I sat bolt upright on the lounge last Wednesday (August 8th) when a horse called Itsa Fait Accompli stormed down the outside to win a BM 71 at Canterbury for trainer David Blundell and jockey Robbie Dolan.

You’d be battling to find a NSW punter who hasn’t heard a Gary Kliese “mounting yard mail segment”, on Sky Thoroughbred Central, or his selections for Northern Rivers meetings on Sky Racing Radio.

Great to see Hawkesbury training team Tara and Philippe Vigouroux win with Lettre D’Amour at Kembla last week. Everybody assumed Philippe would have had a hand in naming the horse, but that’s not the case.

There were 78,500 people at Flemington on Melbourne Cup day 1976. Those still living, hold indelible memories of their visit to the historic course on the day mother nature threw a tantrum.

Craig Williams’ spectacular winning streak in Melbourne recently, has taken the spotlight off some fine performances in other states. A good example is Jason Holder’s dazzling 4 win haul at Morphettville a week ago.

I’m a keen watcher of Sky’s harness racing coverage on Saturday nights, which incorporates all races from Clifford Park, Toowoomba.  For several years now, I’ve been aware of the impressive strike rate of jockey Skye Bogenhuber. Rarely does a meeting go by that she doesn’t win at least one race, while doubles and trebles are common.

Came across this priceless snap in a shoe box full of memorabilia. This was taken in the year 2000 at Robina on the Gold Coast, and features two former champion jockeys.

I was reminded of Matthew Smith’s background, as his 5 year old gelding Plymouth Road led all the way to win the 2400 metres BM 82 at Randwick on Saturday. Matthew was born and reared at Wangaratta in Victoria, which boasts one of the oldest country racetracks in Australia(1855). His Dad Christopher was a member of the Wangaratta Turf Club Committee, and a keen racehorse owner.

How often have you heard hackneyed clichés like “this is unbeatable” or “this is a good thing”, being bandied about at the track or the TAB outlet. We can’t include Winx or Black Caviar in this exercise, but I’m referring to horses who look near certainties, provided everything goes right in the run. One sprang instantly to mind, and that was an imported English horse called Marooned in 1986.

Most race callers are so intent on getting the job done accurately, they wouldn’t give a thought to throwing in a funny line. That kind of commentary wouldn’t have suited the late Bert Bryant, who died in 1991 following several years of indifferent health. Bert believed that punters having a bad day, needed some cheering up, and he set about developing an array of  “one liners” designed to take the pain out of losing your money.

Lenny Beasley couldn’t remember if it’s eleven or twelve years, since the ravages of the sweat box forced him out of racing.

“I know my last ride was at Kembla Grange for Clarry Conners, but don’t ask me the name of the horse”, said Lenny this week. “I just knew I couldn’t do it for one more day”.

The free running and consistent Dark Dream looks certain to be a major player in Saturday’s Grand Prix, and the Queensland Derby on June 9th. Had it not been for one of mother nature’s most unpredictable and dangerous phenomenons, Dark Dream wouldn’t be walking racing’s biggest stage.

The scuffle between trainer Richard Laming and jockey Noel Callow at the Cranbourne trials recently, left both participants a little lighter in the pocket. Stewards ruled that Laming instigated the incident, and fined him a hefty $2500. Despite the fact that Callow retaliated with a left rip to the body, he was fined a more lenient $300.