S.A. Pony Trots

FRANKIE UNDER FIRE TOO GOOD

In the wet windy conditions nine ponies & their junior drivers lined up for their second night of racing at the Greenwald Paceway.

The ponies flew off their marks as the whistle blew for the Stefan Vandervlag Memorial Handicap. Some were a little too energetic having to receive a warning from the steward after the race for excessive galloping.

The backmarkers fought strongly to catch the field down the straight. They tried desperately against each other to take the lead, but old stalwart, Frankie Under Fire, driven by Matthew Shepherd couldn’t be beaten. Matthew’s near perfect drive was his third consecutive win for the season. He hit the line ahead of the fast approaching Marmalade & Jackie Barker in their first race for the season, & Minty with Hayley Greenfield who has returned for her final season as a junior driver.

They were followed by Pumpkin (Emma Greenfield), Slim Dusty (Stacey Barker), Willow (Abbey Gull), White Lightning (Tom Rundle), Pamela (with new driver, Grady Hutchesson) & Snoopy (Kylie Shepherd).

The second race, sponsored by the Rundle Family, was another fiercely contested race with the ponies re-handicapped to increase the challenge.

Stacey Barker drove Slim Dusty with precision, manoeuvring her pony through the front markers to take the honours ahead of a well driven Willow (Abbey Gull). White Lightning & Tom Rundle took third placing with a much improved run, followed by Marmalade, Minty, Pumpkin, Frankie Under Fire, Pamela, & Snoopy.

This week should see 10 ponies hitting the track, which is possibly the largest field of pony trotters to ever race in Mount Gambier.