The dream start to Paul Brown’s training career continued at Shepparton on Monday night when unbeaten youngster Rejuvenate threatened the 385m track record for the second week running.
Paul, 40, son of industry stalwarts Ian and Maureen, has hit the ground running, courtesy of the November ’20 Hooked On Scotch x Zall Good litter, bred by his parents.
The litter is headlined by Rejuvenate and Hot Scotch, both flying winners at Shepparton last night.
One week earlier, Rejuvenate made a sensational debut, when clocking 21.42sec, less than two lengths outside Aston Flame’s 21.30sec course record.
The hype only increased when he went slightly quicker in Monday night’s final as $1.20 favourite, stopping the clock at 21.41sec in a 13.5 length romp.
“My parents have been in greyhound racing for 60-odd years, and this is probably the best litter they’ve had.”
“He’s going really well!” Brown said on Tuesday morning, back on the job as a forklift driver.
“He’s always shown a lot of ability, but he didn’t actually break in the quickest of the litter.
“Hot Scotch broke in better but Rejuvenate had a bit of a break and he’s gone from strength to strength since he came back.
“He broke the record at Shepparton in a trial a couple of weeks ago, running 21.20sec, which was his first 385m back from the break.
“He missed the start a bit last night; he ran 8.07sec last week and 8.16sec last night. The way he’s finishing off, I’ll probably step him up to 450m now.
“Everything looks promising, but I’ll just take it week by week. He’ll get to the city eventually, but there’s no need to rush him.”
WATCH: Unbeaten pup REJUVENATE (B2) was a near-record winner at Shepparton for the second week running on Monday night, romping home by “the length of the straight” in 21.41sec.
Rejuvenate was the first leg of a flying Shepparton double for Brown, who hails from Burramine, between Yarrawonga and Cobram, with littermate Hot Scotch, runner-up in the Listed Pink Diamond Maiden Sprinter final in June, posting 21.49sec later in the meeting.
It was Hot Scotch’s fourth win from eight starts.
“I got Rejuvenate and Hot Scotch when they were 12 weeks old and as they got a bit older, I decided to get my trainers license,” Brown explained.
“I’m still only learning but I’ve had some really good mentors in my parents and Jimmy Auld and Lachie Scott, who broke these dogs in.
“I’ve just got lucky. Lots of people hope to get a dog like this and I might never get another one as good. I’m just enjoying the ride!”
With Paul inheriting the greyhound racing bug from his parents, the family tradition is continuing with his wife Amy and children Addieson, Shylee, and Jaxsen all hands-on.
“My parents have been in greyhound racing for 60-odd years, and this is probably the best litter they’ve had,” he said.
“The Hooked On Scotch litter is Zall Good’s second. Her first litter was to Cosmic Rumble, and it included It’s Not Fun, which won a heat of the (G2) Laurels and It’s A Drama, which won 22 races.
“There’s been a few offers for Rejuvenate but we love the dog, He’s part of the family and gets treated like one of the kids!”
Paul is also grateful for the support of his employers Kelly Bros Market Gardeners, and in particular Ben, Richard, and James Kelly, in allowing the flexibility to meet his racing commitments.
