Victorian 2024 - 25 Calendar

The calendar for the whole financial year is now complete
It has plenty of pattern to it which should be good for people knowing when to expect certain venues

The most satisfied would have to be:

• Shep nice and simple 49/52 Tuesday nights
• Bendigo 46/52 Wednesday nights
• Ballarat and Kilmore pretty much alternate for every Thursday night
• Apart from the fact that they would probably prefer Night meets, Mildura has every Friday except in hot Jan and Feb (get a couple of Wed nights instead)
• Melton every Saturday but not as many Fridays as I expected (Geelong takes quite a few)
• Cranbourne heaps of Sundays
• Maryborough mostly Wednesdays but no pattern - some quiet months and busiest when takes some of Midura's summer Fridays (Mary gets bloody hot too!)

Possible negatives:
I am not sure why/can we afford to have so many Mondays off
YG Melbourne Cup Day gone. It has always been a huge crowd puller - maybe we don't benefit from everybody only betting on the gallops? It is big tradition going down the gurgler - will the club bother setting up all the marquees etc for just Oaks Day?

I have had a closer look at the tracks closest to me.
My closest - Stawell, has been the worst hit

Stawell 10 - 4 = 6

Horsham 9 - 2 = 7

Ararat 7 - 1 = 6

Hamilton 8 - 2 = 6

Anything < 6 Bimonthly would make you question why you would stay open but I think of St Arnaud as a trotting town and they get by on a lot less

Racing returned at Kilmore last night
What had they been doing to the track
I hope it wasn't upgrading the lighting because the replays seem bloody dark

new stables and lighting -https://www.thetrots.com.au/news/articles/kilmores-state-of-the-art-stable-facility-opens-its-doors/
quite foggy last night - on track lighting was good

No Sunday meet today and yet Warragul could only muster 6 races for 45 runners tomorrow.
They do not have another meeting until December!

https://www.harness.org.au/racing/fi...s/?mc=WR220724

Stawell have a meeting on Wednesday and then they do not have a meeting for 6 months and 1 day

I should have gone to Stawell today (but have an excuse). I hate that Big Top inside the track but interesting to hear Dan promoting a Blues Festival that will be using it in August - I guess if HRV are not going to support you then this type of infrastructure may be needed for income

Mildura love their night meetings - Friday nights
and yet they have been shafted to day meetings on Fridays with Melton taking the night slot
Three weeks back both tracks raced at night
The Mildura pools were equal (better actually) than their day meets and did no harm to the Melton pools

LET BOTH TRACKS RACE ON FRIDAY NIGHT