Weathering the storm

Milton Park, with Jarrod Fry on board, took out the Vale George Dore OAM Handicap at Sportsbet Pakenham on Friday. Picture: COURTESY OF RACING PHOTOS

By Lance Jenkinson

Pakenham Racing Club officials can finally exhale.

A busy and testing winter racing program like no other at the Tynong track has been completed without a hitch.

Pakenham Racing Club general manager of racing and commercial Wade Calderwood conveyed the atmosphere around Sportsbet Pakenham during another successful, albeit crowd-less, race meeting on Monday.

“The over-riding feeling amongst everybody has been one of relief,” he said.

“It’s a relief that the racing industry has been able to continue for so long and weather the storm of all these Covid outbreaks.

“We’re now into six months of Covid and we haven’t lost one race meeting.

“That’s very important because people have got families to feed and we’ve been able to keep going.”

Calderwood praised the whole racing industry for its willingness to adapt to new guidelines brought about by Covid-19.

He believes the industry has operated under the strictest conditions, but with the most willing participants, who know what is at stake.

“We have extremely strict protocols, right from arrival through to where the jockey rooms are, to the officials, the mounting yard, even cleaning the barriers before the horses start,” he said.

“There’s a significant number of protocols, pages and pages, that we adhere to, to make sure we can continue to keep racing

“We’ve had to really be very adaptive in short periods of time.”

It was important for the local economy for racing to continue.

“It’s a large employer, the racing industry, particularly down Pakenham way, with a lot of trainers and owners,” Calderwood said.

“It’s great that their local track has still been able to gainfully employ jockeys, trainers, stablehands and everyone associated with our industry down this way.”

Calderwood is flat that members have not been able to attend race meetings, but has assured them “plans will be in place” for their return once restrictions are lifted.

He has been encouraged by the engagement in off-course betting and believes new racing fans will come from those who tuned in from their living rooms through the pandemic.

The big question is: Could Pakenham have punters on track for their next racing meeting on 16 October?

“It’s very much crystal ball gazing, so we just don’t know,” Calderwood said.

“We’ll certainly be prepared one way or the other.”