The volume went down on Steve Miller Band’s Abracadabra and the volume went up on the TV remote.
Tom, who began his fulltime calling career down in these here parts, put in a slick performance to call home Dicaprio as the winner of race 2, even throwing in a quip along the lines of "Dicaprio is a star" as the New Zealand-bred galloper crossed the line.
. . . to Kranji
It has since been reported that the call doubled as an audition for Tom, who is in the running for a three-year contract at the busy Singapore course which generally has two meetings a week.
Great news for Tom — not so great for us.
Other New Zealand commentators — George Simon, and Bruce Sherwin spring to mind — have had stints overseas to further their commentary careers, but we wonder if frustration has a part to play in Tom’s furtive glance across the seas.
He’s doing a tremendous job throughout the Central Districts, but is still on the sidelines when it comes to some of the biggest days in his patch.
Third time’s a charm?
Once again, the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club (aka "Addington") is dangling a fairly decent-sized carrot down the island.
The South of The Waitaki race during New Zealand Cup week is back for its third running.
Some of the entry conditions are still the same — it is a race for c1-c2 pacers who have been registered with a trainer based south of the Waitaki River as at August 1 — but it is now a 1950m sprint, and now open to 3yr-old and older pacers.
An extra $10,000 has been injected into the stake, bringing the total stakes for the race to $30,000 — unheard-of money down here for a c1-c2 race.
The onus now falls on the trainers in Otago and Southland.
The inaugural edition had 10 runners and last year it slipped to nine starters.
Surely, with a stake as juicy as that, the trainers can play their part to ensure there is a full field of 14 on November 11.
The South Of The Waitaki winter series has grown in the last two seasons, so hopefully that trend continues on Show Day.
Lazy Fiver
Here’s a fresh excuse for the Lazy Fiver.
The sulky wheel behind Kingdom Come punctured with 800m to go at Addington last Friday, so the horse had to pull a flat tyre over the closing stages, yet still managed third.
The show Bowie: Waiting In The Sky might not be coming to Dunedin, but Bowie (the horse) can make up for it carrying just 54kg in race 4 at Hastings tomorrow.
