Dyna Willow Delights Wheeler
Dyna Willow left us in no doubt that she is the current Queen of staying racing at Wentworth Park on Saturday night after taking out the Group Three Gold Cup.
The dynamic daughter of Collision and Horizon Bale (Stately Bird – Vodeena Bale) seared around the harbour-side complex faster than anyone has gone before in a race. Ever.
She stopped the clock at 41.74, some 0.07 quicker than champion bitch Miata, who went on to be Australian greyhound racing's biggest earner.
Dyna Willow had produced some great efforts at the track in the past and always threatened that if she could put it all together, she would produce something special. That is exactly what happened on Saturday night.
ARG was lucky enough to talk to Dyna Willow's owner Brendan Wheeler, who's father Paul bred her. He was particularly pleased to see his 28kg bitch fulfill her promise.
“It was great to see it happen. Earlier in her career, when she stepped up, she was sort of bullet-proof out of the boxes and she lost that for a little while, but to see her sitting up second and so close on Saturday night, you knew something big was going to happen.”
It was Dyna Willow's third Group victory in her 44 start career, all have been at Wentworth Park, something that Wheeler does not mind at all.
“I really don't know why but she is phenomenal at that track, she just seems to be a different dog and with the big money coming up there we don't mind that.”
One quality that Dyna Willow oozes is consistency, something that can be a rare commodity in the staying ranks. She has the ability to lead all the way or miss the start and still find a way to win the race. Wheeler says it is a trait that he admires about her.
“It's good knowing that no matter what happens in the race that she is always going to keep coming and give it her best. I think only pretty severe checks in races have kept her out of the money too, she has been fantastic.”
In a recent podcast with ARG, breeder Paul Wheeler said that breeding staying types was something that he had made a conscious effort to do. Dyna Willow is one result of those efforts as Brendan Wheeler explained.
“Horizon Bale might normally be the type of bitch that you take to a shorter, speedier type of sire, but Collision seems to throw you stronger dogs, so that is what we are sort of going for now, five-hundred and beyond. That is sort of where the money is these days.”
There is also the chance of more Dyna Willow types down the track with her next litter.
“I'd like to think there will be something similar in the next litter to Bekim Bale, he seems to be throwing some strength so far so it would be nice to think there is.”
With the likes of Dyna Kayla and Dyna Willow currently prominent in the Group staying ranks, Wheeler also notes that it seems to be the female variety that they have more success with over longer trips.
“For us bitches definitely seem to make better stayers than dogs, particularly in recent years. We have sort of had more stayers than we have ever had in the last four or five years and the majority of them have been bitches. So definitely in our line the bitches seem to be the strongest. We have got a kennel full of brood bitches here that were all 600 metre or 700 metre dogs. Not too many of the dogs make it, even the ones that sort of look like they might often fade out after six-hundred.”
Dyna Willow has certainly etched her name into the annuls of staying racing, particularly in Sydney, and there is no reason why that success will stop any time soon.