AS Phoebe Betts guided Esther Burns down the home straight at Young on Friday and took a glance over her shoulder to see where her rivals were situated, she liked what she saw.
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That quick look let Betts know she was headed to the third win of her driving career as Esther Burns held a handy lead in the TAB Odds and Evens Pace (1,720 metres).
By the time the five-year-old mare trained in Bathurst by Phoebe's mother Monica ran past the post, the margin between her and closest rival Dont Tell Phylls ($4.80) stood at 8.1m. Favourite Moonstone Montana ($3.70) was a further 1.5m back.
But it was not just that final margin which made it an impressive win.
The winning mile-rate was a 1:57.5, the second quickest of the eight-race meeting and a career best for the Rock N Roll Heaven x Esther Jane mare.
While the mare was not as much of an outsider as she was when Betts first drove her - Esther Burns a $126 long shot that outing - the duo were still not expected to challenge for the win at Young as they started at 12-1.
Esther Burns had just one prior win from her 50 starts, saluting in a maiden race at Parkes in May. Betts herself was chasing her first winning drive of the season.
But from barrier one, Esther Burns showed enough gate speed to stop her rivals from crossing. Then when Betts asked the mare to left her tempo with 600m to go, she kicked and went on to win.
