Let’s talk some big life decisions… Buying a house, getting married, having children – maybe even handing over your best greyhound into the care of another trainer.
Perhaps the latter is only relevant to those in racing.
Pearcedale trainer Luckie Karabitsakos had to make this decision for his star greyhound Hard Style Rico ahead of the Group 1 National Derby series at Wentworth Park.
A trainer of six greyhounds, Karabitsakos made the difficult choice to temporarily part ways with his pride and joy in hope of Group 1 glory.
This wasn’t because Karabitsakos didn’t think he could handle the pressure, it was because he, like so many trainers, is a family man and with a two-month-old and a five-year-old it wasn’t the right time to leave his family.
“I lost sleep over what to do with Hard Style Rico and this National Derby series,” Karabitsakos said.
“But I thought, if I can’t take him up myself then I want the best trainer in New South Wales to do so and that’s why I called Jason Mackay.”
With the decision already proving a good one, Hard Style Rico was involved in one of the best battles of recent times in a heat of the National Derby last week.
I’m not going to describe it. It is one of those ‘you have to experience it’ kind of races.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Hard Style Rico (B3) and Simon Told Helen (B7) in their National Derby heat.
