TAMWORTH Harness Racing Club will “top up” its Tamworth Showground Paceway in an effort to ensure future race meetings don’t meet the same fate as Thursday’s eight-race TAB meeting.
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Thursday’s meeting was abandoned due to rain and state of the track.
It could have cost the industry around $80,000 in lost revenue, said Laurie James, the Tamworth club’s administration officer.
He also said a new topping would help the track become more impervious to the weather along with the introduction of some new rules.
All of which is necessary to keep the Tamworth club racing at the Showground Paceway until its new facility is built on the southern outskirts of the city.
“However that might not happen for another 18 months to two years,” James said.
“They (Harness Racing NSW) are about to start the new track at Wagga and they reckon that will take around 12 months.
“Then they’d look at starting our new track.”
That makes topping the existing track a necessity to ensure as many meetings go ahead as possible.
The cost of “retopping” the Paceway with crusher dust is around $50,000 but that new topping can also be used to top up the new track when it is built, James said.
“They look like starting work on the new topping in the first week of August.”
Tamworth Golden Guitar winner Strathlachlan Andy and his Bobs Farm trainer Geoff Harding will hit the road this weekend for tomorrow’s Carnival Of Cups meeting at Cootamundra.
The son of Blissfull Hall does all of his fast work on Birubi Beach but will travel more than 1180 kilometres on his return trip to the Riverina this weekend.
“All of my horses do their fast work at the beach. They can jog at home and I take the babies to the track but the majority of the time they are on the sand,” Harding said.
“Strathlachlan Andy is a good traveller so the long trip to Cootamundra won’t worry him and I will leave on Saturday so it will give us plenty of time to get there for Sunday.”
Strathlachlan Andy will compete in Cootamundra’s South West Fuel Centre Wattle Time Cup, the feature event on the eight race program.
The five-year-old has won seven of his last nine starts, including Tamworth’s Golden Guitar, and, despite drawing the back row, does look hard to beat.
“There is no doubt that he is getting stronger and he has been driven more aggressively this season but he is still a better horse when he is sat up.
“James (Harding) is going to drive him again on Sunday. He has got a good record on him.”
Harding spent some time in America when James headed across to work for a leading trainer.
“When James was in the USA I went over and spent some time watching Jimmy Takter and how he trains and I have brought back some of the ideas and I think it has made an improvement to my team.
“I’m working eight at the moment and there are a couple of young ones there as well so there is enough to keep me busy.”
Harding is mindful that Strathlachlan Andy has had a long preparation and is considering a spell.
“I’ll see how he pulls up after Sunday but he is still only assessed M0 so I might take him to Queensland for a couple of races before giving him a break.”
Stathlachlan Andy is looking to win his fourth Carnival Of Cups event for the season after winning at Tamworth, Narrabri and Armidale and is well-placed to be crowned the leading horse for the series and win his owner a further $5000.
