Pencarrows North Of Sunset (Red Ransom x Zygadene) collected her first win for the current season in the $8,000 Laser Plumbing Te Puke 1600 at Tauranga Racecourse on Friday.

The five-year-old mare has now produced four wins from her 21 starts and placed in 11 other races. She began this campaign in November with two thirds following her most recent trip finishing in an unlucky sixth place with trainers Steven Ramsay and Julia Ritchie.

“It was a good tough win,” commented co-trainer Steven Ramsay. “She had been racing over 2000m and we dropped her back to a mile and she just settled a bit better because when she gets up over a bit more ground she has a tendency to pull a bit.

“She was nice and relaxed in a mile and Danielle Johnson gave her a nice run. She was in the trail but then got one off the fence and came around the corner and peeled out to hit the line nicely.

North Of Sunset will now have seven days in the paddock because she has had a bit of racing lately and so will freshen her up and try to get some black type racing in her.”

North Of Sunset settled mid-field as the gates opened with jockey Danielle Johnson riding from barrier 3. As the 1600m race unfolded she crept up to sit in behind the two front runners Worthing (NZ) (Danroad) and Joey Massino (NZ) (O’Reilly).

As the small field of six turned the corner for home, North Of Sunset powered up the outside of Joey Massino to sit three-wide. The five-year-old mare kicked on to win by one-and-a-quarter lengths closely followed by So Keep Me (NZ) (Keeper) finishing in second position and stablemate Chevremont (NZ) (No Excuse Needed) came in for third place.

The daughter of Red Ransom has now increased her stakes to $36,850 for her owner Sir Peter Vela.

North Of Sunset was bred by Sir Peter Vela and Philip Vela and is out of winning Zabeel mare, Zygadene (Zabeel). Zygadene is a full-sister to LaFleur (Zabeel) who was third top filly on the 2002-03 NZ 3YO Free Handicap and was winner in the Group 2 Royal Stakes and the Group 2 Sir Tristram Fillies Classic.

The dam of North Of Sunset foaled a filly by successful sire Pentire this season and she is also dam to an O’Reilly colt who is entered in the 2015 Karaka Premier Sale at Lot 243 offered by Pencarrow Stud.