Ken Casellas | PACEPIX
Veteran square gaiter Luvaflair maintained a marvellous family tradition when Donald Harper drove her to an easy win in the $21,000 Book Your TABtouch Punters Club Table Trot over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The Victorian-bred seven-year-old now has won all her 26 races in WA for Nigel Johns, Waroona’s maestro mentor of trotters, and Luvaflair now boats a fine record of 135 starts for 26 wins, 43 placings and $273,926.
Luvaflair is the first foal out of All Flair, a trotter who had 171 starts for 11 wins, 60 placings and $121,187. All Flair is a half-sister to eight winners, including the seemingly indestructible Opulence and Compressor.
Johns trained Opulence for the gelding’s final four victories, and he was retired with $121,043 in stakes from 23 wins and 29 placings from 165 starts. Compressor was a star who raced 205 times for 25 wins, 60 placings and $221,026 in prizemoney. Johns prepared him for his final 20 wins.
Luvaflair was the $2.40 favourite from the No. 6 barrier, with Harper wisely planning to give the mare her best winning chance by relying on her most powerful asset, her sit-sitting sprinting ability at the end of her races.
Newcomer Cashout, a three-year-old making his WA debut, was the second fancy at $6, and he revealed excellent gate speed from barrier five to dash straight to the front while Luvaflair settled down in sixth position, one-out and two-back.
Luvaflair produced a typical fast-finishing effort to race away from her rivals and win hy 10m from Cashout, rating 2.1.5 after final quarters (off the front) of 29.8sec. and 29.6sec.