Slick Badger became one of the few NSW-owned winners of the time-honoured Hobart Thousand when he took out Thursday night's $150,000 Group One final for Wagga breeder Steven Kemp and Victorian trainer David Geall.
It was a double delight for the Geall-Kemp combination as Slick Felix, a litter brother to Slick Badger, won the Hobart Thousand Consolation final.
Steven Kemp, proprietor of a plastering business in Wagga, bred his crackerjack duo through buying their dam Dancin' Ethics from successful Sydney owner-trainer David Smith.
Slick Badger
"Dancin' Ethics had won just one race when I bought her from David but in her second trial for me she dropped a back muscle,'' Kemp recalled.
"Because she was from such a good dam line I decided to breed from her and Slick Badger and Slick Felix are from Dancin' Ethics' litter whelped in April, 2023, to Aston Rupee.''
Slick Badger and Slick Felix were originally trained for Kemp by Sydney trainer Shane Pulbrook but went to prolific Group One winning trainer David Geall when their owner decided there could be more opportunities for his dogs in Victoria.
Slick Felix
Kemp said: "I give full credit to Shane Pulbrook, he got both Slick Badger and Slick Felix going well.
"Slick Badger won seven of 10 starts at Bulli and Maitland with Shane but having a great strike rate doesn't get big prizemoney, you need to win a group race to earn real money.
"When Shane was training Slick Badger the dog ran 25.91 at Bulli and 24.81 at Maitland while Slick Felix clocked 26.11 at Bulli for him so there was no doubting their ability.
"At the time our thinking was that they were perhaps better suited to one-turn tracks like Bulli and Maitland but since going to Victoria, Slick Badger has clocked 29.32 at Sandown while Slick Felix has recorded 29.42 there.
"So they have shown they can handle tight tracks as well.
"I've been involved in greyhound racing for 11 years and obviously Thursday night was the biggest in my career with the dogs.
"David Geall is a true guru of the sport, he has won two Melbourne Cups and now two Hobart Thousands."
Slick Badger
"Slick Badger went to Tasmania on Wednesday to prepare for the final but it wasn't until Thursday morning that David Geall received a phone call to say Slick Felix had gained a run in the Hobart Thousand Consolation.
"He moved heaven and earth to get the dog from Melbourne to Hobart on the day of the race and Slick Felix virtually stepped off the plane onto the track to win his race.''
Considering few NSW-owned dogs have won Tasmania's biggest race, it was ironic that on Thursday night Slick Badger defeated Young Star, owned here by Brad Canty and famous jockey Brenton Avdulla, in the final.
Slick Badger prevailed by three-quarters of a length from Young Star, who had been sent from trainer Michelle Sultana to Tasmanian conditioner Michael Stringer for his Hobart campaign.
Stringer had landed the 2024 Hobart Thousand with Bernie Burrow.
Probably best known recent NSW-owned winner was Paw Licking in 2013, who was raced by Northern Rivers owner Allan Lang and trained by Victoria's Kel Greenough.
But currently successful Hunter Valley trainer Harry Sarkis raced and prepared the 1981 winner Black Aztec.
The Hobart Thousand was first held in 1935, when known as the Hobart Cup, but became the "Thousand" in 1939.
