GRAHAM FISCHER
HARNESS racing enthusiast
Geoff Easom and his
Wyndown Stud in One Tree
Hill has become an unsung
hero in South Australian
racing.
The Easom family has
been breeding, and supporting
the industry, for more
than 50 years. Currently,
Geoff Easom is in charge of
the stud, and continues to
breed winners.
Tiddly Winx is the latest
to emerge from the stud
with racing potential, and the
three-year-old filly, trained at
Penfield by Jill Neilson, won
impressively at Globe Derby
Park on Saturday.
A $3.90 chance, Tiddly
Winx dashed away from her
rivals over the final stages
to win the Horsemedsa Hills
Equine Clinic Pace (1800m).
Driven by Danielle Hill,
one of her four winners at the
meeting, the filly scored by
four metres from Springfield
Affair ($3.30 favourite) with
Franco Enzo ($5.50), nearly
six metres away third.
Neilson, and Hill, believe
Tiddly Winx is continually
improving.
“She has been immature
and still learning about racing,”
Neilson said.
“I agree,” added star reinswoman
Hill. “Two starts ago
when she raced outside the
leader, she seemed happy to
run alongside the leader.
“Tonight, when I asked her
to go, she responded strongly.”
Tiddly Winx has built up a
good record of four wins and
as many placings from just 12
starts, and Neilson said solid
bloodlines are a big factor.
“Her dam, Android, was
one of our stable favourites,”
she said.
Android, bred and raced
by Wyndown Stud, won 15
of her 41 starts and ran second
in the Group 2 Southern
Cross 3YO Fillies final.
Neilson, who is the principal
trainer for Wyndown
Stud, revealed she had about
20 horses in work for Geoff
Easom.
“I have a number of unraced
two and three-year-olds
which are coming through
the system,” she said.
“Geoff is a passionate
supporter of South Australian
harness racing and
supplies an incredible number
of horses each year to
race.” Easom said his father
had been involved in the
sport during the 1950s, ’60s
and ’70s and bred two of the
state’s stars with the 1961
SA Derby winner Atlantic
City, and Glamour Chief,
which ran third to Hondo
Grattan in the 1973 Inter
Dominion grand final. Another
keen enthusiast is Rod
Howson from Two Wells,
who shared in the breeding
of Above Average which
won at Globe Derby Park on
Saturday.
The Howsons bred Above
Average in partnership with
the Brewin family, retained
him to race, then later bought
out their partner.
The five-year-old,
trained by Ingrid Smith
from Penfield, and driven
by her husband David, led
throughout to win the TAB
Long May We Play Pace
(1800m).
Above Average ($4 favourite)
won by four metres from
Brohart ($58.60), with Ammicchi
($4.20) a half-head
away third.
It was the gelding’s seventh
win, and Howson was
happy to help the trainer by
washing the winner down
and drying him post-race.