Lance Justice awarded Cranbourne Premiership
Lance Justice capped off a stellar harness racing season winning the Cranbourne trainers premiership for the 2013/14 season.
Cranbourne Harness Racing Club celebrated a successful season with the presentation of its Annual Awards.
Justice took out the coveted Hygain Feeds Trainer of The Year after having 14 wins, seven seconds and three thirds from 47 starts at Cranbourne. Jayne Davies and Ross Sugars came a close second and third.
Sugars did not go home empty handed though, with his horse Cowboy Cadillac being crowned the Condo’s Horse Transport Horse of Year, after securing a place in every start at Cranbourne during the season. The pacer had six starts for two wins, three seconds and one third.
Chris Alford drove in 127 races at Cranbourne for the season, winning 24 of them and placing in another 30. The achievement saw him take out the Aussie Home Loans Cranbourne Driver of Year. Alford has dominated this award in the past having now won 14 of the past 16 titles at Cranbourne.
Zac Phillips was victorious in the Ted Bull Funeral Services Concession Driver of Year category, after winning three races, as well as coming second in five and third in four for the season.
In arguably the most unbelievable win of the night, local trainer Charlie Wootton was drawn the winner of the Cranbourne Trainers Bonanza, which awards him an all expenses paid trip for two to an international harness racing event. His partner, Viv Tomren, won the bonanza last season and the couple has just returned from their trip to North America in September to the Little Brown Jug event.
The initiative was introduced in 2007-08 as a means of rewarding trainers for their participation at Cranbourne. At each race meeting throughout the year, the winning trainer of a nominated Bonanza race goes into an end of season draw, along with a trainer chosen at random from competing trainers at that meeting.
Woottin and Tomren had just one entry in this year’s draw, so they couldn’t believe their luck.
“Apart from being a bit embarrassed, we were very excited,” Tomren said.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity. We are not sure where we will go yet. We aimed for the bonanza races. Every time I looked through our race options, I would look for those races and go in them. So we are absolutely stoked to win.”
Tomren said she believed close friend Danielle Lewis, who was tragically killed in a harness racing accident in September, was watching over them. She said Dani’s passing at the time of their last trip affected them a lot.
“As I said on Sunday night, I think Dani had something to do with this,” she said. I think she got us this win again so we can be happier and enjoy this trip more this time around,” she said.
Trainer David Aiken won second prize in the trainers bonanza, winning a Husqvarna ride on lawn mower and utility trailer, thanks to The Redshed.
