Compiled by racing manager Martin Seal
Trainers and numbers
There are currently 52 trainers providing runners at the Barr, giving us a fairly healthy racing strength of 430. Amongst these are 10 trainers who joined from Hall Green last Summer, and 8 Owner Trainers, most of whom have performed well against their professional counterparts, underlining the success of the OT scheme. OT Alison Hill has recently taken over the Broughton Hackett, Worcester kennels of the recently retired Jenny Walters and has plans to expand her operation once she and husband Greg have carried out some refurbishments.
The Perry Barr trainer roster covers a large part of the country, with a good number travelling long distances to race their charges at the Birmingham venue.
Dave Acott, Dougie Butler, Tony Harmes, Cliff Williams and Geraint Thomas are based in North Wales, whereas Derek Davy, Ken Humphreys, Lynn Short and Ross Williams make the long journey from South Wales.
James Danahar, Dave Hunt, Jayne Meek and Nick Ralph commute from Gloucestershire/Herefordshire, and Simon Cull and James Turner travel from the East of England. Moving northwards, Karen Coupe and Tom Hudson are based in Yorkshire, and across the Pennines, Carol Evans and Dave Welding know the M6 like the back of their hands.
It’s probably a sign of the times for any track to operate in this fashion, but credit to all our trainers for their continued hard work married to the inevitable long hours in pursuit of their passion for this great sport.
The 100 Club
There are 17 greyhounds which have taken part in over 100 races currently on the PB strength, with plenty more bubbling under. It’s surely no coincidence that several trainers appear more than once on the list. Special mention to Phil Naylor who has a racing strength of just eight.
Geneva Billy Apr 12 (Phil Naylor) 185
Kiel Puma Feb 13 (Simon Deakin) 149
Drumurrer Rumble Jun 13 (Shirley Aveline) 130
Any Given Choice Jul 12 (Kath Babe) 129
Herston Tilly Jul 13 (Ken Humphreys) 128
Bitofacrash Oct 13 (Simon Deakin) 120
Tyrur Clodagh Aug 13 (Carol Evans) 120
Black Range Apr 13 (Phil Naylor) 118
Shaneboy Selma Jul 13 (Sue Whitehouse) 113
Power Line Feb 13 (Kath Babe) 112
Sahara Rock Oct 13 (Pauline Spragg) 111
Arties Sister Nov 12 (Neil Slowley) 106
Baker Boy Sep 14 (Phil Naylor) 106
Its Only Me Jan 14 (Carol Evans) 105
Brunswick Ash Feb 14 (Kevin Whitehouse) 104
Tip Top Puma Oct 13 (Ian Walker) 102
Borntobefast Jul 14 (Simon Deakin) 100
Sequences
The old adage ‘follow a bitch in form’ is certainly ringing true at the moment.
Urney Jackson – owned & trained by Jayne Meek – unraced in Ireland but has made rapid progress lately knocking off four wins in a row (A7, A6, A5 & A4). It is hoped a shoulder injury doesn’t keep this nice bitch off the track for long.
Kippers Chick – owned by Gill Hartill, trained by Neil Slowley – has used her strong finish to good effect with the hat trick (A9 x2, A8) landed in double quick time.
Chaotic Kate – owned by Steve Hepburn & Carol Evans, trained by Carol Evans – has the bit between her teeth at present, her flying finishes annexing a hat trick (A6 x2, A5) and just failed by a head to land the four timer.
Bob Stanton
PB trainer Bob Stanton is currently on the easy list after suffering a heart attack at the wheel of his van driving home from the BAGS meeting on 22nd March. Bob doesn’t remember an awful lot about the incident, but found himself in the fortunate position of having a paramedic (or similar) on the road behind him when the accident happened. Given that the survival rate for resuscitation after cardiac arrest in a hospital is around 20%, the chances of being able to save Bob at the scene of the accident were an awful lot lower. I understand the paramedic started ‘work’ on Bob around 2.45pm and he was admitted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Edgbaston about two hours later. Enough said.
The initial prognosis was not very good, but Bob is a tough cookie, and has clearly decided this thing will not beat him. Bob had a stent fitted and was placed in an induced coma to assist the medical team to get oxygen to his brain, but after experiencing difficulties when trying to take him out of it after a couple of days, Bob was placed back in a coma for a second time, spending five days like this all told. Bob is now out of bed and getting about with the aid of a stick, is a bit bruised and battered, and has a very sore throat, which should improve.
It’s going to be a long road back for Bob, but he will have the support of everyone around him in his recovery, and his many friends at the Barr send him their best wishes. The greyhounds that were in the van at the time of the accident all checked out fine
