A TERRIBLE crash had three drivers taken to hospital and the track standing still for almost an hour at Tamworth Paceway yesterday.
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Halfway Holme went down on the first bend in the Tamworth Car Carrying Three-Year-Old Handicap and brought down half the field with it.
The Ian Verning-trained- and-driven horse seemed to stumble before going down.
The Trent Hodges-driven Man With Attitude was straight behind and, when they hit the fallen horse and rider, Hodges went flying.
Nostalgic Beach and Onethingforcertain were next into the melee which had horses, drivers and carts going everywhere in one of the worst stacks seen for a while.
Dwayne Brown, who was on Nostalgic Beach, suffered a leg injury whilst Verning had chest pains and a possible broken sternum.
Darrell Standen was also injured but remained on track, although Hodges was in the most trouble.
The Queensland driver suffered serious injuries and was left on the track for half an hour with paramedics working on him.
Morphine injections were given and a spinal board used to finally take the injured driver to Tamworth Base Hospital.
The horses and drivers were checked for injury and the stewards had a review of the tapes before it was decided to re-run the race.
The four horses involved were scratched and almost an hour late the race was run and won by Cammy’s Star.
The Lola Weideman-trained-and-driven horse was in the lead and in front of the crash at the first start and went out fast again in the second.
“I wanted to lead and nothing changed for us after the re-start,” Weideman said.
“I got the race running how I wanted and we got left alone.
“She did the rest.”
“I think we would have won the first start as well.”
It is the second race the three-year-old brown filly has won after winning at Redcliffe in July this year.
She placed second in Tamworth at the start of the month before finding herself one out and two back to finish seventh in Redcliffe a week before Christmas.
Weideman, who trains out of Clifton, said she is definitely getting better with age and experience.
“She had a bit of a break and then ran some placings lately.
“She is on the improve and is good on her day.”
