Bevan's Memories Of Ipswich Will Be Everlasting

BEVAN Williamson turns 81 in April just about the time that Ipswich will cease greyhound racing at Ipswich Showgrounds after 50 years.

Bevan and his wife Elaine are in the Queensland Hall of Fame.

Bevan built the running rail and the starting boxes at Ipswich and drove the lure there for decades. His visits to greyhound racing these days are few and far between. His eyes are "buggered".

He's also had a heart attack and a stroke, but he still lives at the Greenbank property where he and Elaine educated so many greats of racing, including Flying Amy.

He also drove for many, many years at Lawnton and Beenleigh, two of the great racetracks of Queensland that have been closed for some time.

He has wonderful memories of all three racetracks, and greyhound racing in general.

"Brian McEvoy rang me saying he had a pup that could run, but he could not shut the dog up," Bevan said.

"It got so bad he drilled a hole in his bedroom floor and hung a piece of string down with a rolled up newspaper on the other end to bang against the side of the kennel to keep the dog quiet.

"I gave him my advice and told him to move the dog on because in my experience noisy dogs never really made the top.

"It was Acacia Ablaze who won the Ipswich Cup and ran second in the very first Golden Easter Egg.

"Brian, and the dog's owner Ian Nash, never let me forget my wise counsel."

Bevan remembers seeing Just The Best crippled with a gut muscle tear during a visit to Paul Felgate's Beenleigh property.

"A few months later he comes out and wins the Vince Curry by 12 lengths," Bevan remembered.

Bevan will lament the closure of Ipswich, but knows only too well The Q, its replacement, will be the hub of the greyhound world.

"From what I hear, it is magnificent," he said.

He remembers too the faces of Ipswich, Syd Lewis and his great sprinter Haylewie Miss, twice a winner of the Ipswich Cup, great men like Doug Ballinger, the McEvoys, Chris Williams, the list goes on and on.

McEvoy won three Ipswich Cups, with Acacia Ablaze, New Generation and Just Jane.

Bevan's lure driving has allowed him to tempt some of the greatest into their grandest moments.

"Rapid Journey," Bevan remembers.

"I've seen some greats and driven to some greats, but he was something else.

"He came up for the Queensland Cup, the time-honoured Queensland Cup. Jurassic Vapour, that really great dog raced by Johnny Keep, was in the series.

"Rapid Journey smashed the track record by half a second. Half way through the drive, I said to someone in the driving tower the track record was gone. He was motoring."

Lawnton held special memories for Bevan.

"Miss Perlita, wow wasn't she something," he said.

"And what about Ray Gatti's great dog Call Me Roscoe. And Gatti was just as great, a legend.

"And Bobby Belford never missed a meeting, or trial night.

"I can remember the bar in the centre of the public area was always six deep with dog blokes enjoying themselves."

Greyhound racing has taken a huge turn from those glory days way back in 1972 when the Gabba heralded in night racing.