December 16, 2019
Racing on the first Saturday of this month produced an extra bonus for South Burnett jockey Hannah Phillips.
After finishing second on First Bid in the Byron Bay Brewery BM 50 (850m) at Bundaberg, she went on to boot home three winners.
Hannah landed a double for local trainer Darryl Gardiner with Ten Taubada’s in the James Squire BM 60 (1090m) and Al’s Briefs in the Iron Jack Open (1212m).
Laura Cronan’s charge Gambit then made it three for Phillips in the XXXX Gold BM 55 (1380m).
The added thrill for Hannah lay in the fact that her partnership with Al’s Briefs now boasts a highly satisfying form line of 17:7-3-0-6.
Previously, she had scored five times on the family favourite Captain Clayton in 2015.
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Overcoming The Odds
Behind Miss Carollee’s maiden victory at Nanango’s recent Christmas meeting was some superb work by the Glenn Richardson-Hannah English combination.
The unit have stoutly persisted with the Captain Sonador five-year-old that has a history of being very flighty.
The now veteran of just three runs had a pre-race behaviour warning placed on her last month.
On December 1, she wore the calming ear muffs gear when she went to the barrier well before the other contenders.
During the delay created by the immovability of the stewards’ vehicle, English logically opted to keep her there, far away from the maddening crowd.
Interestingly, all bar the other placegetters My Cousin Baby and Joe Albert were returned to the stall areas until the dilemma was resolved.
Miss Carollee raced very tractably in the lead and now has a fourth, a second and a win to her credit from her only race day appearances to date.
Meanwhile, the team also had the satisfaction of Hopetoun Street’s effort for fourth money, beaten just over a length, at Texas on December 7.
The nine-year-old mare by Kaphero had not faced the starter for a remarkable 18 months.
(Photo: Ross Stanley)
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Valuing The Volunteers
On December 5, in a rare expression of gratitude to racing’s unpaid workforce, Racing Queensland issued the following release:
Racing Queensland has thrown its support behind International Volunteers Day in the lead up to the holiday season.
Across the state, 7852 volunteers contribute to the Queensland racing industry, providing their time and expertise to sustain the three codes.
More than half of these are directly involved with participants, while close to 3500 volunteer for the 129 racing clubs across Queensland.
“Volunteers are the lifeblood of any sport, including racing,” RQ General Manager Club Partnerships and Assets Melinda Martin said.
“The spirit of volunteerism provides a tangible way for many participants to feel connected with their communities and to make a contribution to the towns and cities where they work, live and play.
“As an organisation, we’re extremely grateful for the cross-section of volunteers who sustain our industry from Texas to Cooktown and everywhere in between.
“Socially, volunteering is recognised as a means of enhancing the quality of life, particularly among seniors, whilst making an important contribution to the community.
“Volunteers in the Queensland racing industry assume a variety of roles including: promotions and fundraising (e.g. Fashions on the Field, decorating, event management etc); photo finish, timing, clerk of the course; barrier attendants, starters and judging, betting supervisors; preparing and maintaining the track and grounds; administration and finance duties gate ticket sellers and parking attendants; operating food and beverage outlets; racing operations (parking, gate attendants); fundraising; cleaning duties; repairs, maintenance of facilities and gardening; photographers and social media operators and operating racing museums.
“Racing Queensland thanks each and every one of the industry’s 7852 volunteers for their service.”
The acknowledgement is valued. However, the examples do vary from venue to venue.
Some of the roles attract payment at some courses and some voluntary services are not touched on.
The reference to seniors is unnecessary – the involvement of all generations should be welcomed and encouraged.
The biggest pat on the back must go to those who actually put their hands up for the ever increasing demands of serving on the race club committees.
The responsibilities, the range of expertise required and the hours that have to be spent are forever expanding.
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Leeanne And “Pam” Earn The Extras
The victory in the final leg of Saturday’s Burnett To The Valley series at Esk by Run Pam Run and Leeannne McCoy clinched the $3000 and $500 bonuses for the horse and her jockey.
David Reynolds, the Sepoy mare’s trainer, picked up five points in the contests.
The six points earned by Graham Banks, courtsey of the wins by Hidden Budget at Kumbia and Court Rules at Nanango, secured the top trainer’s prize of $1500.
Run Pam Run deserved her reward.
She ran fourth at Kumbia and second at Mount Perry before bolting in at Esk.
