THE connections of talented sprinter That Was Then will wait until after her next start to decide on whether to progress her to the Hobart Thousand series that starts with heats on December 11.
That Was Then drew the inside box in the invitation race in Hobart last Thursday night that included reigning Australian Cup and Topgun winner Buckle Up Wes (3) and a host of other Hobart Thousand candidates.
That Was Then was coming off a win in a slightly weaker invitation the week prior so this looked to be her acid test.
She emerged with flying colours scoring a convincing win over Bain’s Lane and Hellyeah Bolt with Buckle Up Wes out of a place.
The Gaylene Townsend-trained bitch has been very good in top company of late so deserves the chance to test her ability at the elite level.
But as for Hobart Thousand aspirations, Townsend will wait until after the bitch races in Hobart this week in either the invitation race or the Barry Heawood Hobart Thousand Prelude.
That Was Then was bred in Victoria where she began her facing career for former owner Alan Lie.
She won five of her 31 starts before being shipped to Tasmania where she contested eight races when trained by Tasmanian Wayne Smith.
After she ran fifth in Hobart at her seventh start she was purchased by a syndicate that included Townsend who took over the training from April this year.
In her care the bitch has raced 27 times for 11 wins and nine minor placings.