Allendale East trainer David Peckham will be chasing national representation with Aston Olenna when the 36 kilograms fawn son of Aston Bolero x Aston Selena contests an SA heat of the National Straight Track Championship at Murray Bridge next month.
The SA heats will be run over 350 metres on Wednesday, July 28 and the final on Tuesday, August 3. Heats in other states will be run at Healesville (Victoria), Richmond (NSW) and Capalaba (Queensland). The national final will be run at Capalaba on August 15.
Bred and owned by Ray Borda, the lightly-raced Aston Olenna – 11 starts for seven wins – showed his liking for straight track racing when winning last month’s Murray Bridge Straight Track Cup (350 m).
And on Monday, Aston Olenna was also part of a big night at Murray Bridge’s one-turn track meeting when joining Aston Dijon, Aston Hayato, Sunset Milo and Zinfandel Tori as part of a five-win haul for Peckham.
While training five winners on a day at Tara Raceway is not altogether new for Peckham, Monday night was his best effort away from his home track.
“My previous best effort at an away track had been at Murray Bridge on May 26 when Aston Olenna won the cup and Zinfandel Tori, Sweet On Me and Midnight Daisy were successful. That, also, was a pretty special day,” he said.
A treble at Tara Raceway on Sunday, June 6 with Sunset Milo, Midnight Daisy and Out Of Gas brought up 50 local winners for the year. All told, in 2021 he has now trained 52 winners at Mount Gambier as well as 24 at Murray Bridge and Angle Park.
He said his big night had been well received at Murray Bridge. But Calomba trainer Paul Fagan, who narrowly deprived Peckham of six winners when Pyrotechnic defeated Out Of Gas by a head in the final event, probably summed it up best.
“Sorry about that Dave. But you had to leave us something.”
