THE month of May is best known in racing for the Warrnambool carnival, which sees many from across the country make their annual pilgrimage down to the coast for the three-day carnival, and this year won’t be any different, although day one this year is April 30.

The highlight of the week is the jumps racing, which features on each of the three days.

The leading races across the three days include the Brierly Steeplechase on the Tuesday, the Wangoom Handicap and Galleywood Hurdle on the Wednesday, and the Warrnambool Cup and Grand Annual Steeplechase on the Thursday.  

May will also be a big month for clubs in our immediate area with the Casterton Cup on May 19 and Hamilton to also host races on May 30.

Both programs will feature jumps racing, and with all going well, the Casterton meeting to particularly highlight the return to the course of the Symon Wilde-trained Elvison, who will be chasing his sixth consecutive win and seventh overall at the course.

Membership tickets and race day packages for the Casterton Cup meeting are available via the club.

Cross codes

LAST Sunday saw a Penshurst greyhound trainer taste success again at Tara Raceway in Mount Gambier, with Penny Pinto first past the post again for owner-trainer, Brendan Casey.

Jumping from box six, Penny Pinto held a one-length winning margin over the 400m course to record her fourth win from 16 starts.

Last Sunday’s win was her first at Mount Gambier, having previously recorded three wins at Warrnambool.

Coleraine greyhound trainer, Robert Wombell, was also on the winners list last Sunday at Tara Raceway with his dog, Eskimo Larry, taking out race seven on the day over 400m.

It was the dog’s 12th win with five placings from his 26 career starts.

Horses to follow

THE locally part owned Love ‘N’ Run has been mentioned in this column previously and hasn’t been seen since her last start second at Ballarat nearly four weeks ago now, and so we may see her in a Maiden at the Warrnambool Carnival.

As mentioned previously, there’s nothing wrong with the form around her last two starts and she can be competitive when produced next.

Speaking of the upcoming Warrnambool May Carnival, the run of the Daniel Bowman-trained Is It Me didn’t go unnoticed when finishing third at Bendigo last Saturday over 1100m.

Awkwardly out of the barriers from his wide draw, he settled back in the field before making good ground in the home straight, although racing a little ungenerously.

If he can gain a start in the Wangoom Handicap over 1200m on the Wednesday at Warrnambool, he could prove very hard to beat.

He’ll get into the race down in the weights and any rain around won’t bother him, as he proved when he won his Maiden at Penshurst by seven lengths over 1284m on a heavy track at this first race start in November 2022.

And as mentioned in this column previously, it will pay to follow the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott jumpers and stick with them at Warrnambool where the Brierly Steeplechase on the Tuesday looks like being a real highlight of the week.

The locally owned Brungle Bertie, winner of last year’s Grand National Steeplechase at Ballarat, will be heading towards the Grand Annual Steeplechase on the Thursday, and his stablemate with similar local ownership interests, Brung King, might find a suitable race on the flat over the three days.