Robbin’ the hood with Locksley Lover

Bartley has been teasingly close previously to achieving a Group One win, particularly with the grand old pacer San Carlo who she co-trained with Steve O’Donoghue and drove in many Group One races without winning.

But Locksley Lover has changed all that for Bartley who opted to hand up the lead to one of her main rivals Dont Care before running that trotter down, via the sprint lane, in the home straight to claim the $50,000 first prize.

Nissen bought Locksley Lover at the yearling sales and admitted he was prepared to pay a lot more for the son of top sire Love You than the $22,000 he parted with.

‘‘He’s just a lovely horse and getting better all the time. He has a great attitude and I’m just lucky to have him,’’ Nissen said.

Nissen said he would give Locksley Lover a three-week let-up and then look for more suitable races with the Great Southern Star in late February on his radar.

Locksley Lover has now had 21 starts for nine wins and six minor placings and his latest win has boosted his prizemoney to $115,930.

Nissen and Avenel’s Wayne Potter were northern Victorian trainers to savour success on Vicbred Super Series final night.

Potter’s outstanding two-year-old trotter The Locomotive went on his winning way, albeit with a scare, in the two-year-old colts and geldings final.

The son of Muscle Mass, driven by Nathan Jack, put up a massive run after breaking stride for a few steps at the 900m.

But he got back into his stride quickly and was still good enough to recover and round up his rivals in a thrilling finish.

It was the colt’s ninth win and his fourth Group One success in 12 starts and took his career earnings to the brink of $200,000.

Potter bought The Locomotive, who is out of the champion race and broodmare La Coocaracha, as a yearling and races him in partnership with Sydney owner Glen Holland.

‘‘He always showed something from when I first worked him,’’ Potter, who had his first and only other Group One winner in 2001 when Her Sparky Self also won a Vicbred final, said.

Potter paid tribute to training partner Mitch Frost for The Locomotive’s win.

‘‘He does all the fast work with him and provides a calming influence on him’’ Potter said.

The Locomotive will go for a well-deserved spell and should resume racing in the late autumn in feature events.

We’ll take two thanks

While The Locomotive and Locksley Lover provided the only wins for Goulburn Valley trainers on Vicbred Super Series night, drivers Nathan Jack and Mark Pitt landed doubles.

Jack partnered The Locomotive and also the Anton Gollino-trained budding superstar Cravache Dor to wins, while Pitt scored on the Emma Stewart-trained The Lost Storm and Joyful who were warm favourites.

Pitt also partnered Soho Historia into third pace in the pacers three-year-old fillies final.

District trainers, drivers and horses were also in the not-to-be-sneezed-at minor money at the meeting.

Avenel trainer Juanita Breen had Roarforroscoe roaring home into second place behind the favourite Catch A Wave in the three-year-old colts and gelding final, while the David Aiken-prepared Sheza Pleasure, driven by Jack, ran a bold third at big odds in the four-year-old trotters mares final.

Running hands off clock

The Vicbred Super Series finals produced mind boggling results.

Every winner registered a sub two-minute mile rate apart from two-year-old trotter The Locomotive who was just 0.3 seconds off the two-minute barrier.

Five of the 12 winners went under 1:55.0 and just how far and fast the squaregaiter has come in the past 10 years was demonstrated in all the trotters finals.

Two-year-old trotting filly Rockinwithattitude stopped the clock in a staggering 1:57.9 mile rate winning the fillies final, while Cravache Dor went even quicker at 1:56.6, which included a scorching 55.6 last half, in claiming the three-year-old colts and geldings final. This was the fastest mile rate of all the trotters finals at the meeting.

But it was another two-year-old, this time a pacer, who upstaged all comers in the mile rate department.

The Emma Stewart-trained The Lost Storm peeled off a staggering 1:52.2 performance winning the colts and geldings final in destroying his rivals, beating the second pacer home, Perfect Class, by nearly 37m, with a scorching 55.2 last half.

Stallions also had their day in the sun at the meeting.

Captaintreacherous, the sire of The Lost Storm also produced Captain Bellasario, winner of the four-year-old entires and geldings final and Catch A Wave, who took the three-year-old colts and geldings final.

And in the trotters ranks stallion Orlando Vic landed a double in Cravache Dor and Visionary who took out the four-year-old trotting mares final.

Pitt is metro maestro

Ace reinsman Mark Pitt has claimed the Victorian metropolitan drivers premiership for 2022 and finished second for the state title.

His 70 winners from 190 drives at Melton produced prizemoney earnings of $1.8 million.

Pitt drove 210 winners for the season and was a clear second to James Herbertson with 231 winners.

Herbertson also took the concession drivers honours.

Nathan Jack finished fifth in the metro drivers championship with 33 winners from 270 drives and was sixth in the state championship with 143 winners from 707 drives.

David Moran finished eighth in the metro drivers competition with 17 winners from 82 drives.

Jack’s trainer father Russell also had a top 10 finish in the metro trainers premiership with 16 winners from 73 starters.

Emma Stewart was top trainer for the year with 271 winners from 741 starters and also took the metro title as well with 112 winners from 425 starters.

Mick has luck of Irish

A Kyabram-trained trotter has won a final in the lucrative Vicbred Super Series.

Bit Of Irish Luck, trained by Mick Blackmore and driven by this season’s leading Victorian reinsman James Herbertson, claimed the three-year-old fillies Silver Trot final at Maryborough last week.

The three-year-old pounced on the lead from barrier three and led her rivals a merry dance over the 2190m trip to claim the major slice of the $25,000 prizemoney.

Blackmore was disappointed in her previous start in a heat of the series the previous week when she was in a winning position turning for home and broke stride.

Owned and bred by Kyabram trots stalwart Darrell Pell, Bit Of Irish Luck – named after her sire Father Patrick ― has had 12 starts for four wins, all this season from nine starts.

Sutton, Pitt hit Silver

Goulburn Valley reinsmen Leigh Sutton and Mark Pitt shared in major spoils in the $25,000 Vicbred Super Series Silver finals at Bendigo last week.

Sutton partnered the Tim Maddix-trained Madigan to a strong win in the two-year-old colts and geldings final, while Pitt took the three-year-old version on the Emma Stewart-prepared Idealrockidealroll.

Sutton completed the hat-trick of wins on Madigan with a top drive.

A son of Sweet Lou, he had won at Maryborough and Echuca at his two previous starts.

Wilson goes places

Byrneside horseman Damian Wilson certainly made the most of his opportunities at the Cranbourne meeting last week.

Wilson had two drives at the meeting and was successful on both of them.

And it was a hit-and-run affair with the two winners coming in the first two races which made the long trip home seem that much shorter.

Wilson opened his winning account on five-year-old Grinfromeartoear mare Shes Going Places, prepared by Kyabram trainer Rod Woods Sr and raced by the Woods clan.

Wilson worked Shes Going Places into the one-one sit and the mare had too much zip for her rivals at the business end of the race.

A winner at Swan Hill in October, Shes Going Places indicated a coming win with a second to Didshedoit at Echuca on December 21 at her previous start.

Her 26 starts have now produced two wins and five minor placings.

Wilson completed his driving double on the talented two-year-old pacer Will He Reign, who he trains, and led from pillar to post.

It was the son of Sweet Lou’s second win with five minor placings in 12 starts as a two-year-old.

One of his placings was runner-up in the $150,000 Vic Gold Bullion final in May which had a healthy $22,000 for second prize.

Picola’s Peter Ogden is a part owner and gets a big kick out of her wins.

Enjoying a Cee Cee

Elmore trainer Keith Cotchin celebrated the 2022 sunset at last Friday’s Stawell meeting when two-year-old Tooram Cee Cee scored a well-deserved win.

After a second and a third at his only two previous starts ― both in December ― the Betterthancheddar gelding was given the run of the race by reinsman Ryan Duffy and finished strongly along the sprint lane to shed his maiden status.

Tooram Cee Cee is out of the Christian Cullen mare Lady Octavia who was extra smart winning 14 races and running 32 placings from 85 starts.

But she has been a shy breeder with Tooram Cee Cee only one of three foals to race the only winner to date.

Purds has words

Former Free Press manager and long-serving Kyabram Trots Club secretary and industry stalwart Ian Purdey, who now lives in Melbourne, admits he gets frustrated when journalists start rating and ranking the performances of our sportspeople, particularly our women.

The man affectionately known as ‘‘Purds’’ couldn’t believe that in a recent paper poll in a national paper of the 20 best women’s sporting performances of the year trots training genius Emma Stewart failed to make the list.

‘‘When is someone going to recognise and acknowledge her training feats, because they are truly remarkably. Her efforts match up with the best ever in a tough industry,’’ Purds said.

Stewart demonstrated her training skills again last week at Maryborough with a three-year-old filly called Major Grace.

The three-year-old Art Major filly had had 25 starts in New Zealand for a second and four thirds before joining the Stewart barn.

Driven by Mark Pitt, Major Grace was sent out a $1.09 favourite in her Australian debut and toyed with he rivals in a 1:56.0 performance over the 1690m trip which included a 56.4 last half.

Enough said.

Castles in the sky

Donna Castles greeted the new year with a training treble at Echuca’s Frank Ryan Raceway on New Year’s night.

The Castles-trained trotter Berriesandcherries and pacers Arapps and Cheeki Philtra saluted in a memorable start to 2023 for the Ardmona horsewoman.

Doc Wilson partnered Arraps to his second win, while Castles drove Berriesandcherries and Cheeki Philtra.

Berriesandcherries, a six-year-old mare by Crazed, made it two wins in her last three starts after winning at Bendigo on December 22 and has now won six races and been placed eight times in 37 starts.

In winning, seven-year-old Modern Art mare, Cheeki Philtra posted her seventh win and has also been placed 22 times.

Castles wasn’t the only Northern Victorian trainer to welcome in the new year with wins at the meeting.

Murchison trainer Greg Fleming produced the David Moran-driven Mauries Bonus for his ninth win, Kyabram’s Graham Lyon scored with the Jordan Chibnall-driven Ace Montana to complete successive wins on the track, while Byrneside’s Laura Crossland got the best out of talented trotter Aristotle in notching his third win.