Turn Back the Clock at Bendigo Next Friday Night with Veteran Drivers to Feature

Bendigo will turn back harness racing’s clock with a driver’s list that could be right out of a Melbourne Showgrounds or early Moonee Valley race book, when the Club stages its Memorial Race Night at Lord’s Raceway Bendigo on Friday night, November 11.

The Bendigo Harness Racing Club has assembled one of the best lists of ‘master’ drivers available in Victoria to compete the fifth running of the feature race of $10,000, the Oxley Feed Mill Veteran Driver’s Trot.

Career driving records read like a ‘Who’s Who’ of major race winners with: Six Inter Dominion victories, Hunter Cups, Dullard Cups, Breeders Crowns, Oaks, Derbies, Country Cups and just about every other major race feature listed on their resumes
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The combined total of winners driven by the twelve competitors is well over 11,000, with Brian Gath heading the group with over 3,300 wins.


The 12 drivers, who all drove at the Melbourne Showgrounds track are: Brian Gath, Graeme Lang, Jim O’Sullivan, Neville Welsh, Peter Manning, Cliff Powell, Bill Spitiri, Dick Lee, Graeme Whittle, Keith Pratt, Noel Shinn and Ginger Gleeson.
This year, for the first time, thanks to HRV, the drivers will race in their own well known colours.

The Memorial Race Night at Bendigo also features six races named to honour the contributions to Bendigo District harness racing of past participants: Merv Dillon, Henry McDermott, Ted Manton, Ron Pocock, Les Pratt and Daphne and Ken Pocock.

And a Bonus Free For All: To make the night even more interesting…HRV have shifted the $20,000 Markovina Free For All originally scheduled at Melton to Bendigo to enable Interdominion bound horses to be flown to WA on the Sunday. Here’s hoping to see Hector Jay Jay, Lennie The Shark, and Emma Stewart’s ID contenders at Lord’s Raceway.

The 2015 Veteran Drivers Field
Attachment 657

The Markovina could prove to be some lovely icing on Bendigo's cake