Bit Flash will head to Bulli on Saturday night after taking his tally to an impressive seven wins from 12 starts with a record breaking performance at Wagga last Friday.
Trained in the NSW Southern Highlands by Michael Clayton on behalf of Victorian owner-breeder Trevor Rhodes, Bit Flash led throughout to win over 400m in 22.53sec, 0.12sec inside the old record set by Cosmic Prince in April, 2016.
Bit Flash's win gave Clayton his first major success since the trainer was hospitalised with a serious illness earlier this year.
The dog's owner Trevor Rhodes said the reason he chose Clayton to rear, educate and train Bit Flash was because the NSW trainer "fed fresh meat and had access to big paddocks.''
Rhodes bred Bit Flash from his outstanding race bitch Ash Flash, who won 24 of 66 starts and earned $134,000 in stakes.
"She made the 2014 Perth Galaxy final but ran into an exceptional stayer in Sweet It Is,'' Rhodes said.
"Ash Flash is a daughter of Ashleigh Ella, which I purchased from a close friend, Doug Ferremi, who raced the 1991 Wentworth Park Golden Easter Egg winner Highly Blessed.
"Ashleigh Ella won 11 from 33 races before breaking down and when Doug decided to retire from the sport, I was able to buy her as a brood bitch.
"Her first litter produced Perth Cup and WA Galaxy finalists along with Hillbilly Flash, which I raced and who won 16 races in WA and Victoria.
"While I have won bigger races, it was especially exciting to be trackside to see Bit Flash break the record at Wagga.
"Because I am in the Wodonga region of Victoria, Wagga is my closest track and being only a bit over an hour away, I was never going to miss seeing Bit Flash in action last week.''
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WHEN Rory Trappett became too heavy 20 years ago to continue his career as a jockey, he and wife Tania, an amateur rider, decided to train greyhounds, with Tania landing her first TAB track double at Bathurst on Monday.
Irondale Romeo won on debut over 307m while his litter brother Irondale Lima took out a 450m mixed stakes final.
Irondale Foxtrot, another member of the Fabregas-Irondale Bravo litter, had scored for the Trappetts and owner-breeder Gus Moloney at Bathurst two weeks earlier.
"Darren Sultana trained Irondale Bravo for Gus and she was very smart, winning at Wentworth Park in 29.66 in April, 2014,'' Tania Trappett said.
"Then she broke her hock and had to be retired so Gus bred from her and these pups are the result.
"We have 11 greyhounds in work at Maryvale, which is between WELLINGTON and Dubbo, and while I have won trebles at Lithgow, Monday's double was my first at Bathurst.
"Gus Moloney works in the mines and we got to know him through meeting up at a Lithgow Saturday afternoon non-TAB fixture.''
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Silver Heels, a dual winner at good odds at Wentworth Park, continued in "giant killer'' mode by running down long odds-on favourite Fantastic Winnie to score at Nowra on Monday.
Owned and trained locally by Steve Fitch, Silver Heels is bred in the purple, by Sh Avatar from Tifia.
"I bought Silver Heels and his sister Gramercy Park at four months of age and paid $13,000 for them,'' Fitch said.
"Silver Heels has repaid his purchase price and while Gramercy Park has always been a couple of lengths behind her brother, I am hopeful she can open her account at Dapto on Thursday night.
"She fell in a Magic Maiden semi at Wentworth Park on April 10 and after she was unplaced at Bulli 10 days later I decided to give her a spell to let her forget about that tumble.
"Gramercy Park is going well enough in trials to win at Dapto.''
Fitch, a hobby trainer, supports franchisees for 37 Jim's Cleaning businesses, covering Sydney, the NSW south coast and the Queensland Sunshine Coast.
