Racing
Warwick Friday: Brown out for winners
The Boxing Day sales are upon us and trainer Jack Bown will go shopping for some winners at Warwick on Friday to help pay for an overdue break.
"The family has had a horrid year since we lost our son, Terry, last year and the recent storm which flattened the Warwick track," Brown said.
"It got a bit too much for us so we're talking a few months off after Friday's Warwick meeting.
"I've bought a caravan so we can head down to Victoria during the hotter months and do some travelling.
"I've done a lot of travel Australia-wide with my former business so it's long overdue."
Brown, 66, has been training for around 25 years and was one of several local trainers affected by last month's wild storm which struck like a mini tornado at Warwick.
It took the roof of the Warwick Turf Club's clubhouse and wreaked havoc on other facilities including the bookmaker's ring.
"It's been hard with our local track out of action after the storm," Brown said.
"It only opened for work last week and we've had to travel our horses to Toowoomba for trackwork while other trainers took their horses to Clifton."
Brown, who worked for many years in the gas and oil industry, has been part of the Warwick furniture for the past two decades.
At one stage he prepared more than 30 horses as well as running a spelling farm.
However, those days are well behind him and he now has a small team of just seven in work.
"I'm down to seven in work and we own them all," Brown said.
"I got a bit sick of training for other people after we lost Terry, so I've given all that away along with the pre-training which I no longer do."
Brown had hoped to have three starters at Warwick but his numbers were reduced after Kool Bruce was injured at Toowoomba on Saturday night.
He had planned to back-up Kool Bruce in the Class Three Plate before he was caught up in a scrimmage when Toute Sweet lost its rider in the 1200-metre Class One and tore his back muscles.
Instead, he will rely on Lulu A Natural in the 1100-metre Maiden and Valley Of Fame in the 1500-metre Maiden.
"Unfortunately, Kool Bruce will need a long spell after he got caught in the incident at Toowoomba and he tore his back muscles," Brown said.
"I thought all three had good chances and only Lulu A Natural and Valley Of Fame will go to Warwick now," he said.
Brown travelled Lulu A Natural to Armidale last start for the Super Maiden over 1100 metres and she wasn't disgraced finishing a brave fourth while Valley Of Fame is coming off a fading fourth in the 1900-metre Armidale Cup on December 7.
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