LGHR has been slack in not recognizing before now the outstanding success – once again – of the Grafton Carnival which ended last Sunday.
As usual there was that on the track, specifically emerging stayer, King Pedro, a Spring Carnival prospect headed to The Metropolitan in October after his impressive win in the Cup.
But, for ours, the Group One performance of the carnival was that of veteran race-caller Terry Spargo who lined up at Grafton for the umpteenth time.
Only Spargo knows how many times he has called the Ramornie-Cup double, but now in his 70’s, Terry continues to do it accurately and professionally.
With over half a century of race broadcasting behind him, Spargo deserves recognition in the Hall of Fame. Incredibly, his calls today are as fine tuned and accurate as they were 20 years ago.
It’s been back to the future for Spargo since he returned to Queensland in 2018 after almost two decades of calling in Dubai. He is the jack-of-all-trades for SKY these days, broadcasting just as well at the trots and dogs as he does at the gallops.
AND on another note with Grafton, one of the best country carnivals in Australia, one wonders why the Ramornie Handicap, a major sprint race on the NSW country circuit, is not the primary meeting of the day in NSW.
It seems ridiculous that a second-rate Warwick Farm midweek in Sydney takes pride of place over this Listed $200,000 feature.
Had it not been for runners from the powerful Chris Waller stable, one could argue that Warwick Farm would have struggled to conduct a five-race card last week.
In contrast the Ramornie, run for over a century and won by some of the best sprinters in the land, continues to prove a blockbuster for the Clarence River Jockey Club. Time for things to change Mr V’landys.
