When Kihael Road staged that remarkable last-to-first performance to win at Wentworth Park last Wednesday night, the Kim Hyde-trained dog not only broke the 30sec barrier but ran home in near record figures for the 520m.
Kihael Road bungled the jump bur assisted by a dream run along the rails, led from the halfway mark to win by 11 lengths in 29.92.
The truly astonishing aspect of the Kim Hyde-trained dog's performance was that his run home time was 11.54, just .22sec outside the record figures recorded by David Pringle's Shakey Jakey when he smashed the track record in April, 2014.
Shakey Jakey had zoomed over the 520m in 29.07, eclipsing the previous best Wentworth Park time of 29.27, posted by the Jason Mackay-trained Punch One Out.
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Riverstone trainer Jimmy Coyle is in mourning following the death late last week of his wonderful brood bitch Punk Angel, who passed away aged 13.
A handy racer, Punk Angel was even better as a producer, whelping luminaries such as prolific Wentworth Park winner Good Odds Angel, a winner of 26 races, along with Your Shout Punk (also 26 wins), Good Odds Bricky (20 wins), Evil Punk (15 wins), Radical Dos and Funky Punk (13 wins apiece), Tanks Punk (10 wins) and the ill-fated Good Odds Ocker, who was set to
become a Group winner until his career was cut short prematurely after eight wins.
Ready To Riot, another of Punk Angel's offspring, won eight races but has also become a great mother, producing this year's Group 1 National Futurity winner Blue Sky Riot as well as Black Sky Riot, Gravel Rash Riot and Here's DAVE, all top notch city class performers.
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El Magnifico's baby half-brother Finale made a stunning debut at Dapto last Thursday, overcoming a mediocre getaway to win easily in a fast 29.97 for the 520m.
Trained by Julie Fletcher and owned by Julie and husband Bruce, Finale drove between rivals to lead on the back straight before drawing away for an impressive victory.
The greyhound, a son of Barcia Bale from Little Grey, dam of El Magnifico, a winner of 18 races, including nine at Wentworth Park, had previously opposed other greyhounds just once, in a performance trial at Bulli.
"Julie and I named him Finale because he is to be the last greyhound we will be owning and training,'' Bruce Fletcher said.
"Since Finale and his siblings were whelped we have bred another litter but will be selling those pups.
"Little Grey has been a great producer because El Magnifico's litter brother Super Senor won 11 of 25 races, while Finale's siblings have begun their careers in good style.
"My sister Jill Harper and her husband Warren won first up over 450m at Maitland with Knockout Hero and Willoughby, while Another Grey, another bitch from the litter they are training, has had her career delayed through a seasonal spell but she is trialling well.
"Allan Syphers is training Finale's litter sister Lizzy Keen, who has won four from 10 races, while Striker Light's trainer Brett Bravo has won at Bendigo and Ballarat with another from the litter called On The Bonnet.
"Only reason Julie and I finished up with Finale is because he is a blue dog, and a lot of owners shy away from buying greyhounds of that colour.''
