Good News Everywhere!

From Penong to Strathalbyn, there’s a resurgence in South Australian racing. Crowd numbers are up, and the average age of patrons is dropping, which is great news for racing’s future. Here are just some of the recent good news stories from the racing regions in South Australia.

Adelaide
• The 2006 Melbourne Cup Day at Morphettville was a huge success. Almost 11,000 people enjoyed a great day of glamour and racing and witnessed history when Japanese stablemates Delta Blues and Pop Rock went one/two in Australia's greatest race.
• Themed Race Days have had increasing public support in 2006. Morphettville’s Irish Day was particularly popular with patrons.
• Strong pre-bookings for the Christmas Twilight Meeting at Victoria Park on Friday December 15 were indicative of the increasing support this event commands.
• Morphettville Junction Entertainment Complex (bar, restaurant, functions, gaming lounge, bookies and TAB) scooped the pool at the recent annual Clubs SA Awards for Excellence Dinner. The 'Junction' took out the highly sought-after 'Best Dining Venue' and 'Best Gaming Venue' awards for the second year running, highlighting the popularity and quality of Morphettville Junction and underlining the fact that it, as the slogan suggests, truly is "the entertainment complex".
• This year's revamped SKYCITY Adelaide Cup Carnival delivered some of the finest racing this State has ever seen with more than 30,000 in attendance. The 2006 festivities weren't restricted to just city slickers. The Port Lincoln, Balaklava, Clare and Naracoorte racing clubs staged feature meetings during the Carnival, giving more racegoers access to a slice of the action.
• On 15 March, Morphettville hosted the new-look Magic Millions Race Day with more than 5,000 in attendance. Traditionally a time for owners and trainers to purchase world-class horses and future champions, the week included the Malaysia Airlines Adealide Magic Millions 2yo Classic, the Group 1 Robert Sangster Stakes, and the Group 2 Coolmore Classic, and made the meeting one of the richest Wednesday meetings in the country. It’s a fantastic time for racing in South Australia and certainly delivered on its promises to be a week of fun and fashion on and off the course.

Barossa & Clare Valleys
• The Balaklava Cup continues to go from strength to strength, with bookings increasing by 20% in each of the last two years. Attracting the largest attendance for a mid-week meeting in South Australia, 2006 saw stake-money for the race increased to $100,000 making it easily the richest event outside the metropolitan area, and the highest wagering turnover outside Adelaide. The day is sensational, and the 100-plus bus loads of pre-booked patrons can attest to that.
• The 2006 Gawler Cup Day formed part of the inaugural Gawler Horse Festival,a national event with participants and visitors from all parts of the country. For the first time in 40 years, the Cup meeting returned to a Saturday. Using the same successful formula from recent years, a crowd of almost 3,500 attended Cup day. A fantastic selection of local food and wine was a big part of the day, complimented by great racing, live entertainment, Fashions on the Field, and a host of free activities that kept children entertained well into the evening.
• The award winning Easter Emerald Race Day on Easter Saturday at Clare attracted over 7,000 people, generating the highest gate revenue ever for this event. The magnificent Autumn weather complimented a strong day's racing and provided two legs of the inaugural Armagh Insurance Apprentice Challenge. Each year, more wineries are becoming involved and more entertainment is being provided as the popularity of the event continues to soar. Similarly, the Clare Cup race meeting goes from strength to strength with more than 2,000 patrons enjoying the finer style of life that only the Valley can offer.

Adelaide Hills
• Oakbank again captured headlines over the Easter long weekend. A crowd of over 65,000 on Monday enjoyed the wonderful social atmosphere of a true South Australian tradition.Combined with Saturday's sensational crowd numbers (over 44,000), this brought the Easter Carnival attendance to an amazing 110,000. As far as racing carnivals go, its popularity is second only to the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
• As well as this increase in numbers, the variety of food, refreshments and merchandising continues to increase.
• Membership of Oakbank Racing Club is growing, and a significant proportion of new members are under 25 years old. The development of the ‘Diamond Marquee’ proved particularly popular with people in this age group. It’s a fantastic sign for the Club’s future.

Eyre Peninsula
• In 2006, the Kimba Cup was transferred to Port Lincoln for its third consecutive year where the response was enormous. This year the Club recorded with solid crowd figures, capacity fields, and trackside entertainment for the whole family as the Kimba Cup made Port Lincoln its home.
• Last year, the Port Lincoln Cup Carnival on March 7 & 9 coincided with the SKYCITY Adelaide Cup Carnival in what was the greatest two weeks of racing festivities this state has witnessed - both on and off the track.
• A canola crop situated in the centre of the Lock racecourse has yielded $40,000 for the club. This initiative helps fund better race days and stronger fields.
• Ceduna Racing Club owes much of its success to a hard-working committee. Over the last year, the club has made many improvements, including renovating the kitchen, re-roofing the main pavilion and creating shaded areas for race goers. In the last 2 years, the club has also raised over $25,000 in sponsorship.
• Ongoing local sponsorship has helped make the Streaky Bay Cup a day that the whole region looks forward to. The Cup in April 2006, represented the final heat of the WA (Bill) Holland Memorial Series. TRSA CEO, Ian Hart believes that "with the right promotion, the Streaky Bay Cup meeting has the potential to rival better known outback cup meetings such as Birdsville". The Club has already received offers to increase levels of support for 2007 and beyond.

Fleurieu Peninsula & Kangaroo Island
• The Langhorne Creek Vignerons Day at Strathalbyn is now one of the most popular Food & Wine Days in the State. Another record crowd of more than 5,000 enjoyed the beautiful spring weather and the fantastic setting for this social occasion.
•In April last year a crowd of almost 3,000 turned enjoyed the 2006 Strathalbyn Cup. Prize money of $35,000 ensures this event will continue to attract big name horses at South Australia's marquee non-metropolitan racecourse.
• The Kangaroo Island Cup Carnival is becoming one of the most popular events on the racing calendar. This two-day-event is not only the island's premier racing event, it is also it's largest tourism drawcard. For four days, the island is a hive of diverse activity, including the Kingscote Twilight Street Party and the Wind Up Dinner at the Ozone Seafront Hotel. Trackside, the amount on offer is fantastic: local wineries are becoming more involved, as are restaurants and other local industries. The growth in the Carnival is huge.

Flinders & Outback
• The Hawker Race Club has seen a marked improvement in popularity and profits. Gate takings are up 40%, over 30 sponsors are now involved in the event, and Yalumba have provided a Wine Marquee. In 2005 over 1000 people attended the 120th Hawker Cup Meeting.
• July 19 2006 saw more than 2500 racing enthusiasts attend the West End Port Augusta Cup meeting with over 700 people filling the 30 hospitality marquees. Crowd numbers were up almost 16% on 2005.
• The Quorn Cup is becoming more popular with visitors to the area. Last year, accommodation was booked out and a ‘day after’ barbecue was arranged by the Racing Committee to cater for the crowd that stayed over.
• Roxby Downs had a whopping crowd of 1500 people enjoy their annual Cup meeting in August 2006. Punters attended a Calcutta on Friday night before racing on Saturday. As if that was not enough entertainment, the Club then hosted the Roxby Downs Racing Ball following the day's festivities. From all reports, patrons celebrated well into Sunday (and probably even Monday). Nice work.

Limestone Coast
• Run over two days in late May, the Mt Gambier Gold Cup Carnival attracted over 6,000 patrons on course in 2006, with a new on-course record crowd of 5,133 for Cup day, a new on-course betting record and an increase of 90% on the number of patrons in marquees.Two thousand tickets were pre-sold for the carnival and patrons enjoyed the biggest after-race party ever held at the track.
• A crowd of almost 2,000 turned out for the 2006 Scott Group of Companies Millicent Cup, SA's richest country race meeting. With on-course turnover up 20% on 2005, and more than 500 guests in pre-sold hospitality marquees, adults and children alike were treated to great racing and loads of trackside entertainment.
• As a part of the ‘Taste of Limestone Coast’ Festival, the 2006 Naracoorte Cup was a huge success, with the biggest crowd seen there in 20 years. Local produce was on hand and the Indonesian food stall proved a crowd favourite, particularly with TRSA's Judge, Ben Day. On Saturday night prior to the running of the Cup, a Calcutta was held in the Narracoorte caves. Almost 200 attended.
• A strong partnership with Coopers Brewery has helped the Penola Racing Club improve facilities and create new events. The Coonawarra Vignerons Day is now one of the most popular Vignerons Days in South Australia. January 2006 saw crowd numbers swell to almost 3,000. Corporate marquees rose from 18 in 2005 to a massive 22 last year.
• Bordertown Race Club has taken the initiative of pre-selling race packages to corporate and social groups. As a result, their on-course profit has risen by 400%. The 2006 Woolshed Inn Bordertown Cup meeting was enjoyed by over 1,700 patrons as connections competed for more than $80,000 in Stakemoney and trophies.

Murraylands
• Known as the ‘biggest Christmas party in the Murraylands’, the award winning T&R Christmas Cup Day is a highlight of the SA racing calendar. The Club introduced their inaugural Spring Racing Ladies Day on Sunday 24 September and the day was the perfect prelude to the 2006 Hahndorf Inn Hotel Murray Bridge Gold Cup held on Wednesday 18 October.
• Another major success story at Murray Bridge was the Great Aussie Race Day held on Australia Day. Traditionally the day has been a celebration of all things fantastic in Australia, and, in particular, South Australia.
• The Mindarie-Halidon Cup has been a long-time favourite in the region, and its popularity doesn’t seem to be waning. The 2006 ‘Melbourne Cup of the Mallee’ was a great success this year with loads of trackside options for people to enjoy. A typical country BBQ kep punters and officials alike, well fed all day.