Rising Gippsland harness driver Steve Austen after his win on Numero Uno at Warragul on Sunday.WARRAGUL Harness Racing Club hosted its biggest crowd at a non-feature trotting meeting for several years on Sunday.
In recent times the two biggest days on the racing calendar had been Warragul Cup day and the Melbourne Cup Day picnic program.
However Sunday’s Christmas meeting drew 655 patrons, well up on the 524 at the same meeting last year.
Much of the improved attendance can be attributed to more aggressive marketing of sponsorships and dining packages, which grew from 40 to 217.
The big crowd enjoyed eight excellent local races in perfect weather with many newcomers to harness racing enjoying the day.
Highlight of Sunday’s racing card was the Eddie Evison Memorial Cup won by All Action Son. It capped off a unique achievement for the veteran trotter that beat the pacers to win the Clarrie Logan Memorial in October.
Longwarry horse Merisun won the Alby Quinlan Memorial race, while Steve Austen, a graduate of the Gippsland Harness Training Centre, drove his first winner Numero Uno in the Education Centre Gippsland Pace.
Austen raised his whip going past the post, unable to hide his delight and it was a fitting result, as the race sponsor will become the new educational provider for the training centre in 2006.
The racing action will continue at Warragul on Monday, 23 January, when the club’s second richest race for the year, the $20,000 Eastern Challenge will be held.
