Life has been easy for Ballarat pacer Savesomtimetodream since he retired from the racetrack at the end last season.
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Trainer Paul Rowse gave the now 10-year-old his last start in a free-for-all at Melton on August 25.
He then went to the paddock and has since enjoyed a life of leisure with fellow retired stablemate Decorated Jasper at the Rowse family’s Cambrian Hill property.
All that is now changing for Savesomtimetodream.
He is back in training, but not for a racing campaign this time.
The son of Village Jasper has been selected for a special starring role in a Harness Racing Australia retraining program, “There Is No Finish Line”, which will lead to an equestrian career under saddle.
Rowse nominated Savesomtimetodream as a candidate for the project, with the Harness Racing Victoria’s “Harness Education and Re-homing Opportunities” initiative playing a key role in the selection of the gelding.
Rowse said the project aimed to promote the rehoming and retraining resources available for preparing standardbreds for life after racing.
HRA equine welfare manager Kathleen Mullan is overseeing the re-education program.
Mullan is a member of a well-known harness racing family and leading equestrian identity.
She is hoping Savesomtimetodream will progress sufficiently to make an appearance at Australasia’s premier equine event Equintana in Melbourne in November this year.
Mullan had her first opportunity to get to know Savesomtimetodream at Rowse’s this week, getting to jog him up before setting off on their new venture.
Rowse said the public would get the opportunity to follow the progress of the “There Is No Finish Line” retraining project via social media – monitoring each step in the transition from racehorse to riding horse.
HRA believes it will provide invaluable training resources for people looking to embark on developing life after racing for a standardbred.
Savesomtimetodream won 20 of 113 starts for more than $220,000 in stakes, winning the Ararat and Yarra Valley Cups, and racing in grand circuit events such as the AG Hunter Cup against the best pacers in Australasia.
He was bred and raced by the Rowse family.
MEANWHILE, Ballarat and District Trotting Club has a six-race card at Bray Raceway on Thursday night.
Ballarat trainer Emma Stewart has three starters as she closes in on 200 winners nationwide for the season with 195 wins – 184 of them in Victoria.