Whangārei Racing Club's 'Christmas at the Races' to cap off 2018

Matt Cameron of Logan Racing stables, seen here riding Red Sky at Night at the Tauranga Races, has dominated the riding ranks with 13 wins this year. Photo / File

With the year coming to a close it is time to reflect on the action from Ruakaka racecourse.

The best local performance of the year was saved to this month when the Logan Racing team, headed locally by Chris Gibbs and Michelle Bradley, produced Danzdanzdance in perfect order to demolish the Group 1 field in the Rydges Wellington Captain Cook Stakes over 1600 metres on December 8 at Trentham.

Even with the principal trainer, Donna Logan, heading a new, successful stable of runners in Singapore, Logan Racing has continued to be the mainstay of the local meetings with 195 runners and 29 winners in 2018, with tomorrow's 'Christmas at the Races' meeting still to be held.

The Logan stables strike rate has been a very good 6.7 but is unlikely to be good enough to win the Majestic Floats' trainer of the year award as the James/Wellwood stable has a strike rate of 3.7 and Richard Collett, 4.3.

The result will go down to the wire tomorrow as the team has a very strong hand with Mi Sky, Boogie Easy, Lady Sequoyah, Lumberjack, and Super Gee all winning chances.

The other major stable at the Ruakaka course, Rae Racing have had a very good year in 2018 with six winners at the track from 41 starters including feature wins with Major Tom.

Major Tom is in line to be the Majestic Floats' horse of the year with three wins this calendar year, the same as Vinevale, but Major Tom wins on a countback with a second placing.

With the many successes of the Logan Racing stables their two leading riders in Matt Cameron and Cameron Lammas have dominated the riding ranks with 13 and nine wins respectively.

The apprentice challenge is much closer with just one meeting in contention. Jasmine Fawcett leads with five winners and close behind with one less winner is the star of the recent Jockey's Challenge at Ellerslie in Ryan Elliott.

Last year's apprentice rider of the year Sam Weatherley has gone onto much bigger ventures and is now firmly entrenched in the Sydney metropolitan riding ranks.

A much-appreciated change for the club in 2018 has been the introduction of the LED Media Solutions big screen, in conjunction with Hirepool, for its Saturday or feature meetings such as tomorrow's.

The partnership with these two local businesses has added to a much better viewing experience for the on-course patrons.

The Christmas at the Races meeting is the second running of the event for the club and bookings have been very strong with many businesses from Whangārei, Waipu, Ruakaka and Marsden Point booked in for their end of year celebrations.

Over and above the seven races of thoroughbred racing action, there will be entertainment between races from the local Pulse Dance Group and vocalist Tammy D'Ath.

It looks like there will be changes a foot in the industry as there has been a Ministerial Advisory Committee appointed to help the Government prepare legislation to adopt the Messara Report in the autumn of 2019.

Whangārei Racing Club starts its new year on Saturday, January 5, when it holds its biggest attended event, the family-friendly Interislander Summer Festival meeting.