Working After school for leading trainer Jack Snodgrass laid the foundation for Larry Procopio’s four decades long love affair with greyhound racing and for his wife, Jack’s daughter Leanne.
Procopio, who has won five recent Wentworth Park races with Passenger, was a 15-year-old Riverstone High School student when he began helping out the late Jack Snodgrass.
“Jack’s place was Next door to Riverstone High and because he had up to 250 greyhounds on his property he needed assistance,’’ Procopio recalled this week.
“I would go there at 3.30pm and get home between six and seven o’clock so homework took a back seat.
“And when Jack went to Lithgow to trial on most Tuesdays I often wagged school and went with him.
“Our physical education teacher worked part-time on the totalisator at Richmond dogs so I think he was a wake-up to what I was doing.
“But I enjoyed working for Jack and fell in love with his daughter Leanne who I married in 1981.’’
Leanne and Larry have four children, Louise (31), Lisa (30), Sarah (27) and Domenic (24) but while their mother has always been as enthusiastic about the dogs as Larry the children are unlikely to follow in their parents’ footsteps.
“My father was a fencing contractor but was a diabetic so when his doctor warned him he might not live a long life he went full-time into his hobby of breeding, rearing and training greyhounds,’’ Leanne said.
“Dad finished up losing a leg because of the diabetes but was 84 when he died in 2010.
“He trained the 1984 Potential Stakes winner Dial Seven, won a Wentworth Park Lord Mayor’s Cup with Your No Match, and prepared the top class stayers Jodarlene, With The Wind and Matchless Mari, who finished second to Shy Julie in the 1984 Harold Park Summer Cup, run in race record time.’’
“Jack and I did not have a single argument the whole time we trained together, although we each had our own way of doing things," said Larry.
“My first winner Fluent Flyer, was the first greyhound I trained myself while No Singles was my first city winner in 1983.
“In 1984 they held qualifying trials for the National Derby and No Singles was fastest heat winner before finishing second in a semi-final while I won another semi with That’s My Boy, while Jimmy Coleman’s Inch Time won the final.
“The best greyhound Leanne and I have trained was What’s New, who won 25 sprint and staying races while other good ones have been his brother Catch Me Soon along with Lefty, Brindle Wings, Six Days and Beijing Title.
“Catch Me Soon was a talented stayer but was an unreliable chaser so we sent him to NEW ZEALAND where he won 22 from 27 starts behind the finish-on lure and took out a NEW ZEALAND Cup.
“Fastest we’ve had was Torch Express who, as an unraced youngster, was beating our top grader Beijing Title in trials and was clocking 22.90 at Richmond when the record was 22.80.
“But Torch Express was bitten by what veterinary surgeons believed was a mosquito and developed an infected pelvis and losing him remains the biggest disappointment we’ve experienced.
“Our biggest thrill was winning the Tedesco Formal Wear Trophy at Wentworth Park with What’s New’s brother Beijing Blue, because I had a good bet on him and he paid $69 for a win!’’
Larry says his favourite track is the “Next one where we win a race’’ but Leanne has a soft spot for Grafton, After many years attending the Winter Carnival with her father and Larry during the 1970s and ‘80s.
An eventful and frustrating trip to Grafton Larry Procopio made with Jack Snodgrass in the 1970s typifies the never-say-die attitude of most greyhound folk.
“We took 15 greyhounds to Grafton for the carnival, some in Jack’s truck and others in my trailer,’’ Larry recalled.
“On the way one of our tyres caught fire and then when we lost a wheel off the trailer our most promising dog escaped, ran into a paddock, and got kicked by a horse!
“By the time we reached Grafton we had been on the road for 16 hours and After all that we won just one race over the entire carnival, but we still had fun.’’
Larry, who has long been a bricklayer and still works at that occupation when needed, rates current champion Fernando Bale, along with 1984 and ’85 NSW Greyhound Of The Year National Lass and 1984 Vic Peters Classic winner Brother Fox as the best he has seen.
