Gehrig the greyhound only has his name in common with former St Kilda player Fraser Gehrig.
He does not support a mullet, and he errs on the side of timid unlike his namesake.
And following Sunday’s faultless performance at Longwood, Gehrig and his trainer Scott Stefanos are now the proud winners of the 2020 Longwood Cup as well as an Orson Allen straw.
“He is a very good coursing dog, but I didn’t think he would win the Longwood Cup after Imperial Jack went very quick heading into the final course,” trainer Scott Stefanos said.
Gehrig is practically an old timer when it comes to coursing, having started his Victorian Coursing Campaign in 2018 because he is notorious for his bad box manners.
“He would have to be one of the worst box dogs in Australia, even race caller James Van de Maat said it,” Stefanos said.
“He thrives off the slips while coursing because he doesn’t have the sit in the boxes. He is a timid dog and tends to sit back in the boxes and I can’t seem to fix it even with box work.”
“I think being able to see the lure in front of him when he is coursing plays a big part in his success.”
2020 is Gehrig’s final coursing season, and how fitting he goes out with a win in his local cup.
“The Longwood Cup is the biggest coursing event I have won, and I am so thankful Gehrig and I share this together,” Stefanos said.
“Coursing has been great for Gehrig, we are like best mates and he really enjoys a day coursing when he gets to spend the whole day with me.”
Amazingly, Stefanos has Gehrig to thank for their involvement in coursing which also included time as the Longwood President and lure driver.
“I thought he would really benefit from coursing because he was timid and such a bad box dog and it didn’t take long for me to realise he is perfect for it, especially because he is strong.”
“He should have won a lot more races (on TAB tracks), but he uses most of the tank to catch the field.”
Stefanos has his father to thank for his love greyhounds as breed. The duo now sharing the training duties of around 25 greyhounds, while Stefanos mother Julie is the Longwood secretary.
“I was really hands on with the greyhounds when I was younger. I remember getting my handlers licence as soon as I could.”
Although the 2020 Coursing season may be Gehrig’s last, there is still an action-packed coursing program ready for the taking.
“We will head back to Longwood on Sunday and see how he goes in the Werribee Cup.”
