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By Graeme White

You can tell by Grant White’s voice just what his racehorses mean to him.

“The horses are our family. If you can keep them going and they pay their way, that’s a big thing for us,” White said.

The Benalla-based trainer prepares 11 horses and in recent times one of these has more than stood up to be counted.

His name is Read My Lips and he will line up as one of the favourite candidates at Albury on Tuesday in the Commercial Club Albury Benchmark 66 (1000m).

Read My Lips [pictured left] is proving to be a bargain buy costing just $600 and earnings, in his time with White, some $80,000. It’s what every small-time trainer hopes for.

There were some original costs for an operation to remove bone chips in one knee, but time and patience, something White learnt form his time with master trainer Colin Hayes, have paid dividends.

“The operation cost $4500. It was a slow rehabilitation process, but he hasn’t looked back,” he said. “I’m very proud of him.”

White’s enthusiasm for Read My Lips future is understandable when you see what he has done in a short space of time.

In 16 starts for White, he has won on three occasions with a further five seconds, two thirds, four fourths and two sixths.

His daughter Erica works at Lindsay Park where Read My Lips, a well-named gelding from the mare Speak Softly, was formerly trained by the Hayes brothers.

Speak Softly only won the one race at Geelong when trained by the Hayes operation and Read My Lips has quickly surpassed that.

The gelding won his maiden at Corowa in March and was successful at the same track in July and has also tasted success at Seymour.

“Erica picked the horse out and she also selected Gin O’Clock who will have his first start for us when he resumes racing,” he added.

“My stepson Matthew is my right hand man and my wife Heather shares in the ownership of Gin O’Clock.

“We have a farm about ten minutes out of Benalla and the environment suits these horses. They go into the Benalla track for fast work.

“I try to keep them fresh and fit which is something Colin Hayes always did.

“He was a brilliant man to learn from and it’s nice to have these horses who were formerly with the Hayes stable.”

White, 66, formerly rode in all parts of Australia and at this stage of his career is often on the look out for a cheap horse he thinks he can improve from the fundamentals he has learned.

One of his new horses is Spinosaurus who will be having his second start for him against Read My Lips. White is expecting better this time around after Spinosaurus ran last first-up.

“He was all at sea going the Victorian way at Echuca and missed some gallops as well so I am expecting more,” he said.

Choice Witness is one of the in-form runners with recent wins at Wagga and Corowa. She only beat one rival to the finish at her latest start at Sandown.

Sheila has won eight of her 38 starts including her latest at Wodonga on a heavy surface.

Getty will be fitter for two starts back from a spell and chased home King Charles (winner since at Kembla Grange) at his latest start,

Ditterich is another of the main hopes after an excellent second behind Princeton at his latest start, while Vella Magic has been placed in her three Albury starts.

View the final fields with full form & race replays for Albury here