Sulky Shorts with Gus Underwood

Spirit Of St Louis was his conqueror in the Shepparton Cup the previous week and again put in a powerful finish to win the $110,000 Group One feature at Ballarat.

The race proved everything it promised to be with the lead changing several times.

But in the wash-up the cream came to the top with the first four pacers home the first four in the market — but not in market order.

Lochinvar Art started favourite at $1.95, Amazing Dream was an 18/1 shot, but still fourth favourite, Expensive Ego was a $3.50 chance, while the winner Spirit Of St Louis was a 4/1 hope.

Lochinvar Art is now preparing for Victoria’s premier race, the $500,000 Hunter Cup, tomorrow night week.

Hope prevails

Shepparton horseman Russell Jack just missed out with smart pacer Spring In His Step at the Ballarat Cup meeting, but didn’t come home empty handed.

Jack also produced lightly-raced and talented pacer Just Hope for a runaway front-of the-field win.

The Bettors Delight three-year-old filly showed plenty of gate speed from barrier six and ran her rivals ragged, beating the runner-up Te Quiro by nearly 11m with the Keith Cotchin-trained Sassiness filling the minor placing.

Just Hope has had 10 starts for three wins and two minor placings and was having her first outing for two months, so looks to be in for a good campaign.

Her slick 1:54.1 mile rate over the 1710m trip was a PB.

Fabulous Friday

Kyabram trots trainers had a day out last Friday, snaring three winners across two meetings.

Peter Hall and Mick Blackmore produced winners at Friday night’s Melton meeting, while Gary Payne provided an upset with a 33/1 winner at Cobram in the afternoon.

Hall produced the enigmatic trotter Three Bros for a dashing win at Melton at nice odds.

Driven by New Zealand Group One-winning horseman Josh Dickie, who is now based in Victoria, Three Bros used his early speed from the mobile to take an early lead and then handed up to the well-fancied Rogue Gentleman.

He then ran that trotter down in the concluding stages to register an emphatic win.

Three Bros has always shown a lot of ability and rated 1:56.3 in winning a race as a three-year-old over the short trip at Menangle in May last year.

The Blackmore-trained trotter Yankee Lover was heavily supported in his $10,000 race at Melton and duly delivered his maiden win.

He firmed from an opening quote of $2.90 into a $1.15 raging hot favourite before breaking his rivals’ hearts with an all-the-way win.

Blackmore insisted it wasn’t his money that initiated the betting plunge and said punters had obviously been impressed with his last start at Cobram when he gave his rivals a big start and finished second.

Bred by former top Stanhope horseman Mal Shaw, his wife Joan and their daughter Louise Pangrazio Yankee Lover is rich in pedigree.

He is by super sire Love You out of the Muscles Yankee mare Yankee Princess, a five times winner from limited starts who has left five winners.

Yankee Lover’s third dam, Maori Trump, won 11 of her 16 starts and was even a bigger star in the breeding barn where she left 11 winners

including household harness names in Noopy Kiosk (34 wins) and Tennotrump.

Maori Trump’s dam Maori Miss produced arguably Australia’s greatest trotter, Maoris Idol.

El of a boilover

Garry Payne kicked off the big day for Kyabram trainers scoring with longshot El Boston at Cobram.

Payne settled the six-year-old son of Union Guy three back in the running line and made his winning move 500m from the judge with El Boston, surging past his rivals to beat the Russell Jack-prepared and the Leigh Sutton-driven Star Ruler in a two-horse race to the finishing post.

El Boston’s mile rate of 1:54.0 for the 1670m trip was a PB from his seven wins from 42 starts.

An Alluring vision

Avenel trainer Wayne Potter wasted no time in getting former NSW-trained trotter Alluring Tyron to win her first Victorian race.

He produced the Muscle Mass mare for her second Victorian start last Friday at Cobram and she delivered in impressive fashion.

Reinsman Josh Duggan drove Alluring Tyron quietly midrace and when he pressed the go button she responded and ran away from her rivals, beating the odds-on favourite Love Gun, who had no luck, by more than 10m with the Brian Bourke-trained pair Starlight Red and Starlight Storm filling the third and fourth placings.

A winner in New Zealand Alluring Tyron had nine starts at Menangle where she had one win in 1:57.0 mile rate time over the 1609m trip plus a run of five successive seconds before joining Potter.

She had her first start for Potter at a recent Maryborough meeting where she had a tough run and finished second last.

But driven more quietly at Cobram she was never going to lose.

Wish comes true

Confident support for Wendys Wish at Cobram was vindicated when the Russell Jack-trained three-year-old broke her maiden status.

Having her third start the daughter of Somebeachsomewhere was given the run of the race by reinsman Leigh Sutton and was able to prevail courtesy of a sprint lane run.

She beat the David Moran-trained Botany Bay Warrior and impressive Steve Duffy-prepared debutant Spring Line in a three-way drive to the finishing line.

Warfare wins battle

Stanhope trainer Greg Lewis has been having a good run with his team of late and was in the winner’s circle again at Cobram, scoring a stress-free watch with pacer Junior Warfare.

Reinswoman Abbey Turnbull ushered the five-year-old Village Jolt gelding straight to the front from gate five at barrier rise and was never in any danger of losing, beating the Fred McKenna-trained roughie Cobber Mac and the Darryn Rowney-prepared Lasting Bond.

It was Junior Warfare’s sixth win from 51 tries and his 1:57.0 mile rate for the 1670m trip was a PB.

Barging ahead

Back in a front-running role Tongala-trained Argy Bargy returned to the winners’ list in style at Cobram.

The Gary Merkel-prepared Artistic Fella seven-year-old, driven by Damian Wilson, beat the well-fancied locally-trained Some Change and the Michael Watt-prepared roughie For Tony to record his sixth win and first for the new season.

He is proving somewhat of an iron horse with 33 starts last year and four already this year.

Chip off old block

There’s an old saying ‘’winning form is good form’’ and that’s the case at the moment with pacing mare Cheyella.

The Laura Crossland-trained and driven daughter of Heston Blue Chip was coming off a runaway win at Bendigo when she stepped out at Cobram to again run her rivals ragged.

Crossland sent the mare forward to the front-running position at barrier rise and she never raised the hopes of any of her rivals beating her after that and cruised home with nearly 12m to spare over the runner-up Brackenreid with the Shaun Kittel-prepared The Last Chance in third spot.

Cheyella has now won seven of her 29 starts with 11 minor placings.

Right at home

Lightly-raced Terror Of Locksley obviously likes the spacious Cobram track — he has raced three times on it for two wins and a second.

The second of the wins was last Friday when driven by Bec Bartley, he overcame a second row barrier draw to beat Mister Artikulate and the old warrior Hayjoshandco.

A four-year-old son of Western Terror trained by John Nissen, Terror Of Locksley is out of the Caprock mare Loves To Rock, a winner of 14 races.

Never in doubt

Veteran pacer Lombo Idle Belief chalked up a first in scoring his 15th win when he saluted at Cobram.

It was the 10-year-old’s his first win in 10 tries on the Cobram track.

Trainer-driver John Newberry pushed Lombo Idle Belief to the front at the start and he comfortably held off all rivals in the dash to the finishing line.

Lombo Idle Belief was having his 153rd start which have produced 15 wins and 37 placings and more than $105,000 in prizemoney.

In a Flash

Tongala-trained pacer Tasma Flash didn’t take long to make up for a heart-stopping second at his previous start when he saluted last week at Bendigo.

The seven-year-old Mach Three gelding was beaten by Delightful Nikki in a photo finish at the recent Cobram Cup meeting, but made no mistake at Bendigo.

Veteran reinsman marvel Brian Gath partnered the Mick Watt-prepared Tasma Flash to an all-the-way win which hoisted his third victory from 26 starts.

Tasma Flash has had only five starts for Watt which have also produced the two wins and three minor placings.

Echuca-Moama owners Norm and Joan Visca bred and race Tasma Flash who is lightly raced and still has plenty to offer on recent form.

Car Lee motors

Shepparton trainer Darryn Rowney had had his fair share of moments with the Red Samurai six-year-old trotting gelding Cmon Car Lee, but he was rewarded for his patience again last Sunday night at Kilmore.

Driven by Rodney Lakey Cmon Car Lee hit the track running and proceeded to run his rivals legless with a dashing front running display in slick 2:02.0 mile rate time.

Punters took the risk he would be on his best behaviour and he was supported into $2.80 favourite.

Missed by that much

Kyabram trainer Graham Lyon went within 2.60m of snaring one of country Victoria’s premier events at Maryborough last Monday.

Lyon puts the polish on the ultra consistent pacer Jets Art who finished second to the Joe Pace-trained and driven Three Rivers in the $25,000 Central Victorian Pacing Championship.

A son of Major In Art out of winning Jeremes Jet mare Neishars Jet, Jets Art has won four races, but has also chalked up 11 seconds and 7 thirds in his 30 starts.

Kyabram Football Club premiership coaches Paul Newman and Dave Williams and premiership president Peter Croxford are among the syndicate which races the gutsy six-year-old.

Coming up

Today: Cranbourne (d)

Tomorrow: Melton (n)

Sunday: Wedderburn (d)

Monday: Geelong (d)

Tuesday: Mildura (n)

Wednesday: Cobram (d), Terang (n)

Thursday: Maryborough (d), Kilmore (n)