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The growing preponderance of preferential barrier draws on Victorian metro harness racing meetings since the National Ratings system was introduced harbours interesting origins. For years – even decades – there’s been an unverified, almost patriarchal belief that making races more even encourages wagering interest, which raises turnover and increases stakemoney. And, like many things in […]
Few losses have hit Australian harness racing’s terrifically tight knit community quite like those they experienced when legendary father/son duo Graeme and Gavin Lang rattled off this mortal coil in rapid succession almost three years ago. Fortunately, however, there’s another Hall of Fame member of the Lang dynasty that continues to astound. For decades, Chris […]
Harness Racing Victoria’s international ambitions have sometimes outweighed their capacity, but as legendary entrepreneur Richard Branson once opined if you ‘reach higher than you expect, you could reach higher than you ever dreamed’. And right now, we’re on the cusp of fulfilling Branson’s prediction. By the way, when talking about internationalisation, we’re talking about squaregaiting. […]
Despite the obvious advantages associated with staging Victoria’s feature harness racing futurity series in warmer weather, there’s still something unsettling about the TAB Breeders Crown occupying the space it now does. They say, at least L P Hartley said, that the past is a foreign country; and never has this aphorism held more truth than with […]
American businessman and politician, Charles Erwin Wilson, expanding on a previous quote by Charles F Kettering, once opined that “the price of progress is trouble, and I must be making a lot of progress”. Now Wilson’s business wasn’t harness racing – he specialised in motor cars – yet this, in itself, provides a segue of […]
Racing has a funny way of making and breaking reputations in stunningly superficial ways. Before launching his latest preparation Western Sonador was the talk of the town with pundits perpetrating his virtues to all who would listen. Then, lo and behold, he leads and wins at Bendigo to jettison his campaign. Suddenly, the sacred souls […]
What are the integral ingredients which comprise a Grand Circuit pacer? In no particular order, any horse hoping to compete at the highest level must possess strength, speed, depth, professionalism and an almost ethereal will to win. Bondi Lockdown, the prophetically named colt from Victoria’s Wimmera region, has these attributes in spades. On Saturday night, […]
Right now, in purely pragmatic terms, there are few female sportspeople more motivating or meaningful than harness racing’s Kate Gath. Sadly, and this shouldn’t be the case, athletic achievements are prioritised by popularity rather than merit. Without doubt the freakish deeds of Victoria’s leading jockey Jamie Kah warrant the worship they are currently being afforded. […]
