As things turned out, it was a pretty busy week for Mount Gambier time-graded meeting regular Lewis Green, of Parwan, and his greyhound Mason Rocks.
It all began back on Thursday, January 7 when Green had his dog engaged at Tara Raceway in the Swallow Drive Meats Stake (400 metres), an event for 5+ wins greyhounds.
Raced by the interestingly-named Love Guru’s Paradise Island syndicate, Mason Rocks had been out of a place in seven starts since purchased last October from WA after having won six races at Cannington and Mandurah.
However, the black dog drew box one at the Mount Gambier time-graded meeting and after chasing tearaway leader Finniss Looper into the home straight finished too strongly for a 1½ lengths win in 23.34 seconds.
Green was then at Angle Park for the Saturday morning time-graded meeting with Mason Rocks who was backed into odds-on in a 5+ wins event over 388 metres.
Well back early from box four, he once again finished powerfully to grab Loud Missile in the shadows of the post and in the space of a couple of days considerably improved on his record since relocating to Victoria.
But the road trip wasn’t over yet. Two days later the pair was at Warrnambool, Mason Rocks drawing box five in a grade five event over 390 metres.
And after being last early he turned in another big effort to find a forward spot turning for home before finishing strongly in the straight for a 1¾ lengths win over Mizuki Rose in a quick 22.12 seconds.
Then it was back to Mount Gambier for yesterday’s time-graded meeting, Mason Rocks once again drawing awkwardly in box four in the Bartholomew Pick 6 Stake (400 m) for 5+ wins greyhounds.
Again slowly away, he rounded up Cap Abbott’s pair of Finniss Looper and Like A Slug off the back, then finished strongly for a 4½ lengths win in a best of day 23.11 seconds and wrap up a big week of racing – four wins on three different tracks.
By US sire Kiowa Mon Manny, the three-state winner is out of Quara Bale, a winner of 27 short course races in Victoria. And while all of Mason Rocks’ wins have been over the short course, Green is keen to step him up in distance.
“I’ll now probably give him a short break after a busy week before perhaps heading to Murray Bridge,” he said. “Also, I reckon he’d be worth a try over a bit more ground judging by the way he’s been finishing off his races.”
