But Weir, the former Stawell farrier who has risen to be the state's leading trainer, was instead schooling horses over hurdles and educating youngsters.

Weir, 44, has prepared 248 winners nationally and that number appears certain to top 250 by the end of the racing season.

But while Weir has prepared winners across Australia, he admits his business won't be undergoing any facelifts as he heads into his new racing season.

When asked if a base in Melbourne, Sydney or Adelaide was on the cards, the trainer took little time to rule out any expansion of his stables.

"I know we've come a long way quickly and we've probably succeeded in winning a premiership a little earlier than we imagined but I'm a country boy and I want my horses trained in the country, just like any good European stable would have,'' Weir said.

"For instance, here at Ballarat, you're not tied down to any specific training regime, you can take some horses for their daily workouts on the roads, through the hills or even up-and-over the mountain behind the track.

"I can't impress enough on the variety of work, it is so beneficial for the horse. We've even now got a really sophisticated jumping facility that helps educate horses over the jumps and in the best possible manner.

"Yes, I have a big team. I work between 80 and 100 horses a day here and I've got another 50 in work at Warrnambool. Sure I would like to spend more time at Warrnambool but sometimes it's not physically possible.''

On Wednesday morning as he took a group of young horses out on a lead pony his mobile phone never stopped. Fifteen hours earlier he was down the road winning the last three races at Warracknabeal.

"I tried to go to as many race meetings as possible. But my base of owners know two things. I will tell them that if I'm not there; and any member of my team that represents me is just as much across the horses as I am," he said.

Weir has two stables at Warrnambool both full at 25 horses each. He said that none of the 50 horses under his training banner go anywhere near the Warrnambool racecourse. They are there to be worked on the beach. Many are overcoming injuries or are older horses that relish wading through the waves instead of doing laps of a racecourse.

"I think the best advertisement for Warrnambool is Clevadude who had his first start at Warracknabeal for me this week, and Akzar, who won the Warrnambool Cup for me,'' Weir said.

"But horses arrived in good condition but they went to Warrnambool and it seems they just refocused and enjoyed life at the beach as against the mundane morning at a metropolitan track.''

Weir points out that his spring team this year will be an assortment of horses returning from injury, up-and-comers and a number of second-hand gallopers. He knows much of his success has been derived from getting horses at that end of the market and turning them around.

Colin Hayes, Tommy Smith and Bart Cummings were trail blazers, proving that having a huge amount of horses on the books is achievable and can be financially rewarding.

"I think you've got to remember that having large numbers of horses is dependant on your staff and I'm lucky I have a wonderful group of people that are overseeing my teams of horses. Let's face it, if they weren't that good the winners wouldn't be there,'' Weir said.

"Do you know that I come into these stables either at Warrnambool or Ballarat and largely just look and observe at what's going around. Everyone on every level knows their task and I suppose on the rare occasion I might say you can groom that horse better, or something like that, but really I never have to and that's the only way it can work.''

When asked if he's ever viewed the operation of Sydney's leading trainer, Chris Waller, and his huge stable of horses, Weir said: ''To be really truthful I think he does a marvellous job and he's a tremendous conditioner but I haven't got the time to worry about anyone else but my own lot," he said.

Weir says despite years of shoeing horses his back is in good shape, complaining only of knee issues stemming from his football days in Stawell.

"I probably played too long and my knees are giving me hell but apart from that I've got the health and energy to go even better in the new season."

And with Weir an even-money chance of swelling his tally of winners to over 250 by August 1, no one can doubt his chances of doing it all again next season.