Jack’s boy loves Charlton

Jack Sullivan has no plausible explanation for his five-year-old trotter Sonnyboy’s affiliation with the Charlton harness racing track. 

Sonnyboy (Majestic Son) has won three races in the past two years-and each win has been leading all the way at Charlton. 

In fact, four of the horse’s six career wins have been at Charlton. 

“I don’t know why but he just loves the track,” Sullivan said. 

“He’s a good beginner and when he leads around Charlton he is hard to get past, it just seems to suit him,” he said. 

Sullivan believes the son of Majestic Son’s record of six wins from 56 starts would read better if it wasn’t for Sonnyboy’s tendency to over race. 

“He has a severe bit and an underdraw but he has a habit of pulling hard which he did at his two starts before winning at Charlton last time,” he said. 

Sullivan said the horse’s race day manner is exacerbated by his highly strung demeanour. 

“Everything frightens him, I walk him across the yard and he jumps at anything,” he said. 

The 76-year-old Sullivan, who trains at Carlsruhe in the Macedon Ranges, obtained his trainer’s licence in 1979 after being introduced to the sport by a neighbour and prominent horseman Pat Cooper. 

“I’m a farrier by trade and I started going over to Pat’s place and one day he asked if I wanted to have a drive of one,” he said. 

Sullivan promptly jumped into the sulky behind a fledgling pacer named Crafty Kid. 

“He worked with Alphalite (1974 Victoria Derby winner) and beat him so he was going to be hard to beat at his next start,” he said. 

Crafty Kid subsequently went on to become one of the state’s best free for all pacers during the 1970s. 

Sullivan trained his first winner when the trotting mare Daisy Crockett scored at Terang in 1982. 

“She had a dropped hip and it took months to get her not to gallop in races,” he said. 

Sullivan’s best horse was Lochlee Vance whom he secured from Merv Dillon in 1983. 

“He was a barrier rogue and at his first start for me at Mildura he was still at the start when the field had reached the first turn, he ended up finishing third,” he said. 

“At one stage he held the track record at Geelong.” 

These days Sullivan prepares a team of two trotters, Sonnyboy and Major Max who has won six races from 46 starts. 

After 50 years of wielding the nailing hammer Sullivan still shoes his own horses. 

“I’ve had two knee replacements but my back is still okay,” he said. 

Meanwhile Sullivan is eagerly awaiting the next opportunity to load Sonnyboy into the float for the four-hour round trip to the next Charlton meeting. 

For complete race results, click here.

by John Dunne, for Harnesslink