Remembering The Great, Chinatown Lad

THIS Thursday night's running of the Chinatown Lad Feature (599m) at Hobart recalls a fantastic story, honouring one of the great stayers to be bred, owned and trained in Tasmania.

A then 13-year-old Katrina Gregory was looking to take up an interest in greyhound racing, and close family friend Gavin Whitney promised her if she was to get her licence, he would give her a dog to train.

Coming from a strong background in harness racing, Katrina's interest in greyhounds grew over the next 25 years, due partly to her friendship with Michelle Collis and the Townsend family.

As a 38-year-old, her trainer's licence came to fruition with Gavin Whitney staying true to his word, giving her, not selling, a recently broken-in fourteen-month-old pup from his Lilli Pilli Lad x Chinatown Babe litter.

Max, the dark brindle dog, as he was known, was the great Chinatown Lad.

Starting 47 times, Chinatown Lad recorded 21 victories and 17 minors with $222,730 in stakes.

Nigh on a family pet in his early days, Katrina and husband Paul's twin girls, Emily and Claira, would walk Max around the paddock at their Bagdad property, and son Braydon also developed a love affair with the dark brindle champion.

"Max was a once in a lifetime dog and he certainly changed our lives. He took us everywhere and we made a lot of friends and plenty of memories to treasure, we loved every moment," said Katrina.

Braydon's involvement throughout Max's career was to become one of Greyhound Racing's favourite media stories Australia wide.

"My son Braydon absolutely adored Max and it definitely helped with his confidence," she recalled

Max's debut came on August 9, 2007, in a 340 metre Juvenile at Hobart, as a twenty-month-old. At even money favourite, he came from third to score by two lengths in 19.90.

"I always remember the time when I first started training him and we put him in a four-dog field trial over 340 metres at Hobart and he broke the track record, so it was there we knew not just only the ability he had but the further he went the better he'd go," Katrina added.

A week later, he landed his grade 5 at the same track, but over a more suitable 461-metres.

It was twelve lengths to the runner-up with a best of night 26.40 recorded.

Several starts into Chinatown Lad's career and Katrina made a momentous decision. The highly talented pup did lack early pace at a sprinting level, and concerned about her own inexperience as a trainer, she decided to hand over mentoring duties to Gavin's son, Shane Whitney.

Shane's first start with Max was a third in the 2008 Launceston Cup heat, but it was his next start that shaped his career, with all bar seven of his race starts following interstate.

That career shaping start was on February 19, 2008, when his second start for Shane Whitney was a heat of the 580 metre Betfair Classic at Devonport.

Forever appearing to be a stayer, Chinatown Lad not only led from the cherry to score his heat win by 14 ¼ lengths but equalled the 33.00 track record set by Smart Aim some 18 years prior, and on the exact day. Winning the final a week later, he ran another slick 33.15.

His 599-metre trailblazing effort in a mixed grade at Hobart, the next start, was the stepping stone on which connections made the decision to take Chinatown Lad for a trip to Perth.

Max made his initial WA start running third over 642m on the old Cannington track, a week later he made a 715m debut in the Stayers Prelude and despite finding trouble, he bolted in by four lengths in 42.13.

That saw Max gain his opportunity in earning his group race stripes with a run in the Group 3 Swan Draught Stayer's Challenge, the entire greyhound community sat up and witnessed this freakish Apple Islander when he blitzed local star Elektra by 5 ¾ lengths in a track record run.

Max's littermates were all talented, but it was his sister Fallen Zorro that shared the spotlight.

The dynamic duo embarked on an interstate campaign, heading towards their first Group 1 feature in the rich Sandown Cup, the biggest race for stayers in Australasia.

Chinatown Lad led every step in winning his heat of the great race in 42.17, only 1/100th of a second slower than his sister and kennelmate, Fallen Zorro, ran in another heat.

It set up a mouthwatering sibling rivalry in the final. In a Group One first for Tasmania, the 2008 Sandown Cup was an Apple Isle whitewash, Chinatown Lad leading throughout, scoring by 4 ¾ lengths over his brave sister Fallen Zorro in a brilliant 42.14.

In what was a tremendous training performance by Shane Whitney, he was to then head around the country, with the top two rated stayers in the land of the era.

Chinatown Lad went on to win the G1 Albion Park Gold Cup and also the G3 Chairman's Cup.

In setting track records all over Australia in the process, he earned an induction into the Tasmanian Greyhound Hall of Fame. Max retired to Gregory's property in 2009 and passed away in 2014, inducted to the Hall of Fame later that year.