His family campervan isn’t quite as fancy as the accommodation at the Inglis Hotel, but trainer Gordon Richards is just thankful to be back in town with South Australian sprint star Gytrash.
Twelve months ago, the down-to-earth interstate trainer went on the ride of a lifetime when Inglis snapped up Gytrash for its Everest slot, accommodating him at their swish western Sydney premises while he prepared the horse.
Inglis has again chosen Gytrash to represent them in the Everest but due to the dire COVID-19 situation, Richards’ experience isn’t quite the same this time around.
“It’s totally different this year. We were sitting at the Inglis Hotel last year and having a good time there. This time, we’re in the grounds at Randwick in our motor home. You can’t go anywhere or stay anywhere,” Richards said.
“But I may never come up here again. I might never have a horse good enough so you’ve got to do what you can, when you can.”
Richards arrived in Sydney last week in preparation for Gytrash’s return in the Shorts (1100m) at Randwick on Saturday.
He takes on a dynamite field of sprinters but the trainer is confident his gelding is going as well as he was 12 months ago when he resumed to win the Concorde Stakes before finishing a fine third in The Everest.
Gytrash is also a force first-up with four wins and three placings from seven attempts.
But Richards concedes he will need to be with five top Everest fancies among the horse’s rivals, headed by market leaders Nature Strip and Masked Crusader.
“It’s a ripper field, isn’t it?” Richards said.
“I just want him to run a really good race and finish it off and find the line. Most races he does that, and he does it well.”
Gytrash has come in for early support, firming from $14 into $9 with Nature Strip holding market sway with TAB fixed odds as a $2.40 favourite.