Tasracing

Four-year-old gelding, The Shallows, will be out to continue on his winning run when he lines up in the third event in Hobart tonight.

The Heath Woods trained and driven pacer has won four of his 13 career starts, with three of those victories coming at his last three race track appearances.

“He has really come on this time in, he has learnt to race and we are just taking every run as it comes,” said Woods ahead of tonight’s event.

The Shallows was a brilliant winner of his most recent start on 9 November in a heat of the Australian Drivers Championship when he scored from inside of the second row, the same barrier he has to overcome tonight.

That win was his second start back from a spell after a top win on 27 October where he raced outside the leader to win 4.3 metres over Impassable and Iden Forest in a 57.4s last half mile.

“First up the plan wasn’t to be outside the leader but that’s where we ended up and he surprised us a bit actually,” said Woods.

“I think he prefers to have a bit of space to race in and he enjoys running along at his own bat,” added the trainer-driver.

As for tonight’s inside of the second-row draw, Woods is happy to let the race unfold rather than go into the race with one set plan.

“I think we just have to take it as it comes, we will have to wait and see if Iden Forest can hold the front, I will just weigh up my options as it comes,” said the Broadmarsh based horseman.

“There is a bit of the speed of the front row and I may be able to get off early, I don’t like going out there with one set plan,” Woods said.

The Shallows opened up the $3.30 favourite for tonight’s race over Prosecution Witness, who had no luck last start at $5.50 with Krafty Boy, who looks the value of the race at $6.00.

Looking beyond tonight Woods has no set plans going forward.

“We will see how he goes his next couple of runs, he might have a break around Christmas time and we will just have a look and see what’s around in the new year, there is nothing marked out for him, we are just happy that he is going well,” explained Woods.

Ryley Major wins the 2019 Tasmanian Horse Transport Show Cup

Tonight’s meeting also sees Ryley Major return from a short let-up in race six.

The Rohan Hillier trained and driven pacer hasn’t been seen since winning off a 30-metre handicap on 27 October.

Ryley Major opened up at $1.16 and is one of four odds on favourites of the night with the others being Cold Crusher ($1.40) in race one, Gipsy Treasure ($1.30) in race two and Cool Water Paddy ($1.35) in race four.

Meanwhile, Tasmanian owned and bred pacer Ignatius finished an unlucky sixth in the Group 3 Tony Turnbull Free For All last night at Menangle in Sydney.

It was the first start the gelded son of Roll With Joe since his Group 1 win the Four-year-old New South Wales Breeders Challenge.

His stablemate Zhukov Leis hit the line well in a 27.0s final quarter to finish second to Im The Director later in the night, indicating that a win is not too far away for the pacer that was having his third start in New South Wales.

Watch Ryley Major win off a 30-metre handicap in Hobart on 27 October: