New Year races help boost club coffers

GOOD RACE: Apprentice Dylan Turner eases winner Caught Behind down soon after the opening galloping race at Tauherenikau on Friday.

A big crowd and a healthy on-course turnover at its New Year meeting has put a smile on the faces of the Wairarapa Racing Club's committee.

About 10,000 people came to the races held at the course known as Beautiful Tauherenikau and on-course betting hit $382,000 - up 6 per cent on the corresponding meeting last year. That figure did not include more than $60,000 that was wagered on the four harness races staged by the Wairarapa Harness Racing Cub, which also enjoyed the best day the club has had since combining a race day with the gallops at Tauherenikau.

The galloping club's president, Wayne Thurston, said he was delighted with the way the entire day had panned out. The weather was perfect, the track was in tip-top order thanks to track manager Jamie Phillips and his crew and the fields had held up nicely.

Mr Thurston said the club had not been "all that financial in the past few years.

"But we are turning that around. Part of the reason has been employing locals," he said. "The parents from Masterton Intermediate School man the gates and the car parks, the Lions provide bar staff and Rotary provide security services for places like the birdcage and the members stand."

Mr Thurston said the success of the New Year meeting, held last Friday, meant Tauherenikau had performed better than any other club outside of the big Ellerslie meeting.

He said the club was being " prudent" with its costs and "positive things are starting to happen".

On February 6, which is Waitangi day, the club will be celebrating its 150th jubilee and a great day's racing is planned.

This will include the running of the Wairarapa Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes which will carry a stake of $50,000 and the $20,000 Wairarapa Cup.

With the track being maintained to the same standard as last week, it is hoped the jubilee meeting will lure good horses to guarantee top racing.

Wairarapa Harness Racing Club president Ray Southey said the day had been a great success for harness racing.

The four harness races had kicked off the day's racing by being the first four on the card.

This seemed to have worked out nicely, as opposed to slotting any of the harness races in between galloping events and starting an hour later than in previous January meetings had meant more punters were on-course to invest.

The harness club will stage its next meeting on February 8 at Manawatu Raceway and will follow with the country cups meeting to be held at Manawatu in April.