Staying Is Ming Dynasty’s Game
Brighton trainer Susan Gittus is predicting a bright staying future for Chinatown Lad bitch Ming Dynasty, which was responsible for an outstanding performance in winning the R.L. Foley Perpetual Stakes (720 metres) conducted at the Tote Racing Centre in Launceston on Monday night.
“It was Ming Dynasty's first run over that distance, but I was aware that staying is her game and that she was going to run me a race,” she explained this week.
Sent out at the lucrative odds of $7.60, no doubt due to the fact that the Russell Watts prepared Pudzianowski was one of her opposition, Ming Dynasty ran on powerfully in the concluding stages to eventually score by ten lengths in the time of 43.93.
Raced by prominent interstate owner Paul Felgate and one of the offspring of Awesome Mclaren bitch Brandon Sky, the lightly raced bitch has now won three of 13 lifetime outings and stakes of almost $5,000, a record that is likely to improve dramatically in coming months.
Gittus will restrict Ming Dynasty to staying races in the immediate future and will contest the heats of the upcoming National Distance Championship with her.
“The further Ming Dynasty goes the better she likes it, but because of her age I refrained from starting her over seven hundred metres until now,” she explained.
“She also had several niggling injuries which have halted her racing career on occasions, but from now on it is all systems go.”
The young trainer had previously won the R.L. Foley Perpetual Stakes in 1997 with the Fox Hunt bitch Sniper Fire and was elated at having once again achieved that feat.
Named in honour of former greyhound racing administrator Ray Foley, the event has been conducted continuously by the LGRC since 1985.
“Ray was secretary-manager of the LGRC for 22-years and in addition was responsible for the publishing of the Greyhound Guide,” LGRC liaison officer Richard Stamford explained.
“It is fitting that he is honoured in this way because he was a tireless worker for the club.”
Meanwhile classy chaser Mushy Peas, a son of Shiokaze, once again displayed his liking for the Devonport Raceway circuit with a strong victory in the Betta Milk Invitation (452 metres) conducted at the NWGRC meeting on Tuesday afternoon.
In typical fashion, the Gary Johnson prepared chaser loomed up on the turn for home and quickly put paid to the opposition, eventually scoring by three lengths in the time of 25.84, as opposed to his pb of 25.63 at the circuit.
Raced by NWGRC committeeman Mike Hardy, Mushy Peas has now won 18 of 63 lifetime outings while accumulating a purse of in excess of $35,000, 12 of the wins having been achieved at his home track.
He is one of the offspring of Restless Stan bitch Bouncy Bertha, which won seven races for Hardy, who prepared her himself from his Ulverstone kennels.