Elwick back on track

Experts fly in to help repair Elwick racecourse

TWO experts in turf management will fly in to help sort out Elwick’s troubled racetrack surface in the wake of cancelled race meetings.

Flemington track manager Liam O’Keeffe and Moonee Valley’s Marty Syan are heading to Hobart in the coming days to help prepare the track ahead of the Hobart Cup carnival.

“The images of the track were pretty graphic and hopefully we can … help them sort those issues out,” O’Keefe said.

TWO top Victorian racetrack experts have answered the call to help repair Hobart’s troubled Elwick track in the lead- up to the state’s summer carnival.

Staff at Elwick Racecourse were left red- faced when an inspection found loose plugs had rendered the track unsafe for last week’s $ 100,000 Tasmanian Guineas meeting.

The meeting was postponed on December 27 and cancelled on December 30. Racing Minister Jane Howlett demanded an independent probe into the problems, which arose before the Hobart Cup.

Flemington track manager Liam O’Keeffe and Moonee Valley’s Marty Synan will visit Hobart this week to consult on the track surface.

“We’re just going to head down and give them a hand with any advice we can give on getting it ready for the Cup and help them out leading into their big carnival,” O’Keeffe said.

“The images of the track were pretty graphic and hopefully we can get down there and help them sort those issues out and get the track right.”

Mr O’Keeffe said Melbourne track managers often received requests for assistance from other clubs, either in Victoria or interstate, but most weren’t made public.

He said he and Mr Synan had not received a report on the state of the Elwick track, meaning they would approach their task with an open mind.

“We’re going down there with a blank sheet of paper and no preconceived ideas,” Mr O’Keeffe said.

“We’ll take down our various tools and take measurements of the surface and compare things to the tracks back here to see the strength of the grass and the profile of the ground.

“If there’s any more remedial work to be done, we’ll help them with that but we’ve heard the remedial work has been done on the affected areas. It’s just a matter of getting the work done to have the track a bit better going forward.”

A Tasracing spokesman said prior to Christmas that turf specialist Chris Hay would begin work on Monday.

“Chris’s sole focus will be on turf track maintenance,” the spokesman said.

“Chris is a highly respected turf specialist and is sought after in Tasmania and interstate,” the spokesman said.