Clint Lundholm is as busy as he's ever been and with his stables in a period of real growth he's out to make the most of it on Sunday at his home track.
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Lundholm has a handy team in at Dubbo Turf Club on Sunday and he'll have two chances in the day's main event, the $30,000 Winter Country Classic Final (1310m).
The Lundholm team has been extremely busy this year, with a number of new additions to the stable leading the trainer to race all over the western area.
The number of horses in work has ballooned to more than 40 while since the start of last month alone there's been victories at Binnaway, Wellington, Brewarrina, Walgett, and Coonamble as well as a winning treble at his home track on June 4.
"It's always good to have new blood coming through the stables," he said.
"We've worked really hard to get to where we are and our game plan is to be winning races and if that means heading west to win them and get the strike-rate up and be one of the leading trainers in the Central West, that's what we'll do.
"At the moment I think we're hitting our straps pretty well."
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In Sunday's Winter Country Classic feature, the Dubbo trainer will send around Dusky Damsel and Shwanky Doo.
The pair finished fourth and seventh respectively in their respective qualifiers earlier this month and Lundholm is optimistic about their chances in the final.
Dusky Damsel, in particular, appears a strong outside chance as she's well down on the weights and is a proven performer on soft surfaces.
"She ran fourth (in the qualifier) and carried a bit of weight and probably just wasn't tough enough on a heavy surface," he said.
"She got ran down late but with the 55 kilos on her after the claim (of apprentice Elissa Meredith) and barrier two and a track with a it of sting out of it, I think you'll see her run much better.
"I think she's 100 per cent better than she was the other day and she's primed for the final."
Whether she's improved enough to topple the likes of Wishfilly is another question.
The Michael Lunn-trained will likely jump as favourite as she'll be chasing a fourth successive win on Sunday.
She's proven herself on different surfaces and was hugely impressive when winning her qualifier at the Dubbo track last time out.
Among the other leading contenders in the final are the Bryan Dixon-trained Boom Queen, which won at Coonamble last start, and Spilia, who won the second qualifier earlier this month for Gulgong trainer Brett Thompson.
The two finalists are part of a seven-strong team Lundholm has set for Sunday.
The consistent Fearless Mila will contest the North Dubbo RSL Sporties Benchmark 66 Handicap (1610m) while he'll have two first starters step out in the Kings Hall Jewellers Maiden Plate (1110m).
The first of seven races jumps at 12.30pm on Sunday at Dubbo.
Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
