Legend from the Studholme Park draft at last year's NZ Premier Yearling Sale for $50,000 for wife Chrissie Dalgety, Charlton Park Enterprises Ltd principal Pat Kubala (Gore), Ross Stanbury (Ladbrooks) and Darryl Brown (Perth).

Chrissie Dalgety formerly enjoyed a Yearling Sales Open 3YO Pace win with stable star Smiling Shard, who was the runnerup to Five Star Anvil in his 2YO Yearling Sales Open Pace start.

Mr Kubala, also enjoying a good run as a co-owner of Arden Tetrick from the Purdon/Payne stable, earlier raced useful winner Smart Holmes just over 10 years ago from the Dalgety stable, and briefly tried another ex-Mark Purdon horse Glenalvon, without success, at Kentuckiana Lodge.

Ross Stanbury has also been a co-owner of former Welcome Stakes winner Orl Black, Raging Bull, About Ambiton and Big Picture, while Mr Brown also co-owns Abraxas.

"I probably bought Bit Of A Legend a little bit with my heart," Cran said.

Photo: Winning owners, family and PGG representatives, after the big 2YO victory.

"He was very small but that didn't worry me because his half-brother (London Legend) was small too," he said.

"I've had a great run buying off Brian West (Studholme Park vendor), so I went back to the pot."

Cran also won five races with London Legend's three-quarter brother One More Legend (1:58.5).

He also trained A Legend, a Safely Kept mare from the same dam Soky's Legend (Soky's Atom-Shebatross) to win a race for breeder-owner Brian West from only eight starts.  

All stars aligned perfectly for Bit Of A Legend to grab Saturday's $134,062.50 winner's cheque.

Champion driver Dexter Dunn decided he'd stay with him because he'd drawn the front line, opposed to his other regular driver Abraxas (second row).

"As we saw, Bit Of A Legend made his own luck a little too," Cran said.

"We always thought Barry's one (Five Card Draw) was going to lead. We were just lucky Bit Of A Legend got to the markers before him."

Bit Of A Legend flew out from the seven gate to lead early, then was box-seated behind favourite Five Card Draw over the final lap.

Photo: Cran Dalgety enjoys the success with his father Jim.

"When the three of the hotpots were doing it from the 800m (Five Card Draw, Sir Tosti Mach (parked) and Alta Christiano (three wide) we were inreal good contention, Cran said.

"This is a long straight and it turned out to be a swoopers race."

Bit Of A Legend sprinted best along the sprint lane, winning as he liked by two lengths from Five Card Draw and the gallant Alta Christiano.

Supreme Mach and Mighty Flying Mach (improving three wide from the 600m) fought on solidly next.

Bit Of A Legend rated 1:59 for the mobile 1950m, the leaders having the speed on over their last 800m in 57.6s then feeling the pain a shade over the final 400m in 29.4s.

Cran had some empathy for the connections of rival Alta Christiano, after several factors combined for that pacer's first defeat.

"He got the only draw he didn't want and is lengths better than them all."

"But it just wasn't allowed to be his day. He probably had four sets of bad luck _ the draw (inside back row), going back early, moving up parked out, then being left out three wide from the 800m when Sir Tosti Mach began racing fiercely in the open.

The other luckless runner was fellow Kentuckiana Lodge runner Flaming Flutter, who became more interested in fighting a boring pole after the false start.

He couldn't be straightened up quickly enough to start with the field in the re-run, being left behind by over 100m at the despatch point.