Racing
2026 WA Racing Hall of Fame Inductee - Sand Pebble
Sand Pebble was a member of one of Western Australia's most famous greyhound litters, the second litter out of Sandilock by three-time WA Sire of the Year Red Swinger. The litter produced eight pups and, while records from the time are limited, it is documented to have won a minimum of 169 races, with a figure of 196 wins widely reported. The depth of talent within the litter was extraordinary. It included National Greyhound Racing Hall of Fame and inaugural WA Racing Hall of Fame inductee Sandi's Me Mum, dual WA Feature Event winner Modern Flight and the prolific Sandislad, who won 41 races, among others. Breeder Gerry O'Keefe retained just three pups from the litter, two dogs including Sandislad, along with Sandi's Me Mum.
Owner-trainer Ron Timms hand-picked Sand Pebble from the litter at around three months of age and made the decision to train her himself, a choice that saw his co-owner withdraw from the purchase deal. Sand Pebble was Ron's second selection from the litter after initially choosing Sandi's Me Mum, only to be informed by Gerry O'Keefe that she was not for sale. Ron's early involvement in the greyhound industry had been as an owner, with his dogs trained by David Hamer, but Sand Pebble became the first greyhound he ever trained. He worked her from two kennels he built behind his Prison Officer quarters at Karnet Prison Farm, where he was employed at the time. Reflecting years later, Ron remarked with typical humility, "Who knows how many races she would have won if she was trained by someone who knew what they were doing."
Sand Pebble's racing career began in extraordinary fashion. She qualified for Maiden races at Cannington by winning a 530m Qualifying Trial at Mandurah by an astonishing 12.75 lengths in 31.22 seconds, a remarkable performance for a pup who turned 16 months of age on the very day of the trial. She followed that effort by winning her Maiden at Cannington in quick time, stopping the clock at 31.32 seconds at just her second start. From there, her rise through the grades was rapid. She won nine of her first 14 career starts, along with two seconds and a third, and by start number 10 she was already chasing in Free To All company at Mandurah, progressing to the same level at Cannington by start number 12.
Her thirteenth career start saw her step into the Mandurah Cup Series, where she again demonstrated her quality by winning both her heat and semi-final before finishing second in the final behind four-time WA Feature Event winner Dirty Looks. Later in 1989, Sand Pebble finished second in the Group 1 National Sprint Championship at Cannington after one of the most famous qualification paths in WA racing history. She defeated her litter-sister Sandi's Me Mum in the WA Sprint Championship to earn her place at the Nationals. With the host state entitled to two runners, Sandi's Me Mum also qualified and went on to reverse the result in the National final, defeating Sand Pebble to claim the first of her back-to-back National titles.
The rivalry between the two litter-sisters became one of the defining storylines of WA greyhound racing in 1989 and 1990. Sand Pebble and Sandi's Me Mum met on the track on at least nine occasions, with Sandi's Me Mum winning five of those clashes and Sand Pebble winning three. Their battles captivated racing fans and were among the highlights of the era.
Sand Pebble's most iconic performance came in the 1990 Perth Cup. Leading all the way, she powered to victory by 10.75 lengths, breaking the long-standing winning margin record of 10 lengths set by Marcus Rate in the inaugural running of the race in 1976. That margin remains unmatched in the 35 Perth Cup finals conducted since. She started a marginal favourite and defeated the Grant Langston-trained Quit, with Sandi's Me Mum finishing third, another chapter in their storied rivalry.
There was never any doubt about Sand Pebble's ability or strength, and her versatility was a defining feature of her career. She won over 410m at Mandurah when returning from an injury-enforced break, over 530m at both Cannington and Mandurah, and over the 638m middle-distance trip at both venues. Her adaptability was perhaps never more evident than during a remarkable three-week period in February 1990, when she won a Perth Cup semi-final and final, then stepped up in distance just five days later to claim both a heat and the final of the Distance Gift.
Sand Pebble also left an indelible mark on the record books. She held the 530m and 638m track records at both Cannington and Mandurah simultaneously, quite likely the only greyhound to ever achieve that feat. She set successive Cannington 530m track records before the latter was broken, fittingly, by Sandi's Me Mum. Such was the dominance of the Sandilock litter that Sand Pebble's Mandurah 530m record was later broken by her litter-brother Sandislad.
Due to work commitments, Ron Timms was unable to travel interstate with Sand Pebble, but he did send her to Sydney in pursuit of feature-race success. Unfortunately, she suffered a back muscle injury before starting there. Although she returned home and recovered following expensive high-tech surgery, she was never quite the same after that debilitating setback.
Sand Pebble's influence continued through her breeding career. Between November 1990 and July 1997 she whelped eight litters, with her early progeny achieving the greatest success on the track. Those litters produced a mix of speed and strength, and six of her offspring went on to win major WA Feature Events. They included the ill-fated Sunshine Molly by Amerigo Man, winner of the 1994 Group 2 WA Oaks; Ma Leeder by Ginger, part-owned by Ron and named after his mother using her maiden name, winner of the 1994 Group 3 Young Stars Classic; Sunshine Bomber by Hay Dinney, winner of the 1995 Group 3 Young Stars Classic; Sand Trooper by Worth Doing, also part-owned by Ron, winner of the 1993 Summer Chase over 638m; Sandalisa by Amerigo Man, winner of the 1996 Summer Chase over 638m; and South Georgia by Ginger, winner of the 1995 Breeders Stake.
While Sand Pebble spent much of her racing career in the shadow of her illustrious sister, her own achievements were substantial and deserving of recognition. During her career, she received a special honour when she was voted the WA Greyhound Breeders Owners and Trainers Association Greyhound of the Year in 1990, finishing ahead of Sandi's Me Mum. Her induction into the WA Racing Hall of Fame stands as the ultimate acknowledgement of an outstanding career, both on and off the track.
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