Don’t Look Back won the c1 trot as the favourite, but with a front-running performance — a far cry from her famous relative.
Gillespie’s 5yr-old mare is by Funky Girl, which may not mean much at a casual glance.
But Don’t Look Back’s third dam No Appeal starts to switch on a few light bulbs in the memory banks.
Her half-brother was the brilliant No Response, best immortalised by commentator Reon Murtha in the 1979 Interdominion trotting final with the line "No Response is burying them".
No Response won the 1979 final as a 7yr-old and Gillespie is in no hurry to get racing into the legs of Don’t Look Back.
"She’ll get better all the time but I’m not going to overrace her unless someone comes along with a good chequebook — you know how it goes," Gillespie chuckled.
Don’t Look Back won at Forbury Park in June in her last start as a 4yr-old but a lengthy spell did not quite go to plan.
"She wasn’t doing so good turned out after a month," he said.
"I took the cover off and she didn’t look very good, so I brought her back into work."
That strategy looked like it was paying off when the daughter of The Pres finished fourth at Timaru after doing plenty of work, and last night’s win vindicated Gillespie’s decision.
Gillespie has created a handy strike rate with the squaregaiters in his 40 years in the industry.
"I’ve had six trotters in my life and they’ve all either won or qualified, but she would probably be the best."
He trains out of the Orari stable of thoroughbred trainer Lionel Dobbs, and has even convinced Dobbs to take out a licence to train in the standardbred game.
"We drive up the roads through the traffic to the course and work the horse with his galloper."
Don’t Look Back is the only foal Gillespie bred out of Funky Girl, but pacing broodmare Gliding Charm (by McArdle) is keeping him in new stock.
"I’ve got a nice little Auckland Reactor 2yr-old filly which will make the grade, out of Gliding Charm," he said.
"And I’ve got a Betterthancheddar colt out of Gliding Charm this year."
Gillespie was an appropriate winner of the Don Cuttance Memorial Trot, as Gillespie knew the former trainer and Forbury Park president.
The memorial race night meeting marked the contribution of past members, committee members, life members and personalities involved with Forbury Park in recent years. Seven of the eight races were memorial races.
Westwood Beach trainer Graeme Anderson won the Letty Ferguson Memorial with Motu Time To Shine.
He will decide today or tomorrow whether to back up the 3yr-old filly at the Tuapeka meeting at Forbury Park on Sunday after last night’s penalty-free win.
