All set to kick up the heels

By Sarah Schwager
THE focus will not only be on Flemington this Oaks Day… Pakenham has a share of the Spring Racing Carnival spotlight.
Fashion enthusiasts will be the frontrunners at the first Pakenham Oaks Day meeting tomorrow with frocked fillies and race fans expected to fill the racecourse.
Angela Papiran from Caroline’s Boutique on Main Street, Pakenham, said the mood among fashion buyers for the races had been positive.
“The races are about fashion, not horses,” she said.
Ms Papiran said pinks and greens were top choices and accessories, such as hats, fascinators, jewellery and bags, were all selling fast.
“Look out for brighter colours like pink and green this year,” she said.
Preparations were also on the way for the fashion parade.
Elegant Visions fashion designer Christeen Gatt, who is helping support Pakenham Oaks Day, said she was excited about the day.
Ms Gatt moved to Pakenham from fashion capital Sydney in March. She had been running a fashion business in Sydney for 25 years, and has already made a name for herself in Pakenham by winning an award.
“This is a great opportunity to show people my stuff,” she said.
She said that, being new to the area, she had only recently found out about Oaks Day but had made some gowns especially for the fashion parade.
“It’s all very exciting.”
Pakenham Racing Club manager Michael Hodge said the day was looking to be a big success with most of the marquees already booked out.
“It’s very busy. At the moment, we’ve got over 900 prebookings and we have overbooked 525 for the indulgence marquee,” Mr Hodge said.
“We still have some umbrellas available in the trackside enclosure.”
Mr Hodge said there were 103 nominations for the race meetings, which meant a strong eightrace card.
He said the weather forecast was also critical but at the moment was looking good for Oaks Day.
“We couldn’t be happier with the response. The phones have been running hot.”
He said they expected in excess of 3000 to 3500 people on the day.