When Ivan Hanna took out a trainer's licence in 1970 he was no different to most beginners in that his first greyhounds were giveaways.
Hanna, who retired two years ago after 45 years' employment at Newcastle University, most recently as its Facilities Manager, had his interest in greyhounds piqued while at school.
"I attended Wallsend High with Robert and Steve Hardes, whose grandfather Alec owned a greyhound trial track,'' Hanna recalled.
"Through that connection I became a regular at the dogs, watching greyhounds like Chariot Charm win the 1965 National Derby for owner Bill Barnett, whose son Graeme is a present day trainer.
"In 1970 a well known owner Wally Capper gave me my first dog, Proper Draught, and when he won a race at Gunnedah I was hooked for life.
"My first city winner was Noble Roman, who raced in the mid 1990s and is still the best greyhound I have trained.
"He won 14 of only 18 starts, with two of his losses being narrow defeats at Wentworth Park by the top notch sprinters Tallest Peer and Hug The Rail.
"Losing Noble Roman when he was at his prime remains the biggest disappointment I have endured in the sport.
"He won at Wentworth Park on a Monday and five nights later I returned from a race meeting and found him dead in his kennel.
"We did an autopsy but could not detect the cause of his death."
Hanna also enjoyed more recent success with greyhounds too.
"The fastest I have trained more recently was Non Fiction, who won five of 14 starts over 12 months beginning in April 2011," he said.
"Non Fiction had won two of only three Wentworth Park starts when he met with an accident while spelling. In one of those freak occurrences he somehow got hooked up in a fence on the spelling property and his career was cut short.
"He could have been a super star because his wins included a 25.17 victory at Maitland, when that sort of time was virtually unheard of, and a blistering 29.50 performance at The Gardens.
"When Non Fiction won at The Gardens, which is my favourite track, he posted a first split of 4.84 which I believe equalled the record held by the mighty Miss Elly Mint.
"Other good greyhounds I have trained include Rapid Talk, a smart country dog, Physical Energy, a WYONG straight track specialist, Wordless West, who was from an imported Irish greyhound and East Coast Low, who won six races and was a Wentworth Park winner.
"I also had Born Ballerina, who over 20 races and who, despite not being able to run a strong 457m (500 yards) at Harold Park, once outpaced Jimmy Coleman's champion bitch Frostylee to the first turn in a race there.
My biggest wins have been in a Princess Trophy final at Newcastle's Beaumont Park with Wordless West and a Super Stayers Series at Wentworth Park with Miss Fiction, the best of the four greyhounds I currently have in work.
"Miss Fiction has tremendous ability but is a heartbreak greyhound and while not always reaching her full potential she has won three races at Wentworth Park and earned over $40,000 prizemoney.''
Hanna's eyes almost mist over when he recalls greyhound racing's halcyon days.
"I was among 16,000 fans at Wentworth Park in the early 1970s when Miss High Lo won the 720m equivalent of a Group 1 race,'' he said. "The atmosphere was electric.
"Miss High Lo, along with Travel Rev, who was virtually unbeatable at Harold Park, are the best stayers I've seen.
"Another stayer I loved to watch was Jimmy Hill's Farraflash because she would tail off a long last and flash home, usually getting up to win in the last couple of bounds.
"Because of her racing style she was a great crowd favourite and Miss Fiction, who I now train, has similar traits but is obviously nowhere near as good!
"Worth Doing, the NSW Greyhound of the Year in 1989, is the best sprinter I have seen."
Hanna said two trainers in particular left a particular impact on him.
"Two of the greatest trainers were the late Billy Fletcher and the late Len Dolling," he said.
"Len, who died only a few years back, was a trainer in my area who possessed a remarkable winning strike rate.
"Billy Fletcher was a wonderful mentor to me and a lot of young trainers.''
