She won’t start in a heat, she won’t have a place in the semis or the Grand Final of the world’s richest greyhound event, but the girl in Tracey Scruse’s kennel could play a big role in the inaugural GRNSW + Ladbrokes Million Dollar Chase.
Tracey has two greyhounds in her kennel at Chifley in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs. One is the speed machine Pindari Express, a dog instantly installed as one of the favourites for the October 20 Chase Grand Final at Wentworth Park when the race was announced.
The other, while not a speedster now, is important to the success of Pindari Express.
“Apart from Pindari Express, I’ve also got a retired greyhound,” she explained. “Her name is Angel, she’s fantastic, and she goes everywhere with him.
“My dad always taught us that you don’t have many dogs, but you always have to have a companion there for them. If you’ve only got one racing at the time, make sure you have a companion one or a retired, elderly one, there with them.
“And she literally goes everywhere with him. When we took him to Melbourne recently, she came along too … well I couldn’t leave her at home, could I? And he wouldn’t have been happy with that either.”
Pindari Express had been the talk of the industry in NSW after some stunning performances. In two trials at Bulli in March and April, the son of Fabregas and Brook’s Doll came within a length of the 400m track record – twice.
In his highly anticipated debut on May 12 at the South Coast circuit, Pindari Express didn’t disappoint, clocking 22.18s to equal the track record of File The Writ.
Big wins at Maitland and then again two more at Bulli over the 472m followed - all in fast times - before Pindari Express sprung from the boxes at Maitland and carved out a 24.59s performance, setting a new track record.
“When he was being broken in they said he was running exceptional times and he was up there with the best they have broken in,” Tracey recalled. “But you can’t always go off that because you don’t know if they are going to go on with it, whether they can run past 400m and if they are going to be able to do it in a field.
“There are a lot of variables. Sure he was running time, but even when he came home, and I gave him a spell and started him of again, his times were good but probably it wasn’t until he went into the PTs (trials) because he went with a couple of other dogs, that we knew he had something that hopefully was good … but you still have to convert that to doing it in a race against other dogs.
“It didn’t take long for him to do that thankfully.”
After six straight wins, Tracey took Pindari Express to Warragul for the Group 3 St Leger, but after uncharacteristically missing the start in both heat and final, Pindari Express lost few admirers with back to back second placings.
“The trip was great. I’d never done anything like that before so it was a good experience – except for the kangaroo we hit going down,” she said.
While she is eager to get involved in the GRNSW + Ladbrokes Million Dollar Chase series, just where Pindari Express heads for qualifying remains up in the air.
Tracey gave the dog a few weeks off after his Warragul trip, and now she is unsure whether Pindari Express will have the fitness to head into next week’s qualifiers at Maitland and Bulli, the two tracks he has raced well at.
“I’m just not sure yet. I was looking at Maitland or Bulli, but I saw Bulli (heats) is the 515m and I’ve just given him a couple of weeks off,” she explained. “I’m not sure if he’ll be fit enough for Maitland next week and he won’t be fit for Bulli 515m which is a much harder run.
“My original plan when I came back from Melbourne, was to take him to Wentworth Park and give him his first 520m but because of the work being done at Wenty, that was thrown out the window.
“Look we still have the Wentworth Park heats, and you’ve got Richmond as well, so there’s a few tracks to choose from. I just haven’t made up my mind yet.
”That’s what is great about this series there are options. I think it’s a great boost for the industry and especially NSW after everything everyone in the industry went through not so long ago.”
Like her father and his father before him, Tracey entered into the world of hobby training.
She walks the dogs around the streets of Chifley mornings and afternoons, and in summer they swim at the beach.
If she needs to slip Pindari Express, she heads out to Bankstown for that. Travel she says, is just part of the sport.
And like Pindari Express, she too has a companion.
“Dad helps walking them every day and comes everywhere with me. He came to Melbourne as well,” she said of her father Jack.
“He really is loving it and loving the way Pindari Express is going. He’s the best dog my family has ever had. My family has never had a city winner. We’ve not had a lot of dogs over the years, and dad might have only had a couple of runners who started at Wentworth Park and Harold Park. But hopefully this one can finally provide us with that city winner.”
Tracey fondly remembers the roles being reversed when she was a youngster.
“That’s what I love about this sport the way it’s family-orientated. We used to travel everywhere. The family used to pack up for the weekend when dad was racing, and head off to where ever they raced.
“Years ago it was so good to get to the track, you got to meet everyone, and eventually everyone knew everyone.
“It would be great to be like that again, and hopefully this new series brings the people back out to the track like it used to be, that’s the part you miss. Maybe this is where it all starts again.”
