Austrotforum

"TROT TACTICS"..21/03/2009..

ID-09..A great start to the Carnival..a lot of excitement and a lot of controversy,with Heat 1 going to longshot,Diamonds And Furs (Kate Gath).The time was a very quick 1-54.6 with local hope Riverboat Star (Pete McMullen) putting in a strong effort to finish only 7 metres from the winner.Queensland rang up number one in Heat 2 with in-form I Am Sam (Natalie Rasmussen) taking the lead from the getgo to down Smoken Up and Mr Feelgood in 1-54.4.No surprises in Heat 3,with Blacks A Fake coming from last to grind up the opposition in 1-54.1,best of the night.The very smart Washakie was in front when Rasmussen asked the"Black Superman" to get serious,and,good as Washakie is,he had no answer for Blackie at all.All the controversy came in Heat 4 when Auckland Reactor's top trainer/driver,Mark Purdon,did two inexplicable things.Firstly he restrained his Champion off the gate and AR objected (threw the head about etc),and,secondly,when racing in the one-one trail coming to the bell,stayed in as the three deep line commenced to move.Again Auckland Reactor showed his displeasure.Eventually,the superstar was responsible for a top run,coming from last on straightening to run second to Karloo Mick.At an adjourned inquiry,Purdon copped a six week suspension of his drivers licence.Tony Herlihy has been engaged for tonight.

On the "Rocklea Future" front,very helpful talks were held early this week between the Botra Committee and Harness Racing Queensland's CEO Mike Godber,Finance Manager Tracey Harris and Handicapper Adam Fairley.Given the financial position of the Club,there is little likelyhood of it remaining at Rocklea.However,there is much to be thrashed out in the next two months.If you were watching a TV screen,down in the bottom right hand corner,you might see an image starting to form,an image which might just look like Marburg Showgrounds.Given that the bulk of the Rocklea horse pool comes from the harness-rich Greater Ipswich area,that image might be worth thought and support.

With the first two Heats of the "Seelite Windows And Doors" trotting Feature run and won,Minden based Graham Harriott and his regular driver,Scott Neaves are in a handy position on the points table with Poetic Device running third in Heat 1 and Cosmic Thunder going two steps better,scoring an easy,all the way victory in Heat 2.Meanwhile,the newly elected "Mayor of Rosewood",John Ballin,has racked up wins with Peace Of Paradise and Love Shack (she's got the hang of it now) at Albion Park.

Trotting folk will always rally to a good cause,and there is no better cause than a fund raiser for "Scrubber" Litzow's boy,Liam.Liam suffers from cerebral palsy and funds are needed to provide the lad with a special standing frame,and gym equipment to aid his rehabilitation.The event will be held on Friday night April 03 at the Royal George Hotel,John Street Rosewood starting 7.30pm.This is just an early call,with more details next Saturday.Meanwhile,practise "digging deep"....Denis..