LIKEABLE Queensland trainer Ian Gurney can’t stop shaking his head.
He’s still in disbelief at the rapid rise to the top of Our Hi Jinx, winner of last Saturday night’s opening leg of the Grand Circuit, the $200,000 Queensland Championship (2680m).
It was in the same race a year earlier where Our Hi Jinx, then trained by Luke and Belinda McCarthy, ran third to For A Reason and looked an emerging star of the future.
But a lot has transpired since.
Mixed form, health issues and a stable change later and Our Hi Jinx is suddenly a genuine Perth Inter Dominion contender.
And that’s where he’s headed along with stablemates Avonnova and Mach Alert to give Gurney what he hopes will be a three-horse assault on the Perth series.
“I’m taking them all. They fly to Melbourne on November 9, will all run in the Smoken Up Sprint on November 13 at Melton then fly out to Perth two days later,” Gurney said.
“Mach Alert had a little setback last Saturday morning and I had to scratch him from that night, but I’m still hopeful he’ll make the cut for the Inter Dom.”
While dual Queensland Horse of the Year Avonnova will always hold a special place with Gurney, he admits there isn’t between the old guy and Our Hi Jinx fior stable star billing now.
“Avonnova is so tough and still just gets the nod, but there’s certainly more upside with Our Hi Jinx. He’s still on the improve,” he said.
“Avonnova ran a mighty race the other night (third to Our Hi Jinx). Shane (Graham, driver) said it’s the best he’s ever gone to do that much work in quick times and hold on for third.
“But Our Hi Jinx is so versatile and seems to get better with every run.”
Gurney said an overhaul how Our Hi Jinx is trained a few months back proved the turning point.
“He looked awful. He was yellow and thought he must be bleeding, but we couldn’t find anything,” he said.
“So I changed everything. I stopped swimming him, changed his feed and it all turned around.
“It turned out he was tying-up badly, but we didn’t realise it. Since we changed everything, he’s a new horse.”
Gurney openly admits he wasn’t even thinking Inter Dominions with Our Hi Jinx six weeks ago.
“No, the plan then was to take all three to Melbourne, leave Hi Jinx at Luke (McCarthy’s) Melbourne stable and take the other two across to Perth,” he said.
“Even as a late as last week, I wasn’t sure whether I’d take him. The next payment was due at 4pm last Friday and I paid it at 3.30pm hoping he’d run a big race the next night.”
Our Hi Jinx, superbly driven by stand-in reinsman Greg Sugars, led early, took a trail on stablemate Avonnova and used the sprint lane to by a half-neck over outsider Caesars Folly.
He smashed the track record with a 1min55sec mile rate for 2680m.
The shock of the race came when hot favourite Philadelphia Man beat only one rival home.
The Emma Stewart-trained star was sent out a $1.40 favourite, but never looked likely after being eased out from a wide draw and settling near the rear.
Driver Gavin Lang tried to make a sustained three-wide run then sit parked for the last 900m, but with the leaders running a 1min54.1sec last mile it was impossible.
He still looked a shadow of the horse who ran a mighty second to Bling It On in the Gold Coast Cup the previous week.
Bling It On ran well again, making ground out wide late for fifth in a race where the trifecta was filled by horses racing against the marker pegs.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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