It’s lights out for Gold Coast track as Millions meeting moves
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Gold Coast Turf Club chairman Brett Cook said the loss of the Hollindale Stakes and upcoming Magic Millions race would result in at least $500,000 of lost revenue but believed the delayed return to racing would make the track “bulletproof” for the future.
Mr Cook (inset) revealed it had taken longer than expected for the root system to develop following the addition of slit drainage and sand grooving, a move that would enable the track to cope with up to 40ml of rain per hour.
“At the end of the day we are disappointed but not surprised,” Mr Cook said.
“We could have raced on Hollindale Stakes day and we could race this night meeting but there is too much risk of long-term damage.
“The spring and summer carnivals are where our biggest commercial revenue comes and we want to make sure it is bulletproof for that time of year.”
The turf club sent out an email to members on Thursday explaining the issue and Mr Cook said it was expected racing would resume on the main course proper within six to eight weeks while two additional night meetings would be added in August and October.
The horrors of the upgrades to Eagle Farm race track in Brisbane that resulted in multiple setbacks over years is still firmly in the mind of punters in South East Queensland but Cook said there was no concern Gold Coast would suffer the same fate.
“We have zero concerns it will be a long term problem,” he said.
The venue shift has created a headache for officials, with the race distance set to change from 1000m to 1050m, while there is also a juggling act required for raceday sponsors.
Tracks in southeast Queensland have been battered by consistent rain for much of this year, with the new Gold Coast track suffering the worst following QTIS Jewel day in March, which drew widespread criticism for the on-speed bias and amount of sandy kickback it produced.
It comes as track curator Nevesh Ramdhani recently resigned from his role at the Gold Coast to return to Sydney.