Phil’s shy chaser to have a crack at QGOLD riches

By Pat McLeod

Rockhampton trainer Phil Sear knew he had a quick young dog, but there was just one problem.

She didn’t like people.

“She is definitely a different dog, unique,” Sear says with a laugh.

Sear has one dog in his kennel, Creme De Monte, who will race for a first-place prize of $10,205 in the QGOLD Final over 510 metres at Rockhampton on Wednesday night.

“She is bred by (Rockhampton trainer and breeder) Mick Boody. I could tell from when she was young that she had plenty of ability. She is a fast dog.

“However, she is shy, especially around people.

“At her first race meeting she didn’t like the kennelling process at all and just wanted to go and hide and be by herself.”

Phil, who recently celebrated his 50^th birthday, put his 23 years of greyhound training into practice and has convinced the Izy Fast - Earned Talking chaser to be more sociable.

“Initially, to help get her over her shyness, I took her places where there were plenty of people, like the local markets,” he explains.

“She copes OK these days. Sometimes she might still get a little shy, but she’s a lot better.”

However, that shyness quickly fades as she approaches the boxes on race nights.

“That is when she switches on,” Sear said.

“She knows when it is ‘game time’ and becomes a race dog.”

Phil has been ‘around dogs’ for a long time, but work commitments as a professional fisherman and on drilling projects meant his training career has been intermittent.

“If you are training dogs it doesn't matter if you have one or 20 you have to be around all the time,” he says.

“Routine is such a big thing with dogs. Even when I wasn’t training I have helped other trainers with their dogs.

“These days I don’t have to go away for work so am back training.”

At the moment he is happy to have just Creme De Monte in his care. He has had some handy greyhounds over the years, including a Rockhampton track record holder, and says Wednesday’s Final will be an interesting test.

“This is Creme De Monte’s first go over the 510 metres,” he says.

“To be honest she probably is a little underdone, but I have decided to push her through for the 500 metres.

“Of course it would have been good if there had been heats for this event because that would have suited her better. She certainly would have been better for another run over this distance.

“I have been waiting to put her over the 500 metres, but in the meantime have just been going through the grades. Now that she is third grade in the 407 metres I thought it was time to step her up to 500 metres.

“I have no doubt she will go even better over longer distance because she does make a lot of ground up, especially if she misses the start. She certainly hangs in there for a while during races.

“I would say the toughest opposition in this race will probably come from Ring Me (Ken Boody, box three), who is a seasoned performer, but my girl will give her a go.

“But, of course it is just a case of waiting and seeing how she goes in a field over the 500 metres. I have trialled her over the distance last week and she went pretty well.

“She is as good a chance as any in this race, although obviously there is a question mark over the distance.

“I think she should go alright.”

Phil is a big fan of the QBRED races, which are solely for Queensland-bred dogs, and offer attractive prize pools.

Prizemoney for Wednesday night’s Final totals $15,700.

“I am a big fan of the QGOLD concept, which is certainly an incentive to breed,” Phil says. 

“We all remember when prize money was so much lower and it seemed you would have to spend a lifetime of racing to get up to about $10,000. I have reached that with this dog with just 14 starts.

“This one is bred for breeding, so I have that in mind in the future.”