Come the end of the Tamworth meeting on Thursday afternoon, Maitland reinsman Brad Elder will have travelled full circle – achieving 27 drives in a week after starting at the Paceway the previous Thursday.
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Busy easily sums up the 19-year old freelance reinsman’s life. And he is bringing home the winners, which commenced at Tamworth last week when he drove a winning double for Tamworth trainer Greg Coney.
Give Me Fifty claimed the first leg of that winning double in taking out the Jackson Quality Meats Armidale Pace.
“I drove him [Give Me Fifty] in a trial three weeks before and I thought he was ordinary but he ended up going pretty good,” Elder said. “He’s got a good half and opened up when they weren’t expecting it.”
Mastersign then rounded out the meeting for Elder in taking out the Millenium Signs Pace.
“I thought he was unbeatable,” Elder said of the Tiz A Masterpiece gelding.
It is not the first time Elder and Greg Coney have had success together.
“We are a pretty good combination. We have got a few winners together,” Elder said.
Newcastle was the next harness meeting on the schedule for Elder, with him picking up three winning drives on Saturday.
Two of the wins came courtesy of the Mark Callaghan stables, with Vega Star and Western Stride.
“Vega Star, I think he is a pretty good horse,” Elder said. “And Western Stride, he went good. He went 1min.57sec for 1609 metres.
“I have only had four drives for Mark and I have driven three winners and a third for him, so hopefully there are more to come.”
Elder also drove Jumbo Asaki to a win for the Greg Brown stables at the Newcastle meeting.
“I didn’t think I had a chance of driving three winners at the meeting,” Elder said.
He then backed up on Tuesday night for another Newcastle meeting, which saw him have six drives on the seven-event program but have no luck.
The Coney-Elder combination will be seen on three occasions at the seven-event Tamworth meeting on Thursday.
Mastersign will contest the Radio 88.9FM Tamworth Pace and will be pitted against stablemate and last-start winner Give Me Fifty (Maddison Simon); Dashing Hannah will run in the Johns Auto Service Pace; and Goodtime Hero will contest the Psarakis Accounting Marathon Thursday Next 16th August 3YO Pace.
On Thursday, Elder will also link up with two Narrabri stables – Back To The Bar in the TAB Maiden Pace and Kid Montana in the Garrard’s Horse and Hound Pace (the Shepherdson stables) – and Lexy Can Wait in the Stockman’s Supplies Pace (Jarred Hetherington stables).
Having recently notched up 200 winning drives in his career, Elder is heading in the right direction for another 200 wins and would like to relive the night he had at Newcastle when he drove four winners.
He added: “I like going up to Tamworth. It is a good atmosphere and always good racing.”
Elder will drive Shannonsablast at Menangle on Saturday night.
