When Travis Bullock headed back to his home track of Tamworth on Thursday afternoon for three driving engagements, the now Bathurst domiciled reinsman would have dearly loved to have won the Joan Bullock Memorial - a race placed on the program in honour of his late mother.
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For Bullock - who only got his reins licence just over a year ago - the dream did not come true but Smack Dab Shannon did provide some euphoria for the 33-year-old in taking out the Hygain Tracktorque Pace on the day.
"I was disappointed with my own drive in the memorial race but I have made up for it with this horse (Smack Dab Shannon)," he said.
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Bullock drove Shannonsideal to fifth place behind winner to Choisir Damour (Leigh Sutton) in the Joan Bullock Memorial.
Smack Dab Shannon, raced by Rayngold P/L, had a perfect start from the second row and barrier nine to take the lead not long after the start.
"I wasn't expecting to get the lead," Bullock said. "I thought we would lob in the death but it all just worked out from there.
"We got to use the horse's speed - he has got it. And we had to use it from the second line.
"I know what the horse is like in front. He is hard to get past, and I just kept him on the bit and he got home."
With Corporal Luna (Tom Ison) racing to the outside of Smack Dab Shannon, neither horse or driver was prepared to surrender.
"Dad said you keep yelling at him (the horse) and he won't give up," Bullock said of his father and trainer Peter.
"At the 400 metres I was thinking "Don't think you have got it - just keep going.'"
Smack Dab Shannon had a 1.4 metre win over Corporal Luna, with Threo, from the Ricky Gordon stables, a further 3.4m away in third place.
"I thought my other two drives were better chances and I was hoping he (Smack Dab Shannon) might have filled a place," Bullock said. "But I wasn't expecting him to win that is for sure - I am over the moon.
"Dad loves this horse, and to get the win, he would be over the moon."
With his formative years spent in Tamworth, Bullock was initially only interested in sitting on the sidelines watching the horses, before moving to Bathurst to work for his father Peter as part of the Rayngold operations, and taking up the reins.
"I never ever expected to be driving a winner at Tamworth," he said. "Hopefully I can come back and get another winner sometime."
The running of the Joan Bullock Memorial saw an all-the-way win for Choisir Damour, trained by Clayton Harmey and driven by Leigh Sutton, with a winning margin of three metres over Motu Zest For Life (Dean Chapple). Chromozone (Ricky Gordon) was another neck away in third place.
"The mare is probably not a leader but to her credit she did enough in the race to make the others a bit tired," Sutton said. "And it is always nice to win these sorts of races."
