Elsu

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Elsu was a black New Zealand-bred Standardbred pacer born on 19 December 1999 and trained by Geoff Small, with David Butcher as his driver. He was by Falcon Seelster out of Interchange. Elsu had a hugely successful racing career, winning many big races such as the 2002/03 Great Northern Derby, New Zealand Trotting Derby and New South Wales Derby, and the Auckland Pacing Cup in 2003 and 2004. He also claimed victories in Chariots of Fire, the Noel J Taylor Memorial Mile, the New Zealand Messenger Championship, the A.G. Hunter Cup, the Inter-Dominion Pacing Championship and the City of Auckland Free For All.

In the 2004/05 season, Elsu was crowned the Australasian Pacers Grand Circuit Champion and was New Zealand Harness Horse of the Year for a second time. He finished second in the New Zealand Trotting Cup in 2003 and 2004, both times to Just An Excuse. In the 2005 A.G. Hunter Cup, a standing-start race with a 20-metre handicap, Elsu sprinted three-wide for the last 1,100 metres to win, even though he was later found to have leg injuries at the time. His best mile time was 1:53.6.

Elsu retired to stud in 2005 with over two million dollars in earnings, beginning his stud career with a full book. He died in July 2023 at age 23.