Sadly, most of those days are reserved for memorial races or when the galloper might have finished an illustrious career.

In Artlee’s case its in honour of his winning the inaugural $300,000 Country Championships Final (1400m) a Randwick earlier this month.

Today, Muswellbrook Race Club honours its most recent favourite son by running the Artlee Country Championships Winner Maiden Plate Handicap (1450m).

Todd Willan trains Artlee and he and Artlee’s owners are delighted and honoured by the club’s decision.

“I was surprised that the clubs did that,”  Willan said.

“But it’s a great honour. The owners are very happy too and they are going to be out there Monday to sash the winner  (Artlee Maiden) and make the presentation to the winning owners.”

Singleton owners Gerry and Kathleen Feeney and Peter and Julie Rogers have had some wonderful experiences with Artlee already.

 Willan has also deserved he rewards so far after preparing Artlee to win the Wild Card at Muswellbrook in brilliant style and then the Country Championships Final in the same breathtaking fashion.

In eight starts he has now won five times for $310,345 in prizemoney.

“I don’t have a runner at Muswellbrook,” he said.

“I’ve got mainly breakers here at the moment.”

Artlee, though, has just come back into work after having a week off in the paddock following his Randwick success.

“We’re going to head to the Luskin Star,” he said of a $140,000 Listed Luskin Star Stakes ((1300m) on Saturday, May 16, the second day of the two-day Scone Cup Carnival.

While Willan  doesn’t have a runner in today’s Maiden or at the meeting on his home track, Mitchell Bell, who rode Artlee to win the Wild Card at Muswellbrook and the Country Championship Final, does have a ride in the Artlee Maiden.

“Mitchell’s got the key to Artlee,” Willan said.

Bell will ride Jason Coyle’s Monsoon Charlie, one of two runners the Warwick Farm trainer has in the Artlee Maiden.

Late last month  Coyle ventured up the highway to start Ready To Provide in a maiden at Muswellbrook.

Coyle was impressed, not with the horse’s distant fourth, but with the ease of the trip and with the racing surface.

So impressed, in fact, he will have three starters at Muswellbrook today, including Ready To Provide which is the other runner  he will have in the Artlee Maiden.

The best of the three he is taking to Muswellbrook is Cordon Rouge (Bell), which runs in the XXXX Gold Class One and Maiden (1750m).

Last month’s trip was the first time Coyle had been to Muswellbrook since switching his stable from Newcastle to Sydney several years ago.

“I had not given much thought to Muswellbrook since I made the move but so many of the trainers down here were saying how good the trip was because of the new highway I decided to see for myself,” Coyle said.

“It is such an easy trip now, especially for the horses, and if the club continues to provide a racing surface as good as it is at present the horses will keep coming from down here.”

Cordon Rouge has hit a purple patch, with a strong maiden win at Hawkesbury then a good third at Goulburn after getting too far back.

“I don’t necessarily want her ridden too far forward but if she can get a good cart into the race she will finish it off,” Coyle said.

“That was how she won at Hawkesbury. 

“As for the other two, they had better show something soon or they will be headed to North Queensland.”