Battle-scarred gelding So Brave lived up to his name with a remarkable victory in the Piper-Heidsieck Hcp (1600m) at Moonee Valley on Friday evening.

A homebred for Peters Investments, he was racing first-up for Pakenham trainer John Leek since a midfield finish in a Warrnambool hurdle over 3200m back in April but was fresh enough to come from last passing the school to defeat The Omens (Hallowed Crown) and Nursery Chime (Holler).

So Brave (5g So You Think – Midnight Special by Zabeel) is bred in the purple as a full-brother to Midnight Blue (G2 Perth Cup) and a half-brother to Demonetization (G2 NZ Great Northern Guineas).

“He’s come back a different horse,” Leek’s foreman Leigh Adamson said.  “He’s fired up mentally and physically but it’s taken such a long time to get here.  Actually, he really shouldn’t be here at all.”

Adamson was referring to life-threatening injuries So Brave suffered in tragic float accident outside of Kalgoorlie when he was just a foal in May 2021.  He was the only survivor among 8 weanlings being transported from NSW to Perth for Bob and Sandra Peters.

Their daughter Melissa recounted the appalling circumstances surrounding the collision in an interview after he won a Mornington maiden earlier this year.  “The truck caught fire and the bravery of the driver was incredible.  There were 16 horses in the float and he was able to free 8 of them.  The others perished from burns or smoke inhalation.

“Little So Brave was in the back section and had to jump over a few of his travel mates.  He and the other survivors ran off down the highway and the local Kalgoorlie racing community, led by Peter Fernie, were able to round them up and keep them safe.

“The wounds and burns were horrendous but there was never a thought of giving up.  He received round-the-clock care for six weeks at the Murdoch University Hospital and plenty of love, too.  That’s never been in short supply at home, either.

“My daughter Ellie looked after him when he came home and she was there on one of the days when the vets came out to treat him.  He was sedated so they could change the bandages and he fell asleep in her arms.

“We were crying all day after that maiden at Mornington.  It felt like he had just won a Group 1.”