Tasracing’s commitment to the Tasmanian harness racing breeding has been further strengthened with two additional $20,000 races restricted to be Tasbred pacers to be held in early 2022.
The series will be restricted to three-year-old and older pacers with no more than two lifetime wins.
Heats will be selected by maidens first, one win horses second, two win pacers thirds.
Any pacer that has won a Tasmanian sires’ stakes event will be ineligible for the series.
Heats will be held statewide in January at prize money of $12,000 at the following venues for each sex:
– Hobart, 9 January,
– Devonport, 15 January and
– Launceston, 30 January.
The final to be held in Launceston on 13 February, with the final to be rotated around the state in future seasons.
While the conditions of the series was outlined and approved at the recent Harness Industry Forum meeting, the final question remained what to name the series.
Tasracing consulted with harness racing historian and Edgar Tatlow medal winner Peter Cooley on what to call the two new races.
The colts and geldings final will be known as the Sinbad Bay, while the Fillies and mares event will be called the Jane Ellen.
Sinbad Bay (pictured), a 2014 Tasmanian Harness Racing Hall Of Fame inductee, won 23 races from 53 starts including the 1989 and 1991 Victorian Cup, 1989 Golden Nugget as well as the Ballarat Cup on two occasions in 1991 and 1996.
He was foaled in 1984 by Torado Hanover out of Windward Bay and was bred by Maurice Keating and was raced by Richard Hicks.
His injury plagued racing career spanned from 1987 through to 1997.
Jane Ellen was inducted into the Tasmanian Harness Racing Hall Of Fame in 2016.
The Torado Hanover – Ima Goldie mare was foaled in 1985 and was owned and bred by Peter and Karen Dornauf.
She won 30 races including the 1989 Victorian and New South Wales Oaks, a heat of the 1990 Inter Dominion, before finishing fourth in the final.
Other feature race wins included the Paleface Adios Sprint, Victoria Cup consolation, Mildura Cup, and Ladyship Cup all in 1990 before winning the inaugural running of the George Johnson in 1991.
Both horses have races named after them annually at Melton in Victoria demonstrating the high regard both horses held interstate.