It’s been a while between drinks for Cambridge trainer Leanne Bertling, but she was back in the winner’s circle at Rotorua on Tuesday courtesy of Invaluable in the Rydges Rotorua 1560.

The Ocean Park gelding is the first horse Bertling has taken to the races in more than a decade and she was delighted to notch another win as a trainer.

“It is always awesome to get a winner,” she said.

“He has got heaps of improvement left in him. As long as we can keep him sound I think there is a lot of fun to be had with him, he is a lovely horse.”

Bred by Milan Park, Invaluable initially had two trials for trainers Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman before being purchased by bloodstock agent Bruce Perry for Hong Kong clients.

He had nine starts in the Asian racing jurisdiction, winning his last start at Happy Valley before injury resulted in his return to New Zealand and Milan Park.

“He had a few starts up in Hong Kong but unfortunately he injured his tendon so he came home in June and Tony (Rider, Milan Park principal) was offered the chance to have a go with him,” Bertling said.

“Grant (Bennett), my partner, has had a lot to do with it, he runs Milan Park. They put a deal together with Bruce that we could have a go with him and see how far we could go with him. It has been a really fun ride with him so far.

“He did a lot of his early time at Lyndhurst on the water treadmill and we have just chipped along slowly at the Cambridge track, you have just got to be mindful of where you work him each day.

“Touch wood, things are going alright at the moment.”

Bertling is eyeing some bigger targets over the Christmas-New Year period with her charge.

“He holds a nomination for the Dunstan Stayers, but whether we can get him there in time I am not sure,” she said.

“He is a day-to-day horse, he did a tendon in Hong Kong so we don’t put too much pressure on him and go race-to-race with him.”

Initially an apprentice jockey, Bertling entered the training ranks at the turn of the century and posted 68 wins, including one at stakes level, over eight seasons before handing in her license to start a family.

I trained for a few years and then I had Riley, our son, he is 12 now,” she said.

“I was foreman for Roger James for a few years. I worked for Roger, in total, for about 16 years.

“I had a lot of highlights with Roger, we had the likes of Silent Achiever. On my own account, I trained the winner of the Champagne Stakes (Post Thyme).

“Back in the early days I was with Laurie Laxon and I took Champagne over to the Melbourne Cup, that was a huge highlight when she won the Mackinnon and ran second in the Cup.

“Early on, I was apprenticed to Chris Wood and my biggest win was in the Waikato Cup, that was a big thrill.

“I have always liked horses and my family are the Stormonts, who are big in trotting.”

While Bertling has spent the majority of her working life in stables, she is currently enjoying working in the office at Majestic Horse Floats, while maintaining her racing fix with Invaluable.

“I work full-time at Majestic Horse Floats in the office, so it is a busy day. I have early starts to get the big boy worked and then off to work we go,” she said.

“I wouldn’t be able to have him in work without the support of everyone at Milan Park, and the support of Tony (Rider).

“He is a real communal horse, everyone pitches in and helps."