Former stunt rider turned trainer Jeff Dunn enjoyed a career high on Wednesday when stable flag bearer Sha Of Gomer charged home to capture the time‑honoured Listed Ramornie Handicap at Grafton.
Dunn, who once performed in the Australian Outback Spectacular at the Gold Coast before swapping show gear for a trainer’s stopwatch, has been steadily building a boutique team of around 15 horses. The Ramornie delivered his first black‑type success.
Given a gem of a ride by his wife, jockey Rikki Jamieson, Sha Of Gomer ($10) camped behind a strong tempo and burst clear in the straight to defeat Compelling Truth ($4 betting fav) by 1-1/4 lengths, with Barber ($6) another half‑length away in third.
Landing a Ramornie Handicap (1200m) meant plenty to Dunn—but sharing the win with Jamieson made it unforgettable.
“This would have been great for me but I will never surpass this in my career now because Rikki was on,” Dunn told Sky Racing.
Superstition kept celebrations on ice until the last stride.
“I’ve had a few early crow moments in my time and I didn’t want to do that in a big race,” he said.
“The way he was travelling leading into the corner, I was getting up out of my seat. Halfway down the straight I stood a bit taller and by the winning post I was jumping up and down.”
Wednesday’s success helped erase the sting of Sha Of Gomer’s narrow defeat in the Listed Eye Liner Stakes (1350m) at Ipswich two runs back, a race Dunn now regards as an important learning experience with the gelding having only joined the yard in April.
“Having that run taught us a lot about the horse and how long his turn of foot lasts,” Dunn said
“Had we not had that run we might not have been able to win the last two.”
The Ramornie success was also a personal milestone for Jamieson—her second Listed victory and first in more than a decade, the previous coming in the 2014 The Phoenix at Eagle Farm aboard Lucky Tom.
“Doing it with Jeff makes it better for me,” Jamieson said.
“I’ve had a bit of a career myself and he is just beginning. He just needs a few more decent horses to pick him up because he trains so well and we work really well as a team.”
Since arriving in April, Sha Of Gomer has won three of six starts—his past two on the bounce.
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