Trots return to Ruakaka

Harness racing made a successful return to the far north today with the Auckland Trotting Club hosting a meeting at Ruakaka – the first for eleven years.

“They seemed to have a good crowd on course which is nice. It was a case of turning up not knowing what to expect, but it looks like the region still has an appetite for harness which is nice,” said Matt Peden, head of Racing and Wagering who drove the project.

At the start of the new season Taupo and Ruakaka were earmarked as regions HRNZ wanted to develop for the future.

“It’s one the strategic goals I’ve had, to try and maintain some sort of presence in those regions. Grass track racing opportunities in the north are hard to come by and we don’t have facilities purpose built for us like Motukarara and Methven. We’ve got to work with the galloping clubs to try and use their tracks where we can. Luckily Ruakaka is a track they don’t use for the first part of the year.”

The placement of the meeting on Easter Monday also worked well.

“The way we programmed Cambridge last week into this week meant there was a lack of opportunities for horses in the region that wanted to race and weren’t involved in the features. Seventy horses was the number I was hoping for so having eighty was a win.”

HRNZ are not targeting other areas at present, Peden said.

“Taupo is a huge opportunity in a sense that the galloping club there are fantastic and want to work with us to potentially develop the inner track, which we can use on a regular basis. I think once we solidify how Ruakaka and Taupo work, we can expand that further.”

From a racing perspective the winners were evenly spread across trainers today with Tony Herlihy the only one to score a double.

Put the dancing shoes on because the Northland Cup at Ruakaka goes to Waltzing With Miki. In a very close finish.

Driven by and trained by Benjamin Butcher

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The betting figures are expected to be around $500,000.

“This successful comeback shows real promise and there’s clear potential to build on this momentum and re-establish Ruakaka as a valued stop on the harness racing calendar,” HRNZ CEO Brad Steele said.

For complete race results, click here.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink