Goulburn trainer Stuart Hazlett is entitled to feel nostalgic each February when the Group 1 Rookie Rebel is staged over 600m at Melbourne's The Meadows.
For it was Hazlett's boyhood association with the champion dog Rookie Rebel's breeders, Mildred and George "Sonny'' Gram, which introduced him to greyhound racing.
The Grams, who raced 1981 National Derby winner Handicap after breeding Rookie Rebel and his litter brother, Wentworth Park superstar and track record holder Sunview, owned a property 300 metres from the Hazlett family's poultry farm.
"As a kid I would pass Sonny and Mildred's place daily while riding my pony to and from Ingleburn Primary School,'' Hazlett recalled.
"The Grams bought chickens from my parents but I became friendly with them through being fascinated with their greyhounds.
"I thought they were such beautiful animals and it wasn't long before I was attending race meetings with Sonny and Mildred.
"I wanted to be like them and breed greyhounds and in 1962, when I was 16, they gave me their race winning stayer, Bright Mariette to breed from, and she produced Rutilla, dam of the top class stayer, Gaytilla.
"Three years later I bought my first race dog, Neat Fawn and at 18 months of age, when trained by Sonny Gram, he won his maiden race at WYONG in track record time.
"Sonny then advised me to buy a litter of three puppies by Benjamin John from Global Amin for $700 each.
"When he bought pups he always purchased the entire litter to ensure he would not miss out on obtaining the fastest.
"One of the pups I bought was Kelly Amanda, who gave me my first Wentworth Park winner as a trainer.
"I bred from her when she retired and she was the mother of Copper Leader, a tiny 23.5kg pocket rocket who won over 720m at Wentworth Park and 732m at Harold Park for me.
"After leaving school I worked on my parents' poultry farm, got a job with the Sydney Stock Exchange and was employed by Londonderry veterinary surgeon Gary Carter.
"I also spent several years writing for the Greyhound Recorder and another greyhound publication, Behind The Boxes, which was established by former Socceroo star Ray Richards, owner of 1996 Golden Easter Egg winner Tenthill Doll.''
In recent times Hazlett's most successful greyhounds have been Amy Parker, a $1400 purchase at the Dapto Puppy Auction, and the durable and versatile Permanent Guest, who had 155 starts for 12 wins, 21 seconds and 27 thirds.
Permanent Guest won five races at Wentworth Park while Amy Parker won three Wentworth Park 720m races, four over 600m at Gosford and another over 600m at Dapto in a fast 34.51.
"I bred Permanent Guest and his brother Red Replica, a Wentworth Park winner, after a friend, Johnny Pace, gave me their dam Sarah Dean.
"The best I have trained was Wild Hunch, who came to me after winning a couple of 298m races at Moss Vale and who had the reputation of being a speedy squib,'' Hazlett recalled.
"I won nine races in town with him, five at Wenty and four at Harold Park, while he also won Richmond's Frank Kennedy Memorial as well as winning a heat and finishing second in the final of one of Adelaide's biggest races at Angle Park.
"Kath Hilder, Wild Hunch's owner, then gave me Acclaim Knight to train, and although he was unsound I managed to win with him at both the Saturday and Monday night Wentworth Park meetings two weeks in succession.
"Another of my dogs, August Knight, ran third to Shandy's Style in the 1994 Wentworth Park Young Star Classic while I got Sinabomb Bar through to a National Derby final.
"Sinabomb Bar and his brother Magpie Joe were unusual in that they both improved out of sight on a heavy track.
"In those days racing was on grass and I would pray for rain because they each found lengths when the surface became muddy.
"Other good ones I have trained were Bourbon Express, who won five at Wentworth Park, handy stayer, Talk Lively, a PENRITH and Richmond specialist, and Royal Runner, who won six of his first 11 races for me but was then sold to NEW ZEALAND.
Hazlett has enjoyed other notable success as a trainer.
"A highlight of my career was winning the Richmond trainers' pointscore premiership in 1993, beating Tony Pagano and John Finn," he said.
"I have several promising puppies on the way through but at present the best of my team is Lively Parker, who has won two from seven starts and is offspring of Ocean Foam, who won 16 races when trained for me by Sam Simonetta.''
Hazlett rates Brett Lee the best sprinter and National Lass the greatest stayer he has watched.
"Unfortunately I didn't get to see the legendary Zoom Top in action," he said.
