November 12, 2016
Saturday’s Mount Perry meeting wrapped up the program for the “once-a-year” race clubs for 2016, but the sequence will kick off again on January 7 at Bell.
Burrandowan, Eidsvold and Kumbia are the other Burnett clubs in this category that – statewide – includes the likes of Birdsville, Oak Park, Stanthorpe and Laura.
For the facts and figures folk that spend their working hours in the air conditioned capital city offices, these operations defy logic.
The first question they ponder is: “Why keep up track and facility maintenance for just a few hours of action each year?”
Although many courses are multiple-purpose venues, the key factor is that there is a a tireless band of dedicated, community minded individuals that serve their local area and racing just for the love of it.
There is an underlying notion of sustaining a heritage, and many committees have soldiered on against all sorts of trials and adversities.
Immersed in the country crowds are the youngsters that are the future generation of racing participants.
Some will take up roles in the industry, end up in the ownership ranks or contribute financially as punters.
The rural sector more than pulls its weight in this regard.
Some major city race days are inanely restricted to the over-18 set. It is all about the quick buck.
In an era when Chief-Executive Officers and key personnel in many areas of life move on to new posts relatively smartly, the long term impacts of their decisions happen after they have departed.
The majority of the annuals are immensely popular, and for many in attendance, it is the only time they venture to the track.
Clubs that race more frequently face the challenge of drawing different patrons to each meeting because the number of regular stalwarts is on a continual decline.
The task becomes one of targeting and retaining a series of “once-a-year” racegoers.
Meanwhile, Hannah English, fresh from a double at Chinchilla last weekend had a full book at Mount Perry, and South Burnett trainers Tom Moloney, James Curtain, Glenn Richardson and Neville “Shorty” O’Toole were all aiming to visit the winner’s slot.
Note: The racingaustralia.horse website error that quoted $18 as the starting price for the Kumbia Cup winner has been amended. Charge Missile was a $1.80 favourite. Bookmakers would have had a Pamplona experience if they had put up the double-figure offering. The running of the bulls would have had nothing on the stampede that would have ensued.
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It Was Not April Fool’s Day
Her Majesty The Queen famously declared that 1992 was an “Annus Horribilis”, and Racing Queensland and the Brisbane Racing Club may well be privately saying the same thing about this year.
Wags have been wondering why the proposal to switch the 2017 Doomben 10,000 to Eagle Farm became news so soon after that track’s Melbourne Cup day power meltdown.
There is an awful lot of fence mending to be done, particularly when Stradbroke Day also left a sour taste in the mouths of many members and the general public.
It will be tough to entice back many of the thousands who shelled out handsomely for the various marquees and function areas on November 1.
The authorities could have addressed concerns such as turnover by examining the nonsense of staging two weight-for-age Group One sprints worth $500,000 (BTC Cup) and $750,000 (10,000) two weeks apart.
The Championships in Sydney and Royal Ascot will take care of the cream. with Adelaide’s Goodwood Handicap also providing stiff opposition.
Hopefully, a lot of analysis has taken place already.
One option that could have been considered was reverting one of those two events to a handicap. There would have been a freshness about it.
Both 2015 and 2016 renewals involved five or six aspirants going around in both races. Those hopefuls were not the likes of Black Caviar, Apache Cat, Takeover Target, Chief De Beers, Manikato, Campaign King and Charlton Boy.
This idea will not bear fruit because Group One status seems more likely to be retained for set weight affairs.
The Racing Queensland item on its website does not indicate if its Thoroughbred Advisory Panel was consulted before the planning concept was released.
