Precious Lulu, who won at Unibet Gardens on Wednesday in a blistering 29.52, will return to Sydney in a bid to open her Wentworth Park account as soon as trainer Robert Campbell is able to arrange transport.
“I am 80 years old and can’t drive to Sydney,’’ Robert, who lives at Greta, in the Hunter Valley, said this week.
“When Precious Lulu ran fourth and second at her only Wentworth Park starts my grandson Josh Day drove us but he is a personal trainer and finding the time to drive to Sydney is difficult.
“I had decided to quit the sport until I got hold of Precious Lulu when she was a three month old puppy.
“But I won a service to the stud dog Lochinvar Marlow and told a friend of mine, trainer Kevin Keegan, that he could use the service if he gave me one pup from the litter.
“I selected Precious Lulu, now a 26kg bitch, and she has won seven of 17 races.
“The first greyhound I trained, Miss Glendale, gave me my first winner at Newcastle’s old Beaumont Park track in 1956.
“Best I’ve had though would be Fiery Nightmare, who was a Ladies Bracelet finalist at Wentworth Park in the late 1990s.
“I think Precious Lulu is capable of winning at Wenty because she goes well on two turn tracks and had not trialled there before her two recent race starts. ’’
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Len Haaring, a grocery manager for Woolworth’s, did not hesitate in contributing towards saving six puppies from two litters which had contracted the dreaded parvo virus but the large veterinary outlay has been money well spent.
The pups had been bred by Len’s friend Bob Milne, who passed away a year ago, and now include Len’s brilliant sprinters Pure Arrogance, Most Arrogant and Isabel Enlim.
Pure Arrogance scored his eighth win in 16 starts when he scored at Maitland on Thursday while his litter sister Most Arrogant, who has won eight from 19, was beaten by a nose at the same meeting.
Len, who trains eight greyhounds at Cooks Gap, near MUDGEE, says that for him the sport is not a hobby, but “an obsession.’’
“I plan to build Pure Arrogance up to having a start over 520 metres at Wentworth Park,’’ Len said.
“I was on the way to bringing him to town in April when he broke down in a heat of the Dubbo Cup at his first race beyond 500 metres.
“Most Arrogant is pretty smart too and she won six of her first seven starts, with her first defeat being by her brother, Pure Arrogance.
“I brought their sister Isabel Enlim to Wentworth Park earlier this year and she finished second, but then broke her shoulder in a fall at Bathurst.
“But she is back in action again.
“Best greyhound I have had was Mr Arrogance, who was set to become a champion until he smashed a hock as a youngster.’’
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Helen Hanson, who breeds, rears and trains greyhounds on 13 acres at Nabiac, near Taree, landed a winning double at The Gardens last Wednesday with Eiffel In Love and Tigress Ally.
And while Helen had landed a treble earlier this year at The Gardens, she got a bigger thrill from last week’s double.
“The treble was at a TAB C meeting but the double was a TAB B so it meant more,’’ Helen said.
“I’ve had greyhounds for 30 years and the best I’ve trained was Kay Zee, who was a very good bush dog who won 30 races.
“I won at Wentworth Park with My Palomino and he went to Melbourne where he won at OLYMPIC PARK for trainer Tom Dailly, but Kay Zee was my favourite because I trained him myself throughout his career.
“Tigress Ally, who won for me at The Gardens on Wednesday, is the best of my eight dog team while her litter sister, Kimbro, which is trained by Peter Neilson, is also very smart.’’
