3 minute read
Celebrated veteran Dar Lunn has a knack with discards and an eye for a bargain so when he makes a rare trip to town with a revived winner at big odds it’s a definite watch.
Elson Boy ($26 into $21 on TAB), unraced with Mark Newnham and two preparations without a win for Dar Lunn, has "found a leg" this season winning three from four into the Rosehill Gardens TAB Highway on Saturday for Dubbo's racing doyen.
A further pointer at value for the $120,00 Class 3, 1400m with 54.5kg for Jake Pracey Holmes is that Elson Boy was nominated for the Cowra TAB meeting on Sunday where he looked a good thing with 61kg following dominant on-pace wins at Orange and Dubbo where he carried 62kg.
"I've had him from a late two-year-old, the big difference was more maturity and the blinkers going on, been a real slow learner this one," explained the near four-decade trainer and former jockey.
''Might not have beaten much but the wins have been really good and if we win another one back home, he's not eligible for Highways and that level of prizemoney.
"So up to far harder grade but 54.5kg here, against the 61kg at Cowra, for a lot less prizemoney. They can only win.
"And if they keep progressing we all have hopes they might be a Country Championships horse."
Lunn purchased Elson Boy off a website when unraced by Newnham.
"He's only four, bred well enough, while he was slowly putting it together, we changed tactics. Riding him back and hoping he'd close off wasn't working.
"So we decided to ride him on-pace. When he won his maiden at Orange, he drew the outside, we decided with Jake to dig him up and he led on his ear and won impressively.
"Then this prep he put two more together and the times were good enough - I rarely come to town. Only if I've got one in winning form and progressive.
"The only way to find out their level; he's won twice at the 1400m and Jake was happy to travel down for the ride."
At 70 years plus Dar, still training decent numbers and as resilient as an outback barbed wire fence, still rides work.
He's the eldest of four racing, training and breeding brothers. An extended a family with generations of racing history in the Central-Western region.
