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John Shelton – Inaugural Kosciuszko Victor Seeking Special Win At Home Carnival
By John Curtis
JOHN SHELTON became part of Royal Randwick history when he won the inaugural running of The Kosciuszko for country horses with $71 roughie Belflyer in 2018.
The prizemoney isn’t anywhere near as lucrative as that $1.3m purse and omens don’t always become reality either, but the experienced Grafton trainer will surely climb another mountain if he can land a special race on his home track at this week’s July carnival.
And, whilst he is too modest to say so, it will be some training performance indeed if he can win Thursday’s Sky Racing World Mother’s Gift – the $50,000 fillies and mares’ feature fittingly named after the “girl” with which he won the Jacaranda City’s time-honoured sprint, the Listed Ramornie Handicap (1200m), in 2000.
Shelton has only ever had one runner (Spinning Quarters, who finished fourth in 2018) in the Mother’s Gift since it was introduced to the carnival program in 2011.
His hopes rest with track specialist Tara Jasmine, who will be ridden by Ben Looker and has drawn the inside barrier in a field of 14.
Tara Jasmine is a real homebody. She has raced six times at Grafton and won them all (Looker has been aboard in the last four), and never been successful anywhere else!
But putting her unbeaten home track record on the line, after a few Brisbane blemishes and having only recently returned to Shelton’s care after stints at two of Queensland’s leading stables, represents yet another challenge for her trainer.
Tara Jasmine initially went to David Vandyke on the Sunshine Coast but didn’t race for him, before going to co-trainers Steve O’Dea and Matt Hoysted in Brisbane, where she failed to fire in three starts.
Her latest run was a well-beaten eighth in a Benchmark 78 Handicap (1200m) at the Tatts Tiara meeting at Eagle Farm on June 25.
Shelton can’t fully explain why Tara Jasmine is so good on her home track, but also realises keeping that brilliant record intact on Thursday, especially having her back for only a short time, is not going to be an easy task.
“The only thing I can put forward is that she is happy in her home environment, and she enjoys getting out in a paddock for a few hours each afternoon,” he said.
“But I wish she had been back with me a fortnight longer to get her ready for the carnival.
“She arrived from Brisbane on the evening of June 29.”
Circumstances conspired to prevent Shelton from having a crack at the Ramornie with Tara Jasmine. Twice he was thwarted from attempting the ballot-free lead-up, the John Carlton Cup (1200m), with her, firstly when the race wasn’t run on the opening day on July 3 following Leah Kilner’s shocking fall and then two days later when poor visibility rubbed out the final four events on the transferred program.
“There was nothing we could do about it, and being so far down in ballot order for the Ramornie, we decided to change plans and focus on the Mother’s Gift,” Shelton said.
“She has settled in well back home, and I’m really happy with her.”
Shelton is leaving nothing to chance as he bids to make it a “lucky seven” with the mare on Thursday. He has opted to put blinkers back on her, and remove a tongue tie.
Aside from her six Grafton victories, Tara Jasmine has been beaten at Lismore, Coffs Harbour, Eagle Farm (three times), Doomben (twice), Randwick (twice), and the Sunshine Coast, though she has been placed at the first three mentioned tracks.
“I took Tara Jasmine to Randwick for a TAB Highway last September, and she wouldn’t have won a Casino Maiden the way she raced (13th of 15 from the inside barrier),” Shelton said.
“She came back and won three in a row at Grafton, culminating with the Jacaranda Cup (1100m) in early November with 61kg.”
Tara Jasmine was sired by Cowboy Blue, an unraced and now deceased son of the multiple Group 1 winner and outstanding stallion High Chaparral, from a Dr Green mare Carmela Miss, who won six races for her trainer Hunter Kilner.
Like her daughter Tara Jasmine, who won an 1100m Maiden on debut at Grafton in October, 2020, Carmela Miss also won an 1100m Maiden there in March, 2012 when beginning her career.
“One of the owners was sitting in a pub at Coffs Harbour and met the chap who had this horse by High Chaparral, and invited him to send Carmela Miss to Cowboy Blue,” Shelton said.
“That’s how Tara Jasmine came about.”
It’s 22 years since Shelton won the Ramornie with Mother’s Gift, a grey daughter of American stallion Akaaber.
He trained her for seven of her 15 wins, and says the mare probably should not have started at $34 when Stephen Traecey won the 2000 sprint on her from an outside barrier (14 of 16).
“Mother’s Gift had narrowly beaten So Precise in a 1200m Flying at the Prime Minister’s Cup meeting at the Gold Coast in May that year when two of the best jockeys in the country fought out the finish on two greys,” Shelton recalled.
“Darren Beadman rode my mare, and Mick Dittman was on Allan Denham’s horse.
“Mother’s Gift then raced below par when unplaced in the Lightning (1000m) at Eagle Farm, and as a result was largely ignored by punters in the Ramornie from her wide draw.”
Grafton trainer John Shelton – courtesy Bradley Photographers.
Shelton also figured prominently in the 2004 and 2005 editions of the Ramornie, with the same horse.
Sir Dan ran third in 2004 at $31, and filled the same position a year later at $21.
“Unfortunately, we bumped into Takeover Target in 2004, and Sir Dan came back the next year in King Rex’s Ramornie and wasn’t beaten far,” he said.
Former jockey and now fellow Grafton trainer Andrew Parramore rode Sir Dan in both races.
Glen Innes born, Shelton “went allright” competing at pony club events as a youngster, and it was suggested that, being a little bloke, he should be a jockey.
“I rode on the Tablelands and Northern Rivers, and rode a few winners, but got sick of wasting,” he said.
He gave racing away for 12 months, and picked fruit and drove a truck for his father.
But regular weekend visits to Grafton were enough to convince him to eventually make the move to warmer climes near the coast.
“I had mates at Grafton, and there was more night life,” Shelton said. “I said I would live there one day.”
He became associated with prominent owner Ross Paine, and rode his great horse Riverdale (who won the 1984 Grafton Cup and later that year the Epsom Handicap at Randwick and Ampol Stakes at Flemington) in work, and retains a close association with the family.
“Ross has passed on, but his son Brian has continued to race horses with me,” Shelton said.
“And whilst Belflyer obviously was my biggest success in terms of prizemoney, a mare who raced in the Paine colours was the best horse I have trained.
“Star Of Sequalo won eight of her 11 starts, and should have nearly been unbeaten.
“She won six in a row (two in Sydney and four in Brisbane) in 2003 and early 2004, and unfortunately a tendon injury forced an early retirement.”
Shelton has trained for around four decades, and also has been a wonderful tutor of young jockeys.
Tara Jasmine’s rider Ben Looker, Adam Hyeronimus, Danny Wheeler (whose son Bailey is a promising apprentice based in Newcastle), Kasie Stanley, Anthony Allen and Alvin Ng (who returned to Hong Kong) all came through the Shelton system.
“I still follow their careers closely, and get a great kick whenever they ride winners,” he said.
“Adam spent about 12 months with me, and we’re good mates. “It was a terrific thrill to be able to put him on Belflyer in The Kosciuszko when Ben was committed to Victorem (who ran fifth).
“I got Belflyer late in his career after he had been trained in Victoria and Queensland, and won seven races with him, including the Moree and Warwick Cups. He also ran second in the Ramornie a few runs before The Kosciuszko.”
Shelton had 40 in work at Grafton at one stage, but now keeps around half that number.
“I would like to do a bit of travelling as I’ve got mates in North Queensland, and have already been to two Darwin Cups,” he said.
“And Belflyer is enjoying retirement with one of his owners at Rockhampton, so I’d like to call in and visit him.
“But getting away for a length of time isn’t easy. Once racing is in your blood, that’s it.”
. HOOFNOTE: Shelton now is also training Tara Jasmine’s younger half-brother Fire Up Bruce (by Furnaces), who scored easily in a Coffs Harbour Maiden on June 26 at the three-year-old’s first start for him.
“He was with me early, but the owners thought he was eligible for QRIS bonuses and sent him to a Queensland trainer,” Shelton said.
“He was unplaced in three runs earlier this year, and they sent him back to me when they found out he wasn’t eligible for those bonuses.
“Fire Up Bruce is a nice big horse, so we’re hoping we can win a few races with him.”
