Episode 596: Craig Sant - Born into a trotting family but race calling was his dream. He’s now the voice of “top end” racing.

Sky Racing’s Greg Radley spends time with Craig Sant at Darwin Cup time each year. He called me after this year’s NT carnival with a strong suggestion that we should invite Craig onto the podcast. We put the wheels in motion and Craig is our special guest this week. The 57 year old son of former trots trainer Allan Sant was brought up with standardbred horses and in mid- teens looked likely to follow in his father’s footsteps, but his nagging desire to become a race caller refused to go away. It took a long time and the disappointments were many, but his sheer persistence finally landed him behind the microphone at Alice Springs where he called the action for four years. Today Craig’s firmly ensconced in Darwin where he covers 40 thoroughbred meetings a year at the famous Fannie Bay track, and  more than 70 at the Winnellie Park greyhound circuit.  Craig talks about his annual get-together with Sky’s Greg Radley.

He talks about the month long Darwin Cup carnival which attracts horses and visitors from all over Australia. He agrees it brings added pressure to the resident race caller.

Craig reviews this year’s Darwin Cup won by visiting Adelaide horse Watadeel, one of a ten horse team brought to the top end by trainer Michael Hickmott.

He pays tribute to former Fannie Bay caller Mick Stumbles who was in the chair for close to forty years. Craig says he was scheduled to call his first Darwin Cup in 2013 but missed the opportunity as a result of a tragic race fall.

Craig says he finally got off the ground with a Cup call in 2014 and he hasn’t forgotten the occasion. The winner got the result on protest.

He talks about the unique dirt track which is sprayed with oil every year.

Craig says there are no breeding industries for thoroughbreds or greyhounds in the region. He says all equine and canine competitorsare from other places.

He talks of childhood days in the Sutherland Shire and his obsession with the  Cronulla-Sharks NRL team.

Craig explains that his father Allan kept his harness horses in backyard stables at Caringbah and had to go to a great deal of trouble to get them worked.

He recalls Allan’s success with horses at the iconic Harold Park track at Glebe, and a later relocation to the well known harness racing town of Peak Hill. Craig says he drove horses in trackwork and in a handful of trials but resisted the temptation to follow in his father’s footsteps.

He takes us through the early years when he practiced his race calls onto a tape recorder wherever he could find a spare broadcast box.

Finally a surprise opportunity! Craig talks about an on-air job with a Darwin radio station owned by the Northern Territory TAB. That exposure led him to the track commentator’s role at the Winnellie Park dogs.