Former Star Sprinter's Perfect Start At Stud

VICTORIAN trainer Terry Reid proudly boasts that his former great sprinter Ronray Spirit is the leading strike rate stud dog in Australia.

“That will be the case at least until Friday night,” Reid said.

On Friday, at Geelong, Ronray Spirit's very first progeny to hit the racetrack, littermates Blue Stingray and Bonnie Too Good (Ronray Spirit x Fancy Stitches) clash in a 460 metre maiden final.

FIELDS AND FORM GEELONG FRIDAY NIGHT

The pair won their heats in 26.23 and 26.37 respectively to give Ronray Spirit the perfect start to his stud career.

That initial success for the littermates came after much consternation for the Reid family.

“We got Fancy Stitches from Reg Hazelgrove in Queensland and she won 13 races up there including a few at Albion Park,” Reid said.

“We brought her down here to mate to Ronray Spirit but she really tested our patience.

“We gave her until Christmas in 2018 to come on but when she didn't we stretched that to the following Easter.

“When Easter came and went, she was looking like she would never come on season.

“My daughter Kylie is in charge of the syndicate and she kept holding out for her to come on season. Eventually, we gave up and Kylie booked her in to the adoption program.

“She was due to go to the program on the Tuesday but came on the previous Sunday.”

Fancy Stitches whelped five pups to Ronray Spirit (26 wins, $177,000), in October 2019 and Terry says Stuart Dickinson did a fabulous job of rearing them in NSW.

“All five of them can run and will win races, but the two in at Geelong in the final on Friday are the best of them,” Reid added.

“They will go on to be good money spinners for us.”

Terry had no hesitation in using his former star sprinter Ronray Spirit on the bitch.

He won a Warragul Cup and Warrnambool Cup and was a finalist in a Golden Easter Egg and three other Group finals.

“He was a terrific dog and won 24 of his first 50 starts and raced none other than Fernando Bale and Dyna Double One at their peak,” he said.