October'07 - Greyhounds Queensland

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Mackay NewsAs we know it is a great thrill to own agood dog but just imagine how you wouldfeel when you have bred it yourself. Sarinatrainers Reno and Vicki Mifsud areexperiencing that now.A few years ago they raced the top classbitch Good One Cheli. On retirement theydecided to breed from her, so they chosethe sire Royal Assassin.After some bad luck and injury thereare now three of the pups racing.Reno and Vicki train two of these,Royal Avenue who has had 16 starts forsix wins, four seconds and three thirds andFlying Monk who has had 14 starts for fivewins, a second and three thirds.Affectionately known at home asBonnie and Clyde they now have the taskof racing against each other.The Mifsud family are all veryinvolved with their dogs and have alwaysbeen but the most devoted would have tobe the youngest Melina who has beenknown to sit and watch video tapes to thestage she can call the races with no sound.Before and after school she can alwaysbe found with the dogs taking them out tothe run and reading to them while they areon the walker.The third of the litter is So Ha Ha, nowowned and trained by Michelle Brider, whohasn’t been as lucky due to injury but hasmanaged two wins, a second and fourthirds from 14 starts but has plenty ofability.So let’s hope that they can continue toexhibit the brilliance they are currentlyshowing.Gary ClarkNew South WalesBUSTING the scales at 43 kilos, thebiggest dog in training has just contestedhis first Group race in the Canberra Cup.Frisky Jack, the monster in any racehe contests, is of interest every time heraces due to his size, which certainlydoesn’t hamper his results.The power of this giant chaser as hepounds over the sand has seen him win sixraces already at Canberra and WentworthPark..Owned and trained by Leon Jakobasic,Frisky Jack is a blue dog, a colour hisowner was from the start.“When I bought him (Frisky Jack) at10 months old and saw he was a bluecolour, I thought no way, I hate thatcolour,” he said.Fortunately for Leon he had secondthoughts and went against his judgmentand purchased the pup also having no ideahow much growth was to come.Frisky Jack opened his career at Bulliback in January weighing 39.8kg but hisnatural development continued and hisweight at Canberra in July at start number15 was 43kg, which he has been around insix starts since.“When I gave him his first run at BulliI was embarrassed, he looked to light,”Leon explained.There is currently a couple of 40kg pluschasers in Victoria, Tonka Bale (40kg)being one of these and a 29.67 Sandownwinner.Going back to 1995 there was a dog inNSW appropriately named Bean Stalkerwho raced at 42kg and won four races atAppin and Bulli having just 15 starts.I’m sure the historians will be lookingfor record weights but in my memoryFrisky Jack holds the weight record.His action at times indicates he is notstretching out in full stride but that is justan illusion.“Frisky” is continually balancingaround the tight tracks during his racesmaking it hard to fully stride in sartorialelegance. Leon agreed: “He looks that wayto me at times”.Leon started with dogs when he was 15and had a great relationship with his dad,Jacko, which is also Leon’s nickname.“I wish dad was here now, he would beenjoying watching this dog,” Leon said.“I raced a dog with dad, named HotChili, and I’m still learning what it is allabout. I gave the dogs away for a periodas it was hard in a small backyard and thewife (Denise) wasn’t all that keen, if youno what I mean.”Fortunately, Denise is still with Leonand both are enjoying the success of FriskyJack. They are domiciled on a 16-acreproperty between Goulburn andCanberra.Leon came to purchase Frisky Jackwhen his only dog at the time, WentworthPark winner Ampleforth Boy (named aftera castle in England) was injured and heentered into conversation with breederRalph Fuller who raced the mother FriskyGal.“Ralph has been a great help and wehave become friends,” Leon said.Frisky Jack will race through thegrades in town and Leon said he willventure back to Bulli, this time with thedog looking a few kilos heavier.“He is a real gentle giant, even the kidscan handle him at home.”NOVEMBER 3Maiden (420m) $385Novice Stayers Stk (652m) 1-4 wins, $660GRNSW Country Challenge Heats (420m) open graded,best 16, $660NOVEMBER 10Maiden (520m) $385Tweed Valley Stk (520m) Best 8, $660GRNSW Country Challenge Final (420m) winner $3500NOVEMBER 17Maiden Heats (420m) Best 16, $385Maiden (520m) $385Novice Stayers Stk (652m) 1-4 wins, $660NOVEMBER 24Summer 5th Grade Series (420m) Best 32Coolangatta Stk (420m) best 8, $660Stayers Mixed Stk (652m) 0-1 wins, $660Phone (07) 55364555Fax (07) 55366894420 metresTwo Heats, Best 16 open graded.Heats: November 3(Prizemoney total $660)Final: November 101st $3500Noms close 9am October 30YOU CAN BET WHERE THE ACTION ISThe (October, 2007) Journal Page 24
IN the early 1990s Kevin Richards wasthe biggest name in Australian greyhoundracing.He stood Chariot Supreme, who toppedthe Victoria sires list for seven years, andRichards was also involved in winning fourof the state’s premier races, the AustralianCup, Melbourne Cup, Silver Chief andLaurels.Richards, 62, had weaned himself fromhis involvement which at one stageincluded eight stud dogs and a 20-strongteam of elite racers.He bought a florist shop which he soldfour years ago and is now working onreducing his golf handicap.Of course he still has still an interest ingreyhound racing.He said he still has a bet on a fewgreyhounds and selects racers he thinks willbe suitable for Western Australian racing.Richards' idea of a quiet punt is a littlefrightening because he has never beenknown to do thinks by half.He said he studies a lot of videos andfollows trainers he respects, trainers likeKelvyn Greenough, Jason Thompson,Stan Wardle and Glen Rounds.“I follow their dogs because theyproduce consistent performances. It’s notjust about backing good dogs, it’s aboutthose dogs being consistent,” he said.“There’s nothing more annoying as apunter than backing good dogs which arenot consistent. I might have a couple ofsolid bets a week.”The dogs Richards has sent to WesternAustralia include Global Warming, out ofthe Betty’s Angel litter (Brett Lee-Leprechaun Yap).The dog was bought for $10,000 andhas won $42,000 in WA.Richards said racing in WesternAustralia had taken off with a grade five atCannington worth $2900 to the winner anda dog can win three grade fives.“You can always send your dog back tocontinue racing elsewhere,” he said.Richards said he had a fair run out ofgreyhounds for a long time.Surgical implants had made the job ofthe studmaster immeasurably easier.He had up to eight stud dogs he wasusing naturally and Chariot Supreme had afull book of then 14 bitches for years.He said splitting services and muchimprovedtesting had reduced the stressload on studmasters.“It was a juggling act. You had to relyon staff, you can’t do it all yourself, andrelying on staff could be stressful,” he said.While Richards was considered the No1 studmaster of his time, his passion hasalways been racing.He won the Silver Chief with HopefulSupreme, Australian Cups with Light OfFire and Fibba and the Melbourne Cup withLight Of Fire.His Laurels success with Labyrinthcame while he was winding down hisinvolvement in the late 1990s.“I fulfilled what I wanted to do _ winthose four races,” he said.“I’ve got no incentive to train, I’mretired and I don’t have any interest inhaving a few pups in the backyard. I’vedone it. I love watching the dogs and that’smy involvement. I’m happy to sit at homeand watch the races on TV.”Richards said he still enjoyed thechallenge of punting.“I still find that stimulating. There’snothing like having your judgement backedup by a greyhound performing as youexpect _ and winning a little bit,” he said.“I watch a lot of videos, slow themdown and go through them frame by frame.Andrew ThomsonI tape every one of the dogs the trainers Ifollow put around. Sometimes I know moreabout their dogs than they do.”One achievement Richards is proud ofis having three greyhounds from the samelitter contesting the Australian Cup, HeadHoncho-Maudie littermates Fibba, Fraudand Superbee.“That was an unbelievable effort _ itmay never be done again and to win it withFibba of course,” he said.Richards said breeders’ pursuit of speedhad led to faster greyhounds but poorerchasers.“We had stud dogs like Second Stage,Chariot Supreme and Bowetzel. They threwa lot of chasers,” he said.“Bombastic Shiraz is probably the beststud dog for throwing chasers. Sometimesyou are better off with a dog that can justrun 30 second dead than a dog that can run29.86 but is not the greatest chaser.”He has always spoken his mind.He said he had last used an importedstud dog in 1986 and international sires hadlittle impact on Australian racing.Richards was disqualified for 12 monthsafter authorities found his stud dog WarySuspect had been substituted for ChariotSupreme.Dual National Distance ChampionBoronia Blossom was one well-performedgreyhound found to be sired by WarySuspect.Chariot SupremeVictoriaRichards said he had beentreated harshly by greyhoundracing authorities.“I was crucified,” he said.“It was very tough.Chariot Supreme never hadhis DNA taken. The fortunatething to come out of all thatwas there are no more no greyareas in breeding any more.”Richards said hesupported surgical implantsand other technologicaladvances since the 1980s.He said as a studmaster he oftencouldn’t read a bitch’s earbrand.“Even back then I was pushing forbitches to be micro-chipped,” he said.“I said back then litters were being rungin and all the blame was being put at thefeet of studmasters.”Richards said a leading breeder twicesent him two bitches at the same time.“They went to Chariot Supreme. Thefirst of the bitches had 13 pups and theAustralia's leading andOldest Greyhound PaperSELL YOUR PUPS OR RACING DOGSSPECIAL RATESRing GARY 1800 677 273other missed. The next time one bitch had12 pups and the other one missed,” he said.“I had to give out two return services. Iwas the only one to lose out of that andthere was no reason there shouldn’t havebeen four litters."There was nothing stopping thebreeder swapping the pups over . . . therewas no check system.’’Richards said one regret he did havewas that The Meadows was not a one-turntrack.Richards was one of three MGRAdirectors who voted for a half-circle tracklike Ballarat, Geelong or the Gold Coast.“The others were Peter Pearson andMax Scott but we got outvoted,” he said.“We were told that a two-turn trackwould be better for betting turnover but Icould never understand that argument.We’ve got so many half-circle tracks inVictoria but both city tracks are two-turn. Ithought one half-circle track made moresense,” he said.On sale everyThursdayReach a wideaudience weeklyCan’t buy theGreyhound Recorderin Qld?Then let us knowMeat & Bones:Beef Mince, Roo Meat, Roo & Beef, Chicken Mince, Edge, Weaner, Breeder’sChoice, Chicken Necks, Roo Tail Bones, and Brisket Bones, plus more ...We stock these top quality dry foods:• ADVANCE Dog & Cat • BONNIE: Working Dog, Lite & Complete• Pro Plan • Whiskas • IAMS Dog & Cat • Pedigree Dry Foods• BOX 1 Biscuits & BOX 1 GOLD • Range of EUKANUBAWe also stock Royal Canin, Rex’s Kibble, Enduro Kibbles, 4 X 2 & 2 X 2 Biscuits, MAX Biscuits,Hammock Beds, Hessian & Shade Cloth Bed Covers, Leads, Collars, Snacks,FIDO’s Dog & Cat Shampoo, Worming Tablets, Tick Collars, Supplements and much more ...MEATph 4728 9981fax 4725 172040104 BRUCE HIGHWAY DEERAGUNThe (October, 2007) Journal Page 25
Page 1 and 2: JOURNALOfficial Publication of the
Page 4: Worth DoingCredibilityNo LiabilityB
Page 7 and 8: WHEN Paul Felgate sits down inhowev
Page 9 and 10: QUEENSLAND’S stud ranks have been
Page 11 and 12: Dogs for Racing OverseasMust be und
Page 13 and 14: 2OO7superdogsseriesGroup 1ADVANCE S
Page 15 and 16: By DAVID BRASCHGRAHAM Moscow has be
Page 17 and 18: THE fact that Ron Ball has trained
Page 19 and 20: RBGreyhounds New England Proudly Pr
Page 21 and 22: 16 starts9 wins, 4 2ndsFree service
Page 23: Giveaway bitchproves a Blessingfor
Page 27 and 28: RIGHT: Barry Morris laid up inhospi
Page 29 and 30: MY dad Perc came up in the hardscho
Page 31: Spotlight on BreedingFrank Holmes f
Page 34 and 35: Logan: A Perfect HomeIt is fantasti
Page 36 and 37: FORTHCOMING EVENTSSemi-Finals Highl
Page 38 and 39: FORTHCOMING EVENTSNoviceNovice Bitc
Page 40: Genetic Full Brother to Elite State

October'07 - Greyhounds Queensland

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