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Sulky Shorts with Gus Underwood

By Gus Underwood

Aug 18, 2022

Star returns: Lochinvar Art, pictured winning the Cobram Cup, makes his return to the races at Melton on Saturday night. Photo by Contributed

Echuca trainers strike early in hometown meeting

Hometown trainers hit the jackpot early at last week’s meeting on Echuca’s Frank Ryan Raceway with the first two winners on the program.

Veteran trainer Fred McKenna scored with Cobber Mac in the opening event and then Mick McMahon chimed in with Lagom in the second race.

Both pacers utilised barrier one draws to score their wins.

Driven by Jordan Leedham, Cobber Mac had indicated a coming win with a third placing at Shepparton at his previous start and most punters were on his side as he started second favourite in the race in which he led his rivals a merry dance from start to finish.

The nine-year-old Gotta Go Cullect gelding has had 79 starts for five wins and 23 minor placings which have reaped more than $42,000 in stakemoney earnings.

Lagom is another veteran pacer who continues to race well.

The nine-year-old mare, also by Gotta Go Cullect, was having her 156th start which have produced 13 wins and 24 minor placings and more than $79,000 in prizemoney earnings.

In her latest win, Lagom was driven by Tayla French who parked on the back of the pacemaker CC Jones and secured a sprint lane run to go on to a comfortable win.

Paul laughing all the way to Concongella

When you are heading off to the races and you have a 100/1 shot in the float you could be excused if you weren’t too confident about the outcome.

But at last week’s Echuca meeting Concongella trainer Paul Rousch was to use his own words ‘‘pretty confident’’ the pacer he trains Bona Khan was at least a good each-way chance who wouldn’t surprise him one bit if he won.

And that’s what he did.

The five-year-old Bonavista Bay gelding driven by concession reinsman Brent Murphy zoomed straight to the front from barrier six to miss early interference and then proceeded to run his rivals ragged in a dashing front-running display.

Rousch was least surprised with the win and no doubt pleased about the 100/1 offered about Bona Khan’s chances.

‘‘On his work over the last three weeks I had high expectations so it didn’t surprise me at all,’’ Rousch said.

Rousch has been a hobby trainer for years who has now taken up full-time training on his property on the outskirts of Stawell where he has installed a 1200m training track.

He said Bona Khan’s three previous trainers had all said the pacer had plenty of ability, but he had been plagued with persistent back injuries.

‘‘My partner and the vets at the Golden Plains equine clinic at Lethbridge have done a great job to get him back racing again because he looked finished,’’ Rousch said.

Hoofnote: After his Echuca win Bona Khan stepped out at last Sunday night’s Swan Hill meeting and finished third after racing without cover for 1750m trip and went down by only 2.7m in the race won by Spencer.

GV participants shine at Menangle

Goulburn Valley trainers and drivers dominated heats and preludes of the Nutrien two-year-old features at Tuesday’s Menangle meeting.

Each of these features were either won by a GV trainer or driver.

Avenel trainer Wayne Potter claimed the two-year-old Nutrien Equine Haras Des Trotteurs Trotters Mixed Trot Prelude with the talented colt The Locomotive, who accounted for the Queensland-trained Venus Love in a stirring two-horse battle to the finishing line.

Reinsman Nathan Jack worked The Locomotive steadily to the front-running position and he singled out with the Queensland-prepared Venus Love over the concluding stages.

He fought out the finish with the son of the great trotting mare La Coocharacha, getting home by a short half head.

It was only The Locomotive’s third race start and his first outing since winning the $50,000 Home Grown Classic for two-year-old trotting colts and geldings at Melton in May after running second on debut at Bendigo on May 5.

He now contests the $50,000 final at Menangle on August 27.

Jack completed a driving double at the meeting when he partnered the Emma Stewart-trained pacer Petracca in heat two of the colts and geldings in which another of the Stewart team, First Responder, ran second with Mark Pitt in the sulky in a Shepparton drivers quinella.

Pitt had earlier savoured success on another of the Stewart runners, Major Celebrity, who won a two-year-old colts and geldings heat in slick time.

Danny Thackeray struck the second blow for GV trainers at the meeting when he produced Scheming to win the Nutrien Auctions Plus Two Year Old Fillies Prelude.

Driven by Amanda Turnbull, Scheming took three turns of the leading in the race but was able to wear down the second favourite, fellow Victorian filly Ludacrous, driven by Nathan Jack, over the concluding stages.

Scheming was having only his fourth race start which had produced two fourths and a second at Bendigo at his previous start which had him well tuned for the Menangle assignment.

With the same field going around in the $175,000 final at Menangle on Saturday night week Thackeray is now sweating on a good draw with his promising pacer.

In the meantime, he has Lochinvar Charm contesting the $30,000 Group Three ASPG Vic Gold Sovereign Final for three-year-old fillies at Saturday night’s Melton meeting in which she will be driven by Cody Crossland.

Lochinvar Art’s return

Superstar Lochinvar Art makes his much anticipated return to racing at Saturday night’s Melton meeting.

The Rod Lakey-trained seven-year-old contests the My Lightning Blue Free For All but has a big task in front of him with an outside back row draw over the short trip of 1720m.

Nathan Jack will be in the sulky for the pacer’s first start since early February.

Lakey said Lochinvar Art had had two trials in preparation for his comeback and was working, looking and feeling well.

He said the $1.4 million money earner, who has chalked up 28 wins and 21 placings from 53 career starts, had improved with each of those hit-outs and he was hoping for more improvement here.

But Lakey warned he was only starting his campaign which all going well will culminate with a tilt at the Victorian Inter Dominion Championships later in the year when Shepparton hosts heats.

Venetian makes it a hat-trick

Lightly raced Shepparton-trained pacer Venetian completed a hat-trick of wins at only his fourth race start when he scored on the Riverina Raceway at Wagga last Friday.

Driven by Leigh Sutton, the three-year-old son of Roll With Joe was ushered straight to the front over the 1740m trip and comfortably held all rivals at bay in the run to the judge.

Venetian’s 1.56.0 mile rate was a PB in its hat-trick of wins which started with a win at Shepparton on July 21 after running third on debut at Cobram on July 11.

After the Shepparton win he won at Bendigo on August 5.

Chibnall a driver worth following

Concession reinswoman Jordan Chibnall is wasting no time in making her mark on the Victorian driving scene.

She has just come off another big week with winners at Echuca, Mildura and Swan Hill.

At last week’s Echuca meeting, she partnered the Danny Ferris-trained Heavensway to a dashing victory for the second time in her last three starts.

Chibnall speared Heavensway straight to the front, slowed down the pace before letting the Rock N Roll Heaven gelding run away from his challengers in the home straight.

In both wins, Chibnall has driven Heavensway, he has paid a healthy $19.

Following Heavensway’s win Chibnall was off to Mildura the following day where she landed the Kate Attard-prepared Linxx, a winner with her second drive on the Rocknroll Dance four-year-old.

Then at Swan Hill last Sunday night, Chibnall was at her best, winning on the Brett Bunfield-prepared Spencer who is on the comeback trail after 12 months on the sidelines.

Punters who had supported Spencer into an odds-on favourite had their hearts in their mouths at the top of the home straight when Spencer had almost the entire field in front of him.

But Chibnall was able to weave him into clear running wide out and he stormed home to nab victory on the finishing line.

A five-year-old son of Courage Under Fire, Spencer has had only the 13 race starts for three wins and three placings and looks a pacer with a future.

Turnbull hotter than the Sahara

Craig Turnbull is on a winning streak at the moment and he took the training honours at Wednesday night’s Shepparton meeting with a double.

The Tatura mentor scored with Ashford Secret, who was driven by one of the pacer’s part owners Maddie Ray and also Heritage Lady who was reined by his daughter Abbey.

Both wins were popular with punters as they started favourite in their respective races.

Ray brought Ashford Secret from near the rear of the field with a well-timed run to beat Final Bow and the pacemaker Cheeky Philtra.

Abbey Turnbull speared Heritage Lady from gate four straight to the front and the daughter of Major Bronski just held off the Bruce Rose-trained roughie Artistic Cowboy with the Lisa Bartley-trained Just Ralph filling the minor placing.

It was Heritage Lady’s fifth win from 20 starts which have also produced three seconds and one third placing.

Other GV trainers who savoured success at the meeting were Wayne Potter, Jan Murray and Susan Hunter.

Potter produced the Nathan Jack-driven favourite Take It Down for his second win at his second start.

Jack worked Somebeachsomewhere three-year-old filly to the lead and a 27.4 final split put paid to her rivals.

Seymour trainer Jan Murray was rewarded for patience when she produced the Taylor Youl-driven Ringer Russ to his second in 49 tries.

Echuca trainer Susan Hunter scored with Lethal Lover who ran down the Mick McMahon-trained favourite and pacemaker Tino Tere Maori in an Echuca training quinella.