Top five distance greats of the Qld Winter Carnival

Former premier race caller, and now greyhound racing journalist and historian, Paul Dolan, highlights five Winter Carnival staying champions

(Chase Newspaper, July, 2024) 

Last month this column listed five of my favourite winter carnival memories and they were sprinters.

Now it’s time to heap praise on five stayers who I reckon were pretty special at this time of the year in Queensland.

It’s not easy to keep this list to five, but let’s give it a go, with later, honorable mention to some others who narrowly missed the cut.

DASHING CORSAIR: The dog most of us knew as ‘Harry’. We saw him at Albion Park in the winter months of 2010 and 2011. In 2010 he finished second to the strong finishing Victorian Nellie Noodles in the Gold Cup final. There was a length between them at the finish in 41.84. Nellie Noodles was a noted backmarker in her races and this night she produced one of the strongest finishing performances of her career. Or anybody’s career for that matter.

In the winter of 2011 Dashing Corsair won a free for all, the President’s Cup, the Super Stayers Invitational and the National Distance Championship.

Dashing Corsair retired on a high note, winning the 2011 National Distance Championship at Albion Park. It was August 25.

Given that the winter months are June, July and August, we can count that memorable win over Lady Arko as a winter highlight.

Dashing Corsair retired with prizemoney earnings of $455,665. 

MISS GRUB: Now here was the epitome of a stayer. She used to drop out to the tail of the field early in her races and like Nellie Noodles and Lady Arko, would storm home, more often than not for a win.

Trained mostly by Glenda and John Dart, Miss Grub ran third to Miss Brook and Spalding in the 2006 Albion Park Gold Cup. In 2007 she won the heat and final of that race. In the final she beat Miss Brook and Ellie’s Diamond. At the time Miss Grub was in the care of Victoria’s Kel Greenough. Miss Grub retired with earnings of $253,160.

PALAWA KING: He’s the most recent Albion Park winter staying star, trained by Ray Smith in New South Wales. We saw him six times last winter. He won a heat of the Garrard’s Carnival Chase then was fourth in the final. Next was a win in a heat of the Origin Distance Challenge before running third to Days of Thunder in the final. Then followed Palawa King at his very best in the group one Gold Cup. He won his heat from box five in 41.83 and the final from box two in 42.00. Palawa King’s prizemoney is          $1,004,945 with the promise of more to come as he campaigns in Queensland for another winter.

TORNADO TEARS: ‘Stunning’ is the first word I think of to describe this dog. I’ve got a special spot for him because he raced during the last Queensland winter carnival that I called, that being in 2018.

Robert Britton brought this son of Fernando Bale and Tears Siam to Brisbane for the winter, fresh from victory in the group 1 Sandown Cup. Tornado Tears ran third in his heat of the Albion Park Gold Cup before winning the final in a slick 41.33.  He then won the Superstayers Invitational which was a field of five that year. Tornado Tears ran track record winning time of 41.20, beating, in order, Rippin Sam, Jalapeno, Champagne Sally and Ebby Ripper. That record still stands six years later and is likely to be the outgoing 710 metres record when Albion Park moved to the new Q track next year.

Tornado Tears returned to Brisbane in 2019 for the winter. He ran fifth to Bago Bye Bye in the Gold Cup final. Then he won the Super Stayers Invitational in 41.79 beating, in order, Ella Enchanted, Bago Bye Bye and Bago Bluff.

Tornado Tears amassed $1,003,935 in prizemoney.

XYLIA ALLEN: In any discussion about top stayers Australia has seen, the name ‘Xylia Allen’ is always to the forefront. The Jenny Hunt trained daughter of Turanza Bale ran third to Glen Gallon in the 2013 Winter Carnival Cup at Albion Park over 520 metres. Twelve months later Xylia Allen returned to Brisbane to target two staying events. She won a heat of the Gold Cup in 41.55 and the final in 41.71. Then followed victory in the Super Stayers Invitational which was a field of four. She defeated Infinite Wish, Wag Tail and Knows Class in 42.07.

Xylia Allen won $743,730 in prizemoney.

ALSO VERY SPECIAL: Fanta Bale, Miss Brook, Queen Lauryn, Wag Tail and He Knows Uno were special stayers gave me great satisfaction to call. And there are others, too numerous to mention.

I haven’t got Trojan Tears in this list because when she won the Albion Park Gold Cup in 1993, it was run in April, not during the winter.

Here’s one more that I didn’t call or even see in the flesh. It’s none other than the immortal Zoom Top. On July 7, 1969, when Queensland only had daytime racing, Zoom Top won the Queensland Staying Championship at Beenleigh. The race was over 870 yards, she was the 1/6 ($1.18 favourite). The winning margin was posted as eight lengths, but I once spoke to somebody who saw that race and reckons it was more like 18 lengths than 8!

Some magnificent stayers have graced the Albion Park track. It’s been a delight to call so many of them.

Share:

Facebook
Email
Print
FOR SALE

Greyhound Property
Avoca, Victoria

20 Acres of land

3 Bed | 2 Bath | 16 Car

$959,000 – $989,000

<< View Online Listing >>

Social Media

Chase News Subscribe (it's free!)
Scroll to Top