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Thread: Trots Returning to Wayville Showgrounds October 27

  1. #21
    Super Moderator Stallion Messenger will become famous soon enough Messenger's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by David Collins View Post
    Am lucky enough to have attended meetings at Melbourne Showgrounds. The atmosphere was tremendous and akin to a VFL game with spectators around the entire track. Trotting was big! Unfortunately I never got to see a Wayville meeting. What a great idea putting this meeting on. It will be very interesting to see what times modern bred horses will run around this track. Looking forward to being there October 27th.
    Same here David - the Melbourne Showgrounds is why I am a harness fan.
    I fear that no matter how popular small tracks prove they will be out of favour because of the obsession with times nowadays.
    Surely time relative to each tracks records should be enough without the obsession of having to run 1.50
    per un PUGNO di DOLLARI

  2. #22
    Senior Member Stallion Danno is a jewel in the rough
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    Quote Originally Posted by Amlin View Post
    The old Newcastle Showgrounds track was probably similar in dimension to Wayville


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ch6cRRIoDjU


    The Newcastle Showground track was indeed like Wayville, in fact the same circumference 550yds, Dad and I trained on the Showground back in the 70's and early eighties, as did many participants that are still in the game today, the current Newcastle club President Jim Bell, Cheryl and Dally Atkins, Steve Allars and Brian Elder, just to name a few, the Showground had something like 120 boxes and they were all mostly full. If you couldn't get a horse away from a standing start or shoe them well in those days you couldn't win a race.


    The original track at Tamworth was even more difficult to negotiate, it was 502 yards around with an eleven foot drop ( approximately 3.3 metres) from the winning post to the commencement of the back straight, needless to say if there was a prang it was a good chance it was on the turn out of the home straight. I drove my first two winners there on Easter weekend 1975, I had just turned 17 and was lucky to be driving a horse that was a) better than those he was up against, and b) not only handled the track but thrived on it, he eventually had 5 starts on the track for 3 wins, 1 third and an unlucky 4th in the Tamworth Cup a couple of years later.


    I made enquiries about the Wayville meeting as I was keen to take a couple of horses down just to relive some of the old stuff, but they told me they were restricting the driving to a group of "Professionals", the excuse being it would make the racing safer. No way I'm going all that way to let someone else drive my horses so I'm holding off a few months and going to WA, in particular Busselton for it's track and standing starts and also Broken Hill and others along the way and way back.


    Thanks for sharing the clip Kyle, the old track was still pulling good crowds in '87 but still about half the people were getting in the late 60's and 70's, you could not fire a shotgun and hit nobody like you can today.


    cheers,


    Danno

  3. #23
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year Amlin will become famous soon enough Amlin's Avatar
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    All this nostalgia reminds me that I have heard from two sources (and have been told that others have heard) about a possible return to Moonee Valley when the gallops track is "turned around".

    I have heard that it is happening, is not happening, that it should happen and that it needs to happen. Has created some discussion anyway.

  4. #24
    Super Moderator Stallion Messenger will become famous soon enough Messenger's Avatar
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    City venue but a trots track inside a gallops track is always 2nd best
    per un PUGNO di DOLLARI

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  6. #26
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year trish will become famous soon enough
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    All races will be Drivers Invitational Races.

  7. #27
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year trish will become famous soon enough
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    I would say your invitation is in the mail Danno . Mark is waiting for his , he will go to the mail box everyday .

  8. #28
    Super Moderator Stallion Messenger will become famous soon enough Messenger's Avatar
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    No Mark or Dan there

    http://www.harnesslink.com/News/Driv...light=Wayville

    with fields of 8 these 12 will even get a rest.
    Penalty free races but you will need horses that can get away from the stand
    per un PUGNO di DOLLARI

  9. #29
    Senior Member Stallion Danno is a jewel in the rough
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    Quote Originally Posted by trish View Post
    I would say your invitation is in the mail Danno . Mark is waiting for his , he will go to the mail box everyday .


    Hahahahah........busting a gut......tell Mark going to the mailbox every day doesn't work, I've already tried it....but! on a serious note, does driving 1000's of races a year on 800/1000 metre tracks and zero lifetime on tracks less than 600metres make you more qualified to drive at a venue like Wayville? A bit of a toss in my opinion.

  10. #30
    Junior Member Foal Excursion will become famous soon enough
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    Yes Kevin, all the best trotting tracks are stand alone jobs. I wonder if any thought has ever been given in Australia to having a sand track that both codes could use. I believe Hollywood Park was dual code (and maybe Vincennes in Paris?).

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