Tim O'Connor picks his favourite bits from the harness racing week that was and the one ahead...
THE HERO
Emma Stewart's Bay Of Biscay finally got his big-race moment on Saturday night when he won the Chariots of Fire at Menangle.
It followed an amazing three-year-old season, but one that failed to reap Group 1 glory.
He was runner-up in the NSW and Queensland derbies as well as The Eureka, and fourth in the Victoria Derby.
But, thanks to a great draw and perfect Cam Hart steer, the son of Somebeachsomewhere was finally able to taste elite-level success in one of the sport's time-honoured classics.
HOW GOOD WAS...
Four-year-old trotter El Bravo gave Ian Green his first success as a harness racing owner in more than 25 years on Sunday evening.
Green, who drove winners at The Showgrounds many moons ago, reignited his love for the sport by leasing the son of Skyvalley, who broke through for a maiden victory in the final event at Cranbourne.
Trained by Tyrone Abela and driven by Chris Alford, El Bravo scored as a $1.65 favourite at career start five.
The triumph was the first for Green since New Zealand mare Amish prevailed for him as owner-trainer-driver in a race at Geelong during September of 1998.
The 80-year-old won a handful of races with pacers such as Termites Revenge, True Spark and Shes An Angel, and continues his love for training with a few greyhounds these days.
CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS!
The annual Tom Hogan Charlton Cup Day Punt Off is gearing up for its 2025 staging later this month.
The Punt Off sees entrants pay a $1000 fee, with $250 of that placed in an overall prize pool. The other $750 is bet across the day's card and the punter with the highest balance after the final event is declared the winner.
All participants are able to keep their final tally, while the leaderboard-topper takes home the added bonus of the entire prize pool and a trophy.
The Charlton Cup meeting is set for March 16.
KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR...
Mach Dan shoots for a third-straight Geelong Pacing Cup win this Friday night.
The Emma Stewart-trained star raced past the million dollars in stakes recently and can give local owner Danny Zavitsanos another huge thrill with victory in the small field of six.
Stewart has stablemate Act Now engaged, but has scratched Beyond Delight from the race.
The APCO Geelong Pacing Cup is set to go as race six on Friday night at 8.58pm.
POP THIS IN YOUR DIARY
More Treble jackpots this week, with boosted pools at Geelong on Friday and Melton on Saturday.
$10,000 has been added to the pot at both meetings, with the projected totals expected to reach $50,000.
ONE FOR THE BLACK BOOK
Mitzi Said
Thought the Rita Burnett-trained mare ran a ripper at Melton last weekend and shapes as one to follow this preparation.
She produced good sectionals home from wide on the track when third to Samkerr on Saturday night, which followed a strong performance for third behind the talented Silver Pistol in a pegs-dominated race at Geelong.
SOMETHING TO PONDER...
Righto. What do you reckon about this? A Great Southern Star-style series for the fast-class pacers.
So, two (or more if required) 1720m heats at Melton, with qualifiers progressing to a sprint-trip final later on the same card.
The Great Southern Star is one of the best races on the Victorian calendar and holds so much intrigue with the test of speed, stamina and training skills.
The concept has been successful with lowly-assessed pacers in recent seasons at Stawell (Pleasant Creek Plate), and a free-for-all version could become the centrepiece for a new feature meeting in the future.
