Triple Treat

What a finish! Griffiths Racing has come home with a wet sail to close out May with three winners and three thirds from six runners at Cranbourne (29 May) and Sale (30 May).
Bingham (pictured above) got the ball rolling with a terrific win on the heavy surface at Cranbourne, fighting on gallantly over the final stages. It was a great ride by Peter Mertens who had to steer a passage from an inside alley - the worst part of the track - and find the better going.
Bingham ended up proving too fit and too strong on the line and will now be given a crack at Flemington on 7 June.
Purchased by Robbie at the 2005 Melbourne Premier yearling sale, Bingham has won five races and placed on seven other occasions from only 23 starts for $99,650 in stakes.
Also at Cranbourne, the 3YO filly, Our Talulla, ran home well for third over 1600m and she certainly can’t be far off a win.
Racing for the first time in April, Our Talulla has since strung together three ‘money’ runs from three outings and is giving her owners a lot of fun.
But, while performing well at your home track is always gratifying, the journey to Sale was even more successful.
Three runners for two winners and a third.
‘For Sale’ takes on a whole new meaning - we love the place!

Hammerblow was first cab off the rank with a convincing win in the first of the day, forging clear by two on the line. Owned by Peter Ford (the most eminent of Euroans and namesake of promising galloper, Fordee), Hammerblow is improving with every run and the 2219m at Sale was made to order.

Hammerblow (above) is by Flying Spur, the sire of 64 stakeswinners and Danehill’s most successful son at stud.
(Speaking of which, Robbie purchased a Flying Spur yearling from the Zoffany mare Puddles at the Melbourne Premier in March. Click here for further information).
Ghost Queen was equally impressive in the fourth and was sent out favourite for her assignment over 1204m at Sale.
Little wonder … Ghost Queen has now raced on three occasions for a win and a second on debut at Bendigo at the end of April.
Well named too: the filly is by King of Danes from Extinct.
Ghost Queen (below) is owned by the Kitchwin Hills team, along with a number of teachers from Haileybury Ladies College at Berwick where a certain Maddie Griffiths attends school.
Courtesy of Ghost Queen's win, we're expecting Maddie's marks to improve considerably this year!
(By the way, Maddie turned 13 last week and doesn't need our help to do well. Happy birthday Maddie).


Delago Brom 3YO, Rusky Ya Ya, finished off the memorable excursion to Sale with a mighty third in the last, beaten just over a length.
After winning at Ballarat last December, Rusky Ya Ya was spelled for four months before returning at Bendigo on 8 May for a promising fifth and, based on the effort at Sale, he’s not far off a win.
Rusky Ya Ya has a big team of owners, including the Hair of the Dog Syndicate and I’m tipping a win will see a number of connections take the name literally.

Bingham photo courtesy of Slickpix
Hammerblow and Ghost Queen photos courtesy of John Moore Photography 03 5623 5100

Rainband Shines

Big effort by Rainband at Sandown today (28 May), running on well for third over the 1300m.
After spelling for over four months, Rainband resumed with a win at Bendigo on 8 May and backed up two weeks later with a promising fifth - beaten less than two lengths - over 1200m at Sandown.
Owned by a great team of guys and gals, Rainband has now won three and been placed in eight of 18 starts.
Well named, Rainband is by Hurricane Sky.

May Play

Lots happening at Griffiths Racing during May with wins to Ernesta, Rainband and Kindrate, seconds to High Intensity, Scion and Jeulena, plus thirds to Skipped Bail (Ballarat and Sandown), Surety, Our Talulla, Danzylum, Pennycome Quick, Rainband and Dalooka.
Despite only having around a fifth of the numbers of other stables, Griffiths Racing remains in the top 10 metropolitan trainers in Melbourne and is ranked 9th by winners.

Deane's Special Bond

If anyone can find a winner, it’s Deane Lester. Deane has few peers at the tipping caper and he’s the form guru of choice for thousands of punters who tune into Sport 927 every day.
That said, he’s no slouch at the racehorse ownership business either. Griffiths Racing stablemates Marionjay, Fordee and Surety have all flown the flag for Deane this year and he was in the winners’ circle again last Saturday (24 May) at Moonee Valley when Kindrate lobbed over the 1200m.
Despite having won three of his previous six races - including one at Sandown - Kindrate was sent out at $71, the rank outsider in a 13 horse field. She didn’t run like an outsider though and, with Sebastian Murphy on board, cruised to the tape with one and a half lengths to spare.
It appears safe to assume she won’t be starting at $71 at her next start.
Kindrate is by Special Bond, who stood in Victoria for five seasons where he has produced 37 winners including Kindrate, another of Deane’s team in Surety and is also sire of promising Griffiths Racing 3YO, Common Bond.
Special Bond is a son of Fairy King who is also the sire of all conquering Encosta de Lago.
Perhaps Griffiths Racing should have been given more of the Special Bonds given that the stallion was exported to Iran last year.
Must confess that I’m no expert on the Iranian thoroughbred industry but I’m tipping Special Bond is the Ayatollah of the breeding shed.

Band of Gold

Isn’t that Rainband a good horse! And doesn’t he love Bendigo.

Racing at the Goldfields last Thursday (8 May), Rainbird flew home over the final stages to win by two lengths with Michael Rodd on board and he’s now picked up a cheque at five of his last six outings.

Last time in, Rainband - a 4yo by Hurricane Sky - was beaten a bee’s proverbial in his final two starts at Bendigo and it was sweet justice, first up, last Thursday over the 1100m. Rainband has now cobbled together three wins and seven placings from 16 outings.

Robbie’s giving him a crack at Sandown on 21 May and, based on his Bendigo bash, he’s in with a real chance.

Well done to all the owners including the Far And Wide Syndicate, the Oughs and Shiranee Griffiths (we all sleep better when Robbie gets one home for the good lady wife).

As for the Far And Wide Syndicate, it’s a suitable name, with the members hailing from Adelaide, Victoria and Yeppoon in Queensland.

But it was the Oughs who ventured to Bendigo for the win and it was the Oughs who snaffled the champers in the bar afterwards. Good on you Norm and Joan.


Photo of Rainband courtesy of Slickpix

Ernesta emphatic at Echuca

No prizes for guessing where the name comes from, but Ernesta certainly came home with the bikkies following her emphatic win at Echuca on 4 May.

Ernesta is a daughter of Hemingway and was having just her fourth start 0n Sunday. Running second on debut in November ’06 and a fourth in March of last year, Ernesta was very crook at one stage and the win at Echuca - her first run in 13 months - was a tremendous thrill for everyone associated with the stable.

Robbie purchased Ernesta at the 2005 Melbourne Premier (a very happy hunting ground for Griffiths Racing) and while one of Ernest Hemingway’s best known books was called ‘A Farewell To Arms’, Horse Hemingway’s progeny this season have grown another leg. Ernesta’s win was Hemingway’s 24th individual winner for the season and he is now Leading Victorian-based Third Season sire.

PS. Born in 1889, Ernest Hemingway wrote a shed load of books and was a bigger than life character, but had his fair share of bad luck along with the way. Injured by a bomb explosion and machine gun fire in World War I, he survived two plane crashes, suffered second degree burns in a bushfire just a month after the second plane crash and was married four times, which loosely translates to four mothers-in-law. He committed suicide in 1961.

“Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.”

“Courage is grace under pressure.”

And a personal favourite:

“Always do sober what you said you’d do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.”

Geez Ernie ... wish I’d copped the tip.


Photo courtesy of Slickpix

Big finish to April

Griffiths Racing finished April with a ‘wet sail’: the stable followed up Ruby Trois’ win at Sandown on 23 April with a Brave Testimony third at Geelong … 3 money runners in Surety (1st), Dalooka (3rd) and Golfinho (4th) at Cranbourne … a second to Cancanelle at Sandown and … a second to Ghost Queen at Bendigo.

It was the second win in April for Surety (pictured below) who flew home over the 1400m at Cranbourne on 26 April to register his third victory from 10 outings. Fortunately for all, Robbie hasn’t asked me on board as a tipster but I did suggest, in this very column, No. 3 wasn’t far off after his win at Cranbourne on 3 April. However, since this was my first winner since Light Fingers lobbed at Flemington in November 1965, the best tip I can give is to stick with Surety’s owner and form guru, Deane Lester.

As for Dalooka, he rarely puts a hoof wrong. Dalooka has also had just the 10 starts, but since December has put together a win at Moe, a second at Wangaratta, another win at Moe, a win at Kilmore (first up from a spell) and a third at Cranbourne.

Dalooka is by the Champion Sire, Flying Spur, who has now notched up 63 stakeswinners and is clearly the best son of the legendary Danehill at stud. Robbie purchased a Flying Spur from the Zoffany mare Puddles at the Melbourne Premier and I’m told there is still a share left in the filly. Check her out by clicking here.

Another stable runner who can call Danehill granddad (well, she would if she could talk) is Cancanelle. A daughter of Danehill Dancer (62 stakeswinners), Cancanelle was very impressive when second over 1600m at Sandown on 26 April and will head to Adelaide this week to run in the Gerard Corporation Stakes-LR at Morphettville on Saturday.

Finally, congratulations to the Brown family on the debut performance of Ghost Queen at Bendigo on 27 April when runnerup to Pride of Kingston over 1100m.

The King of Danes filly will head to Geelong on Sunday and let’s hope she goes one better.

PS. The saying “coming hot with a wet sail” has always intrigued. While no-one would ever mistake me for John Bertrand’s brother, I would have thought a soggy sail would hinder rather than help. Not so … in the old days “Sailing ships used flax or cotton sails with a rather loose weave, and sailors believed a ship would would increase its speed if the spaces between the sails’ fibers were filled in. So they sometimes resorted to wetting down the ship’s sails with buckets of water.” The first recorded use of the saying being applied to other sports comes courtesy of the dish lickers when used in the 1876 Coursing Calendar: “Westeria, coming with a wet sail, rushed by and ultimately killed.” Our thanks go to the long departed bunny who gave up his life to bring you this vital snippet of information.

Photo courtesy of Slickpix