Written by Gerard Guthrie, The Greyhound Recorder.
Written by Gerard Guthrie, The Greyhound Recorder.
If young gun Victorian trainer Kayla Cottrell hadn’t taken on Group 2 Ballarat Cup finalist Dear Carla Lou it may well have signalled the end of Kaan Omerogullari’s greyhound racing journey.
But Cottrell said yes and Kaan, wife Tenille, and their three greyhound-loving daughters, Perrie, Lulu and Nina, now find themselves with their first runner in a Group event.
“When I took my wife out on our first date, I took her to choose a greyhound pup and the rest is history!” recalled Kaan, who owns a cafe in bayside Beaumaris in Melbourne.
“We’ve been in greyhound racing for 16 or 17 years now. It’s our passion, our hobby and our joy.
“It’s a family affair with our three daughters and Dear Carla Lou has given us unbelievable joy.
“We have Dear Carla Lou’s mother, Cleo’s Neo, or Rose, at home with us.
“Unfortunately, Cleo’s Neo’s racing career was cut short, but my wife said at the time that we were going to make lemonades out of lemons. Fast forward three years and here we are in a Group race!”
Dear Carla Lou is a daughter of Aston Dee Bee and Cleo’s Neo, also bred by the Omerogullaris and named after a close friend of Tenille’s who was diagnosed with cancer, but is currently in remission.
In fact, prize money from Dear Carla Lou’s 18 wins to date, coming from just 31 starts, with nine minor placings, has been generously donated to cancer fundraising efforts.
On Monday night, Dear Carla Lou secured her most important win to date, leading all-the-way in a heat of the Ballarat Cup, clocking 25.31.
She ventured to Ballarat after contesting the Australian Cup series at The Meadows, winning a heat in 29.96 and then finishing seventh to eventual Cup winner Dramatical in a semi-final.
After drawing box two for the $40,000 to-the-winner Ballarat Cup final, Dear Carla Lou is a $10 chance.
“It’s extremely exciting; we’re over the moon,” said Kaan.
“This is our first ever Group race and Dear Carla Lou would be the best greyhound we’ve had.
“She’s a major chance, she’s drawn beautifully in box two, but we just want to see her get around safely.
“If she wins it would be the icing on the cake. Anything else she does is a bonus.”
Patience and perseverance have paid off for the Omerogullaris, as their greyhound racing disappointments outweighed the successes.
That is until they crossed paths with Kayla Cottrell and her parents, Dave Knocker and Janet Cottrell, all G1-winning trainers.
“Dear Carla Lou broke in exceptional, but then we were told by the pre-trainer – a Group 1-winning trainer – that we would be lucky to win a country race with her,” Kaan explained.