Holland's "accidental" love of trotting

DISAPPOINTMENT and frustration has spawned a love of the trotter for hugely successful Australian businessman Glenn Holland.

It’s a love that has transcended Australia and saw Holland and his close friend, NSW trainer-driver Darren Hancock, splurge on three yearlings – two Chapter Seven colts and a Tactical Landing filly - at the Lexington Sales just a few months ago.

Holland paid for a slice of those babies when the best horse he has raced, four-year-old Muscle Mass entire The Locomotive, won last Saturday night’s Group 1 Inter Dominion final at Menangle. Hancock was standby by his side.

The Hancock connection – one of Australian harness racing’s most famous families – goes back over 30 years for Holland.

“I was in my early 20s and knew an old trainer at Condell Park, near where I grew-up, called Jack Kelly. I didn’t know anything about horses, but Jack was struggling with his health, so I’d often help him carry the gear and fill the water buckets for him. That’s where it started for me,” Holland recalled.

“Richard Hancock, Darren’s father, was Jack’s driver. And when Richard retired, Darren took over the driving and our friendship grew from there.”

Then came a big pause.

“I had a long time out of the game while I built my business (Kinetic Sourcing Group). It was a hard slog early and I spent five years in Shanghai really growing it,” Holland said.

Kinetic Sourcing Group was founded in 2000 and grew to have a supply chain network across 15 countries and over $1 billion in annual turnover before Holland sold-out six months ago.

“It’s given me back the time to travel to places like Bathurst and Newcastle to watch The Locomotive race, and to get down to Goulburn for what turned out to be a huge celebration last Sunday of the Inter Dominion with Brad (Hewitt, trainer-driver) and the crew,” he said.

“I can really step things up now, but I did get back into the sport gradually from about 15 years ago.

“I played around with a few and had some success, but then I said to Darren before the 2016 Australian Gold Yearling Sale, I want to get serious and buy a proper pacer.”

Holland spent $A105,000 on a Bettors Delight colt, out of the Christian Cullen mare Daniela Hantuchova, who raced as Drop The Hammer.

“He showed promise in some nice pacing races at two, but when he came back at three, Darren said he wasn’t putting in as a pacer and all he wanted to do was trot,” Holland said. “I was like ‘you’re kidding me, I don’t want a trotter. Fix it’.”

But trotting it was and Drop The Hammer ran third in the 2018 NSW Trotting Derby just three months after he had finished 10th in the NSW Pacers’ Derby.

The gelding went on to a stellar trotting career with 26 wins, 28 placings and earnings of $305,682.

“And that’s how I got into the trotters,” Holland laughed.

Ironically, now Holland’s right back into harness and breeding horses at a lavish property at Bundanoon in the NSW Southern Highlands, trotters are passion and pacers are more business.

“Correct. I breed pacers to sell and keep the trotters to race as my hobby,” he said.

Back in February, Holland sold a three-quarter brother to Down Under’s champion pacer Leap To Fame for a Melbourne Australian Gold sale-topping $A210,000 to leviathan owner Mick Boots, who races dual NZ Cup winner Swayzee.

Some of the earnings went towards $US340,000 he spent on the three yearlings at Lexington. The Chapter Seven-Autumn Deo colt cost $US100,000, the Chapter Seven-Corazon Blue Chip went for $US80,000 and the Tactical Landing-Independancia filly topped them all at $US160,000.

“Darren (Hancock) and I picked them out together and while we’re thrilled with the two colts, it was that filly we really wanted. I think she was a bargain because much of her family had performed in Europe and she was perhaps a bit overlooked in the US,” Holland said.

The three yearlings arrived in Sydney this week and will be broken in by respected Menangle trainer Rickie Alchin before being dispersed.

“Darren will get one, Rickie will keep one and how can I not give one to Brad (Hewitt) now after what he’s done with The Locomotive,” Holland said.

“The whole idea around going to those sales was the discrepancies between the strength of the trotting breed compared to pacing in Australia. Our pacers go as fast as the best in the US, but our trotters, apart from a few exceptions, don’t get anywhere near them.

“Pat Driscoll (Yabby Dams) and a few others have done a lot to bridge that gap, but I see an opportunity to do more. I’m hoping one off the colts becomes a leading stallion down here.

“That’s why we bought Chapter Seven colts. We wanted a stallion who wasn’t going to be available in Australia and we’re told he won’t be. It then adds a new dimension to our trotting down here.

“Those Lexington sales were amazing, just so incredibly and professionally run. If you buy the wrong horse, it’s your own fault.

“And what a city to have them. Darren and I found about 16 different Bourbon breweries in our few days there.”

But for now, Holland is enjoying the wonderful ride with The Locomotive.

“I’ve got Wayne Potter to thank for being in him,” he said. “He liked the horse at the Nutrien Sales in Melbourne (2021). It was passed-in and Wayne rang Darren (Hancock) and if we’d take a third each if he offered $A60,000. Darren said no, which we remind him of every day, so I ended up going halves with Wayne.

“He was superbly bred, being by Muscle Mass out of the former champion trotting mare La Coocaracha, who has been a wonderful mum, too.

“The Locomotive was a natural, a real goer from day one, so he went through all the big two-year-old races for Wayne and won most of them. He was Australian 2YO Trotter of the Year.

“He had a lighter three-year-old season, but still won the Vicbred final and was placed in a few other major races, but all along Wayne felt his future as an older horse should be in Sydney where he can bowl along in his races at that big (1400m) Menangle track.

“So, Wayne arranged for him to go to Brad Hewitt. He did pop back to Wayne to win the Vicbred 4YO final in September (this year). Before that series, Wayne asked if I’d buy his half and I did.”

The Locomotive has won all eight starts since, including clean sweep through the three heats and final of the recent NSW Inter Dominion trotting series.

With nine wins from 12 starts in 2024, The Locomotive has taken his record to 35 starts for 22 wins, five placings and $A485,758 in earnings with the promise of much more to come.

“He’s having a couple of quiet weeks now and then Brad will take him back to Victoria for the Great Southern Star (February 1 at Melton),” Holland said. “Then we’ll look to get a slot in that $NZ650,000 TAB Trot race at Cambridge in April before we focus on defending his Inter Dominion title in Brisbane next July.”

With champion trotter Just Believe’s future uncertain and boom French import Callmethebreeze battling his issues, the door is open for The Locomotive to plunder some serious riches.

And that may just spark Holland to return to Lexington next year for another taste of Bourbon and buying.