PROFILE: Al Smart was born in Blue Ridge, Texas, June 6, 1907. Smart has been an owner and handler for over 60 years. In 1983, when smart was added to the PIONEER, section he was still active in the industry.

HISTORY: While Al was growing up on the Texas plains, he was exposed to greyhounds and greyhound coursing early in his life. When Smart was only about 14 he recalls buying his first female for $10 “and that included the rope”. “We raised her pups. I was around 14 years old at the time“. Al went to the race track in Shreveport when he was only 15. They ran there for 60 days. Smart went on to Tulsa and Chicago and Hawthorne. “The only time I was away from the dogs was during World War II,” he recalls. Smart was a partner in the Homer Herndon Kennel for many years. They owned and raced greyhounds at tracks like Jacksonville, Daytona, Sarasota, Tampa, Portland and St. Petersburg. After Herndon passed away, Al changed the name of the kennel to Rinaker Kennel in honor of their greatest greyhounds. Those were rough years in the early development of the sport, Al remembers. His philosophy about racing has always been to “keep a good kennel of dogs that can run, and to breed to the best dogs in the litter, making sure the whole litter was good.” When Smart was added to the PIONEER section he was residing in St. Petersburg, Florida.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Al Smart’s greatest greyhound is without a doubt All-American, RINAKER, however Smart has had other greats; PRESIDENT DAY, FREE MISSION, POWER ALARM, RINAKER Z, TARA BOUNDER, B BRAVE and CARRY CASH. According to Smart his biggest thrill was winning a stake with B BRAVE at St. Pete, then beating Flagler’s representative in both legs of a two-dog match race.