A strong performance at Nowra on Monday could convince Judith Fisher to hit the road with her improving charge Sneaky Bonanza.
The greyhound, who has placed in six of his last seven outings, goes from box two in the Classicbet.com.au Stayers Stakes (630m).
After starting his racing career in the Northern Rivers and Albion Park, Sneaky Bonanza headed south to unite with his Nowra-based trainer.
It’s a move that paid off, with Fisher quietly making decent plans for the stayer if he can maintain his improvement.
“He is a happy boy,” she said. “The work we have been doing seems to agree with him.
“If he gets to the 700m mark then we might travel with him to Victoria or back north to Albion Park and see how he goes.
“He went 36.49 in his last race (over 630m), which was a good effort.
“We’ll just keep our fingers crossed and see how he goes.”
Sneaky Bonanza, who is owned by Fisher’s long-time friend Terry Lockhart, has quietly worked his way through the distances after starting out at 484m level.
He has eight triumphs from 20 starts – including back-to-back triumphs at Dapto last month - and won his only previous outing over 630m at Nowra back in May.
“He’s definitely a dog you have to trial at a track before racing him,” Fisher said.
“We’ve got him jumping really well now, which has made a difference.”
The biggest threat in a depleted field for the race seems to be Clan Annie (box seven), who has been a consistent placer in recent months.
Fisher has been training for about 35 years after being introduced to the sport by husband Ron.
“If you can’t beat them, join them,” she said with a laugh.
“It’s 24/7 (being a trainer), but if you don’t like that then you shouldn’t be in it.
“I make sure I ride them from behind the boxes. If you cannot get excited, then you shouldn’t be in it.
“It’s great as well when all your hard work pays off and you get a win.”
The race is the sixth of ten on the cards at Nowra with action starting at 2.53pm.
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