FRIDAY’S Tara Raceway race book had the Laser Electrical Stake listed as paying $605 to the winner of the maiden 512-metre event.
And it was the July 2016 youngster Azumi Ryder, having only her fifth race start, that scored an impressive two length win over Andrew’s Gift in the tidy time of 30.31 seconds.
But connections Steve and Lee Bartholomew, of Worrolong, will picke up considerably more than the listed first prize due to the fact that Azumi Ryder, trained by the latter, is an SA-bred greyhound.
This follows additional breeding bonuses introduced by Greyhound Racing SA which now sees breeders and owners of SA-bred maiden winners whelped in 2016 onwards also collecting $500 each for the win.
In the case of Azumi Ryder and the Bartholomews, though, they will collect the $1000 on top of the first prize as they are also the breeders and owners of the black bitch.
By Dyna Tron, Azumi Ryder is out of Azumi Touch, a winner of 15 races at Tara Raceway and one at Angle Park for the Bartholomews.
This is Azumi Touch’s second litter, her first, by Cosmic Chief, producing handy types Azumi Spice (six wins) and 10-race winner Azumi Swift who will jump from box six in tomorrow’s 400-metre Ivor Dowdell Memorial.
Record-breaker returns to favourite stomping ground
LEKTRA Stomp became the second Tara Raceway track record holder to break his own record when running a sizzling 29.35 seconds in the 512-metre Klaassens Contractors Open Stake on Friday afternoon.
The time was 1½ lengths quicker than his previous record of 29.45 seconds which he ran in a heat of the Mount Gambier Cup on March 11 when defeating Verev by seven lengths before running second to Xtreme Caution in the final a week later.
By Walk Hard out of Lektra Angie – a 13 length maiden winner at Tara Raceway in November 2012 – the white and black dog is trained at Toolong by Phil Lenehan who opted to return to Mount Gambier with Lektra Stomp after four disappointing runs at The Meadows and Warrnambool.
Well suited in Friday’s small field, he quickly found the front from box four and was always low flying, eventually running out a 12 length winner over Hit The Runway.
The win further enhanced his outstanding record at Tara Raceway – 15 starts for nine wins, four seconds and three thirds – with Lenehan believing Lektra Stomp is better suited to tracks which run with a finish-on-lure (FOL) system as is the case here.
“The trouble is there’s not many other FOL tracks around although the trial of the FOL on the outside track at Geelong apparently has been a great success,” he said.
The Geelong Greyhound Racing Club is now extending the FOL to its inside track on Tuesday.
This track comprises 520 metres and 596 metres, with Lenehan believing both distances would suit Lektra Stomp and give him another option.
Lektra Stomp was the second leg of a running double for Lenehan, Lektra Lucy bringing up her second 600-metre win in the space of a month when defeating Big Rough and Shiney Bling in the Produce Store Mixed Stake in 35.47 seconds.
Both greyhounds will backe up again at tomorrow’s Anzac meeting, Lektra Stomp from box eight in the 512-metre Legacy Open and Lektra Jenny in the 600-metre Anzac Open.
Paraphernalia, who will jump from box one in tomorrow’s 600-metre Anzac Open Stake, lowered his 34.99 seconds record for the middle distance to 34.97 seconds on June 11, 2017 for Horsham trainer Jeff Guy.
Clean wins for Hinrichsen
MONARTO South trainer Tony Hinrichsen’s 1600km trip from one end of the state to the other on the weekend resulted in a win with Filthy Phantom at Port Augusta on Saturday, followed up by an impressive performance from San Tan Sam at Sunday’s time-graded meeting at Tara Raceway.
By Collision out of San Tan Maid, a daughter of Mogambo and the US-bred San Tan Scuffy, the June 2015 brindle dog was having his first start for Hinrichsen, leading all the way in the 512-metre Gordon Refrigeration Stake for a 3¾ length win over Cee Rose Black in a best of day 29.92 seconds.
The win provided a quick return for the widely-travelled trainer who only a fortnight ago purchased San Tan Sam after he had won nine races at Angle Park, Gawler and Port Augusta from Ray Burgess of Port Pirie.
Hinrichsen, who is heavily involved with the Southern Greyhound Raceway at Strathalbyn, makes occasional trips to Mount Gambier to race at Tara Raceway, his biggest success to date being with Menzel Boys in the 2016 General Destini Summer Classic.
Another widely-travelled trainer to achieve success on Sunday was Hamilton-based Tony Harding with Sweet Emma in the 400-metre JB Irrigation Maiden Stake.
Now four years old and having her 37th race start, Sweet Emma led all the way to defeat Mrs Hardwicke by two lengths, bringing up her first win in a personal best time of 23.67 seconds.
The win, which Harding put down to the fact the fawn bitch finally kept out of trouble in a race by going straight to the front, came after runs on a variety of other race tracks including Warrnambool, Ballarat, Horsham, Geelong and Strathalbyn.
Sweet Emma, taken over as a giveaway by Harding last September, is by former top stayer Dashing Corsair out of Paramount Diva, a winner of 14 races and $22,000 in prizemoney for Edenhope trainer Cap Abbott.
