Racing: Flagship savours success

Our Southern Man driven by John Kriechbaumer was a clear winner of race two, the Neville Bros Mobile pace over 2100m. Photo / John Stone

Great community involvement has made the Whangarei Racing Club's annual flagship event at Ruakaka an even bigger success for organisers this year.

The Interislander Summer Festival on Tuesday drew a crowd approaching 5000 in number but the assistance of the local community added to the experience of the day for punters and holiday-goers alike.

One of the club's leading trainers, Donna Logan, said the day had been a resounding success.

"It surely benefited the club's coffers but not only that, it was a memorable day for all those involved - the atmosphere was absolutely supreme," Logan said. "I think it's growing every year, little by little, just judging by the state of the car park on Tuesday which was jam-packed."

The club's Rebecca Swords said no official count was taken of the crowd numbers but the atmosphere on Tuesday had been fantastic.

"The numbers were definitely on a par with last year, I'm not sure if it was much bigger than last year but it was definitely a great day for all involved with a well-behaved, fun crowd of people," she said. "Everything went so well, the beach was used a lot more this year which was great and the kids had such a great time with things like the mobile climbing wall, which was a big hit."

She said the volunteers had been amazing. The Ruakaka Surf Patrol had patrolled the beach and then helped with the clean-up later.

Organisations like Bream Bay College, the Bream Bay Swim Club, Waipu Highland Dancing and One Tree Point Pony Club had also helped on the day and with the clean-up. Mid Western Lions Club supported by the Onerahi Lions Club and the Maungakaramea Volunteer Fire Service had all pitched in to help run the bar.

Swords said vendors had all reported either selling out or getting pretty close, which was another sign of a successful day.