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By Ray Hickson

In the almost two months since Casino Kid booked his spot in Tuesday’s $2 million Big Dance (1600m) at Royal Randwick his trainer Jan Bowen has tried to treat it like any other race.

Trainer Jan Bowen (Pic: Bradley Photos)

It’s not.

The popular 79-year-old trainer from Muswellbrook marvels at the fact her home bred gelding, who has already won over $440,000 from 29 starts, is a chance to pocket a $1,050,000 first prize cheque.

“I’m really not thinking about it, it’s just another race at the minute but it’s unbelievable prizemoney,’’ Bowen said.

“I go back a horse I trained like Lucky Night, he retired back in about 2008 and he won $300,000 so what would that be equivalent to now.

“We’re in this one, we’re going to give it our best shot.”

Casino Kid, $12 with TAB on Sunday, went to Dubbo for his shot at qualifying for the Big Dance where Grant Buckley negotiated a passage through the field and the five-year-old scored an easy win.

That's the blueprint Bowen would like to see used to give him his best chance in the $2 million feature.

His previous win was over the Randwick mile in early August and the gelding chased home Big Dance favourite Hosier at Randwick on August 1 in a race run to suit the winner and not a horse like Casino Kid.

In that race he clocked the fastest last 600m of 35.71 (Punter’s Intelligence) and last 200m of 12.20 on a heavy track and Bowen is rapt to have drawn what she considers a perfect gate in six.

“I’m just hoping for a bit of luck. As long as they don’t go as slow as the last time he went down there,’’ Bowen said.

“There’s no good trying to come down the outside, he’s got to ride for luck I think. They’ve just got to open up for him, if he can just get a run he can go close.”

Buckley partnered Casino Kid in a barrier trial at Muswellbrook two weeks ago, and rides him on Tuesday, as Bowen elected not to give the horse another run prior to the Big Dance.

“We had lots of rain so we’ve improvised and he’s jumping out of his skin,’’ she said.

“It could have been better but you can’t do much about the weather.

“He’s had a couple of good gallops on the course proper up here and hopefully we’ve got him spot on.

“I don’t think we have seen the best of him. I think the best of him will be when he gets out over 1800m and further.

“We won the Dubbo Cup so we had to go for this one but I think next year will be his year.”

Bowen has trained a number of horses for Casino Kid’s owner-breeder Dan Morice, who is based at Merriwa, and his record would say that he’s the best of them.

Casino Kid runs second at Randwick on October 1

She’d describe herself as an unlikely trainer but she has had her license for around 17 years now and has been based at her Muswellbrook property for 30 years, one she bought and transformed into a spelling and training base.

It’s become something of a family operation now with her grandson Justin also a trainer and her son Richard helping out as well.

“The place was pretty run down, it took a long time but it was very rewarding doing it,’’ she said.

“I used to work at Kia Ora Stud in the office. When the property was right I started spelling horses for Pat Farrell up the road.

“I never had in my head that I was going to be a trainer but it just happened.”

All the fields, form and replays for Tuesday's Big Dance meeting at Randwick