A SYNDICATE from the York area bagged nearly £53,000 yesterday when their horse, Firmament, won on the Knavesmire.

Trained locally by David O'Meara and ridden by Danny Tudhope, the 8-1 shot took the Clipper Logistics Stakes by half a length from 5-1 favourite Mustashry.

It capped a memorable afternoon for North Yorkshire on the second day of this year's Ebor Festival as Queen Kindly, trained by Richard Fahey at Malton, won the battle of the Frankel fillies in the Sky Bet Lowther Stakes.

Aidan O'Brien's Seventh Heaven, meanwhile, won the biggest prize of the day, the Group One Darley Yorkshire Oaks.

The Gallop Racing syndicate is a group of eight friends from the York and Selby area which includes husband and wife Claire and Andrew Bennett from Fulford.

Only 10 months ago, they paid £25,000 to buy Firmament in the sales but recouped more than twice that sum yesterday thanks to this victory.

Others in the syndicate are brothers Kevin and Ian Nicholson and Dave Biggins, from Pickering, and Richard Walker, Toby Pemberton, and Richard Mustill from Selby.

"This is as good as it gets," said Walker. "We have only got three horses and, coming from this area, York is the track you want to win it!"

"He was a big purchase for us at £25,000 but - in the big scheme of things - I suppose not much. We have run a couple of times on the all-weather but he only got in this race after winning at Chelmsford."

Firmanent is entered for next month's Cambridgeshire Handicap at Newmarket.

O'Meara and Tudhope arrived at the festival fresh from success in the Arlington Million with Mondialiste.

"To got a Group One on Saturday and another big winner here at the Ebor is very special," said O'Meara, who moved to a new multi-million pound base at Willow Farm in Upper Helmlsey last year.

"Moving house is difficult," he admitted. "There has been a lot of work going on through the winter but I had a great team at home who made sure we hit the ground running. These wins help repay all those who worked so hard to make it happen."

Malton-based trainer Fahey, meanwhile, was over the moon after Queen Kindly upset the odds in the £200,000 Group Two Lowther Stakes.

Both Fair Eva and Queen Kindly are from the first crop of retired dual-world champion Frankel who produced one of his most impressive performances when winning the Juddmonte International at York four years ago.

Fair Eva started the race as a red hot 4-11 favourite and the pair, along with the American bred Roly Poly, treated the Knavesmire crowd to a final furlong thriller Fahey's filly, a 9-2 shot, got home first with Fair Eva in third.

"Favourites are there to be beaten," said Fahey. "But I have to admit that I was very afraid of the favourite. She was, visually, very impressive at Ascot (when winning the Princess Margaret Juddmonte Stakes last month) so you had to be worried. The bookmakers were saying it was 2-5 so we were coming here to finish second!

"There is a bit of a stigma with the Frankels," he added. "As trainers, we are all afraid to run them just in case they get beat - but they keep winning and that just makes it even tougher!"

Owned by Jaber Abdullah, Queen Kindly's mother was Lady of the Desert who, six years ago, also won the Lowther Stakes.

Fahey, the first Yorkshire trainer to win the race since Tim Easterby achieved the feat with Jemima in 1999, said: "Frankel is covering some good 'girlfriends' - if we can put it like that! And I am just delighted to have one of them."

The only 'Stormy Clouds' anywhere near sunny York yesterday won the opening race. Richard Hannon's filly secured the six furlong Goffs Premier Yearling Stakes with the minimum of fuss.

"It was her best performance of the season," said trainer Richard Hannon. "It's nice to win that race because we are normally second or third. We have been knocking on the door a couple of times. "

Seventh Heaven gave O'Brien his fourth success in the Darley Yorkshire Oaks beating stablemate Found who finished second.

Sir Michael Stoute's Abingdon won the The EBF & Sir Henry Cecil Galtres Stakes ahead of To Eternity, ridden by Frankie Dettori.

The final race on Ladies Day was an all-female affair, the eventmasters.co.uk EBF Fillies' Stakes, and was won by Opal Tiara, trained by Mick Channon.