Harness Racing

MOONBI MARVEL DEAN CHAPPLE IS COMING UP 750 WINS AND STILL COUNTING

MOONBI MARVEL DEAN CHAPPLE IS COMING UP 750 WINS AND STILL COUNTING

There was one heart stopping incident in the mid seventies which could have halted Dean Chapple’s love affair with harness racing before it got off the ground.

THIS VIDEO MAY TEMPT YOU TO BUY A TROTTER

THIS VIDEO MAY TEMPT YOU TO BUY A TROTTER

You’ll be hard pressed to find a horseman who isn’t enamoured of the sight of a talented trotter in full flight. Power Productions have kindly allowed me access to a video production highlighting the poetry of the trotting horse and the devotion of those who train them.

BRAD ELDER’S SIZZLING SEVEN IN TWO DAYS

BRAD ELDER’S SIZZLING SEVEN IN TWO DAYS

Australian harness racing currently boasts a plethora of talented drivers in the 20-25 age bracket. Those who appear regularly on metropolitan tracks enjoy the bulk of available media attention.

BRAD HEWITT MAKES A STATEMENT ON THE MIRACLE MILE UNDERCARD, AND BAGS ANOTHER THREE ON TUESDAY

BRAD HEWITT MAKES A STATEMENT ON THE MIRACLE MILE UNDERCARD, AND BAGS ANOTHER THREE ON TUESDAY

Trainers lucky enough to have a runner at a major trots meeting are conscious of the atmosphere only big time racing can generate. Miracle Mile night is something else again.

THE MCGILLS KEEP IT ALL IN THE FAMILY AT PENRITH’S END OF YEAR MEETING

THE MCGILLS KEEP IT ALL IN THE FAMILY AT PENRITH’S END OF YEAR MEETING

The 2022 Penrith racing year concluded on December 29th with what looked to be a run of the mill programme on paper. It took a rare training double by father and daughter duo David and Katie McGill, to inject a little “buzz” into the night.

HARRY PEARCE- A FRIEND TO HARNESS RACING FOR SIX DECADES

HARRY PEARCE- A FRIEND TO HARNESS RACING FOR SIX DECADES

A certain ninetieth birthday passed by quietly a few months ago without the bells and whistles it warranted. Harry Pearce, the elder statesman of Australian trots journalism much preferred a quiet gathering with his wife Barbara and the three generations for which they’re responsible…

LEON JURD DOES IT HIS WAY

LEON JURD DOES IT HIS WAY

Leon Jurd has been thinking outside the square for most of his forty four years in harness racing. In a remarkably diversified career, the now 61 year old has made his mark as a driver, trainer and bloodstock agent.

STEPHANIE SIZZLES TO FIRST METRO WIN

STEPHANIE SIZZLES TO FIRST METRO WIN

Stephanie Lippiatt couldn’t believe it had finally happened as she took Catch A Moment onto the track for the Schweppes Lady Drivers Invitational on Saturday night.

FATE BROUGHT BRAD ABBOTT AND DON BOSTON TOGETHER

FATE BROUGHT BRAD ABBOTT AND DON BOSTON TOGETHER

Brad Abbott picked exactly the right moment to visit his fellow trainer Leon Jurd at the Menangle training complex in December of 2016.

CLUB MENANGLE TO HONOUR HARNESS RACING’S FALLEN

CLUB MENANGLE TO HONOUR HARNESS RACING’S FALLEN

I was surprised when Club Menangle historian Peter Collier told me that forty trotting trainers and drivers have died in accidents since the sport began in Australia. In conjunction with his Victorian counterpart John Peck, Peter has worked tirelessly for years to identify the people involved and to trace the circumstances of their fatal accidents.

DENNIS PICKER - IT’S ALL IN THE GENES

DENNIS PICKER - IT’S ALL IN THE GENES

Dennis Picker is one trots trainer who has no intention of getting caught up in the grind of racing all year round. 

In the last six or seven years Dennis has established a pattern of working a team of twenty horses, including five yearlings

HOWARD JAMES - HARNESS RACING’S QUIET ACHIEVER

HOWARD JAMES - HARNESS RACING’S QUIET ACHIEVER

Howard James was twelve years old when he first met Brian Hancock. Young Howard spent most weekends and school holidays with brothers, Brian and Richard Hancock, who were rapidly establishing their commercial training operation.

CHRIS WAS IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME

CHRIS WAS IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME

The crowd had dwindled and the bids were sparse when Lot 202 walked into the ring at the 2015 Bathurst Gold Crown yearling sale. Chris Frisby had already secured a couple of “cheapies” and wasn’t really interested in a third. He sat down for a moment and took a cursory look at the Sportswriter colt from Rooftop Fairy.

LISA KEPT HER FEET ON THE GROUND

LISA KEPT HER FEET ON THE GROUND

Had Lisa Miles not had an inherent love of the standardbred horse, she may have pursued a career with the RAAF. For the last seven years of her time at Melton’s Mowbray College, young Lisa Lewis was a member of the Air Training Corps.

REBECCA AND SAN CARLO- VICTORIAN HARNESS RACING’S DYNAMIC DUO

REBECCA AND SAN CARLO-  VICTORIAN HARNESS RACING’S DYNAMIC DUO

The last few months of 2008 passed very slowly for a certain Shepparton schoolgirl, who couldn’t wait to follow her dream.

HARRY’S IN FOR THE LONG HAUL

HARRY’S IN FOR THE LONG HAUL

Harry Martin seems to have been around Sydney harness racing tracks forever, and was well ensconced when I trained and drove my very first horse, a two year old filly called Red Mittens. Harry had a filly called Miss Viscount at the same time, and I clearly recall going around with him in early trials, and in a race or two.