For the second consecutive year the Mount Gambier Greyhound Racing Club presented Australia Day boxed medallions to the winning trainers of the 11 races at its Tara Raceway January 25 meeting.
Leading local trainer Tracie Price, of Compton, won four races last Sunday with Crowie Unleashed, Compton Shelly, Capybara and Status Of Time. Last year he had won an Australia Day medal with Sudoku Jaxon.
Other trainers to win back to back medals were Ararat-based Paul Hammerstein, successful with Is He Happy, and last year with Imposter. And Dell Mister followed on for Mortlake’s Peter Franklin who last year collected a medal with Ringer’s Girl
Winners came from far and wide last Sunday and also included Lektra Lee, Lektra Rosa (Sharon Bradley and Phil Lenehan, Toolong), Thumani (Damien Smith, Murray Bridge), Aston Gleam (Christian Roberts, Terang) and Lektra Hank (Nifty Lenehan, Portland).
Racing kicked off with the Sealeys Springworks Maiden Stake (305 metres) and Lektra Lee, a son of Plaintiff and Lektra Viki looked anything but a $26 chance. He quickly rounded up the field from box eight before running out a 4¼ length winner over Sally Shine in 17.93 seconds.
“He went into the race having competed on six occasions and run one 10 length third in a Bottoms Up Maiden at Warrnambool,” Bradley said. “To be honest, given his temperament, I never thought he would win a race.”
A couple of races later, in the Metal Worx Stake (305 m), litter sister Lektra Rosa, trained by Lenehan, finished strongly in the run home when defeating Heart To Hartley by a head in 18.25 seconds.
Smith’s Thumani was chasing his first win since last November at Horsham for his Group 1-winning trainer and looked well placed when taking on the grade six Williams Crane Hire Stake (400 m) from box one.
Always on the pace, the fawn son of Feral Franky and Little Nangar, who was bred by the legendary Dennis Barnes, took the lead off the back before running out a 2½ length winner over Pinky Rocks in 23.00 seconds
“I first met Dennis when I was up in Brisbane with Apilla,” Smith said. “One thing led to another and I’ve now purchased half dozen or so dogs from him. Thumani was unraced when purchased but had been ready to go.”
And he’s also involved in the ownership with Terry Daly and Tim Lewis of the Price-trained Capybara, the brindle daughter of Fernando Bale and Nangar Gold having a keen duel with Rupee McGraw in the Icon Signs Stake (512 m).
On the line Capybara had three-quarters of a length to spare in 29.65 seconds over Rupee McGraw, the son of Aston Rupee an older half-brother to the winner and owned and trained by Smith. Both winner and runner-up were purchased from Barnes.
Franklin, still well remembered at Tara Raceway as the trainer of record-breaking greyhounds Mojito Mayhem and McIvor Verna, followed up with his second Australia Day win for owners Steve and Vanessa Lenehan who also race Dell Mister.
The blue son of Aston Rupee and Mount Gambier winner Fugacious quickly found the front in last Sunday’s Cadillac Racing Open Stake (400 m), running out a 1¾ length winner over Hyphenate in 23.05 seconds.
At start number 89, Hammerstein’s Is He Happy, a son of Beast Unleashed and Made Me Blind – and one of the successful Paraskevas line – brought up win number 20 when leading all the way in the Todd’s Photographics Stake (305 m).
And the Roberts team looked to hold a strong hand in the Commercial Hotel Mixed Stake (305 m) with Aston Gleam, Aston Torta and Aston Denton in boxes 4, 5 and 7.
The trio settled in that order and that’s how they finished with the margins being three-quarters of a length by 3¼ lengths in 17.51 seconds.
Lektra Hank, a son of Bernardo and Lektra Jena, made it three wins in succession at Tara Raceway for Nifty Lenehan and brought up a double for the Lenehan brothers.
Away well from box eight in the Greg Martlew Autos Stake (400 m), the black dog – a $17 chance – quickly found the front before running out a two length winner over Canya Nameless in 23.26 seconds.
From a training point of view at Tara Raceway last Sunday it could be said that Tracie Price certainly flew the Australian flag with his four winners.
And with the posting of photographs from the Australia Day meeting on social media came a nice post – “Congratulations. Well done Mount Gambier on your photos with the Australian flag as a backdrop. Love it.”