Elwick crowd kept to 1000 so masks aren’t needed
SATURDAY’S race meeting at Elwick that coincides with Caulfield Cup day in Melbourne is a sell-out.
Unless you have already booked a ticket to the venue there will be no access for walk-ins.
The Tasmanian Racing Club placed a cap of 1000 attendees on the meeting which will allow it to proceed without patrons having to wear masks.
Covid restrictions policy limits the crowd to 1000 without masks – anything higher would require masks to be worn throughout the venue.
TRC chief executive officer Brendan Blomeley said the club had opted to place the 1000 cap on the meeting to make for a more relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere.
“We have 450 booked in for the luncheon and of those 220 are from the Tasmanian Hospitality Association,” Blomeley said.
“Tasmanian Bloodstock has booked out the Crown Lager Bar that caters for 150 including racehorse owners, with the balance made up of TRC members who have pre-booked, industry participants, Office of Racing Integrity personnel, ground staff and Tasracing employees working on the day.”
The seven-race program has attracted 99 nominations.
With the rail out 15m for the entire circuit, near capacity fields can be expected in most races with final acceptances to close at 9am on Wednesday.
LONGFORD trainer Bill Ryan will take three horses to the trials on his home track on Tuesday, including his Launceston Cup second placegetter Sh’bourne Renegade and his promising mare Take The Sit, who notched three wins in succession last season before being tipped out for a spell.
Take The Sit capped her 2020-21 season by winning the Tasmanian Magic Millions 3 & 4YO Classic in Launceston after which she won two more benchmark races in Hobart and Ryan is looking forward to what she might deliver this time in.
“I haven’t decided where Take The Sit will start her campaign but (Tuesday’s) trial at Longford will give me a better idea of where to go,” Ryan said.
“Sh’bourne Renegade will also have a trial over 700m and he should have one or two more trials before he goes to the races this time in.”
Ryan will also saddle up A Wee Nip, a first starter by Alpine Eagle from his former handy race mare Sh’bourne Spirit.
“I don’t know what to make of A Wee Nip because she hasn’t shown me much on the training track this time in,” he said. “The jury’s still out on her.”
Ryan is looking forward to his lightly raced four-year-old Heza Charmer stepping out in a maiden in Launceston on Wednesday night.
The four-year-old showed promise early but bad habits have prevented him from realising his potential.
“Heza Charmer won a trial at Longford two weeks ago and that was the first time he’s raced generously, so I’m hoping he can put it all together in Wednesday night’s race.”