Jim Jarvis has been gripped by racing since he was a 13-year-old in Victoria, and six decades not much has changed.
Jarvis planned to retire in Coffs Harbour. where he bought a small farm, with a view to training horses as a hobby.
Instead he finds himself making the journey to Randwick on Saturday after being talked into looking after Polskie Girl by part-owner Joe Janiak.
A Queanbeyan cab driver who ended up lunching with the Queen on the back of Takeover Target’s success, Janiak thought Jarvis was the ideal horseman to develop the lightly-raced six-year-old mare.
Polskie Lady started out with premier Brisbane trainer Tony Gollan and had six starts before being given a year off to remedy what Jarvis described as a mineral deficiency.
“I had a look at her form,” Jarvis said. “She’d won her maiden at Doomben and had been competitive in Queensland. I said horse the looks fine and Joe said ‘train her’.”
Jarvis, 73, started working with Polskie Lady in May. She returned to racing in September and ran third in a 1000m-handicap at Ballina.
After wins at Ballina and Coffs Habour she earned her way to Saturday’s Highway Handicap (1100m).
“She’s got a lot of ability. I’m not sure if she can take that next step but she’s won her last two races convincingly,” Jarvis said.
Providing Polskie Lady handles the step up she could be aimed at the Country Championships, meaning Jarvis probably won’t be put out to pasture in the near future.
“I thought I’d just train for myself at Coffs Harbour and then I had a lot of luck with Mr Gold Fire,” Jarvis said.
The gelding won the Coffs Harbour Gold Cup, Taree Cup and Ballina Cup in quick succession in 2006, the catalyst to Jarvis now having eight horses in work.
“Racing’s been in my blood since I was 13 and we thought it was a little bit easier up here so we decided to get a few more,” Jarvis said.
