The all-the-way win of Another Pick over kennelmate Gold Rocks in last Thursday’s Metal Worx Stake (400 metres) has long-time Edenhope trainer Cap Abbott well-placed to collect his second Mount Gambier Greyhound of the Year award in the space of three years.
Purchased as a four-month-old pup by Abbott and Kerry Hawker, the daughter of Unlawful x Proud Fantasy has now won 12 local races this year.
Add to that 8 seconds and 6 thirds and she leads the way with 70 points – 13 clear of Sianna Magic.
With eight race meetings remaining this season, and while Another Pick now looks pretty well assured of victory, it was a different story in 2019 when Abbott’s Black Spring scored a narrow win over Cryer’s Harper after both greyhounds ended the year with 13 wins.
Of recent interest was Cryer’s Harper’s first litter – six dogs and three bitches to Orson Allen, whelped at Nicole Stanley and Nifty Lenehan’s Portland Kennels.
Cryer’s Harper is a daughter of Cryer’s Midget (Texas Gold x Shady Grove Fox), winner of the 2011 Mount Gambier Greyhound of the Year award and later the dam of two very successful litters by Spring Gun for Tom and Margaret Cryer of Apsley.
Cryer’s Midget’s third and final mating was to Spud Regis and included Cryer’s Harper, a winner of 22 races.
Together, the three litters resulted in her finishing in the top two of the Leading Dams list on three occasions.
Meanwhile, this year’s Ian Badger Leading Trainer award is not so cut and dried, though.
Currently, Compton trainer Tracie Price is leading David Peckham of Allendale East by a narrow margin.
Both trainers have won the leading trainers’ award twice in the past five years.
With Price having led for the majority of this year, and Peckham for part of October and November, the 2021 Ian Badger looks like going down to the wire.
A pretty good tale
Pat and Patricia Bouchier of Dennington made a welcome return to Tara Raceway last week with Tali Tails, a daughter of US sire SE Tali Sundance and Folk Tails, a 720 metre Wentworth Park winner.
The Bouchiers had last been at the Mount Gambier track in early 2020 when successful with Bisenti over the 600 metre journey.
Pat Bouchier’s association with Tali Tails’ breed actually goes back to when he was training Folk Tails’ litter brother Can Can Hurrican, a Sandown Park winner over 715 metres.
Later, the Bouchiers, who set their sights on a white and black pup that later raced as Tali Tails, looked after Folk Tails’ litter of seven bitches for several months for Cranbourne West breeder Martin Absalom.
But as Patricia Bouchier related last week, it was always going to be touch and go as to whether Tali Tails would ever see a racetrack.
“She was probably only about four months old at the time when she smashed a kneecap.
“That, of course, necessitated reconstructive surgery with no guarantees that she would ever race.
“For a long time after we held our breath every time we let her off the lead, just hoping that everything would hold up.
“She’s now won two races from 10 starts and it goes without saying that both wins have given us a tremendous thrill.”
Tali Tails drew box four in the Mount Gambier Hotel Stake (600 m) and led all the way, eventually defeating Pocket Boy by six lengths in a better than handy 35.18 seconds.
And that in itself made for a pretty good tale.
On the same day, Peter Crawley, of Mortlake, was finally able to cross the border and tackle a 732 metre race with Mick’s Kimmy.
She’s a daughter of Barcia Bale and the city-winning stayer Mick’s Angel who won the 2018 Mount Gambier Cup Day Back to Distance Racing Stake in 43.94 seconds.
Mick’s Kimmy has won only two races from 70 starts and has not won this year.
But she’s definitely better suited to the staying journey as indicated last week when she worked home well in third spot behind Frankie Boy and Whole Way.
Crawley, no doubt, will now be setting his sights on the 732 metres $3000 Nellie Noodles New Year’s Gift which will kick off the 2022 racing season at Tara Raceway on Sunday, January 2.
