Fabled cups return for annual races
Two pieces of Waimate Trotting Club history will revisit the famous country racecourse when a pair of cups that were thought to be longlost will be presented at its annual race meeting.
Waimate Trotting Club president Alex Colvill said the cups will be handed to winners on Sunday, but they’re not permitted to take them away.
‘‘Sometimes people forget to return the cups,’’ he said.
‘‘So the recovered cups will presented ... but the winners won’t get to take them away.’’
The first cup, inscribed as the Waimate Centennial Trotting Cup, is believed to be the trophy presented to the winner of the feature race in Waimate’s centenary year of 1954 but it has never been engraved.
It was recovered from the Riverton Recycling Centre and how it got to Southland remain a mystery. It will be presented to the winner of race 10 on Sunday.
The second cup – to be presented to the winner of race nine – dates back to 1925 and has been ‘‘redonated’’ to club according to former president Lex Williams.
‘‘It’s only had two horses’ names on it. One in 1925 (Fireman) and the other in the 1960s,’’ Williams said.
Meanwhile, Waimate Racing Club vice-president Anna Miles is continuing her probe into the origins of the cup found in Riverton.
Miles said she checking the meeting minute book archives from the period at the Waimate Historical Museum.
‘‘I will go down next week to the museum to gather as much information as I can.’’
She repeated her appeal for any further information from people.
Williams said the trotting club was all systems go for its annual meeting that returned last year after high winds blew roofs off the stands in September 2013.
‘‘We were away for four years and only moved back last year,’’ he said.
‘‘We’ve upgraded all our buildings at a cost of about $400,000 and managed to get back.’’
Williams said the club is expecting a ‘‘good crowd’’ of 400-500 people on Sunday.
‘‘That would be wonderful. Last year we had about 700 people and it was a fairly special day’’.
He appealed to the people of Waimate to come out in their numbers and send a message to racing authorities following a recommendation in the government’s Massara Report to halt thoroughbred racing in Waimate.
‘‘The message is support it or lose it. Show your support for rural racing and dislike for the centralisation of racing that Winston Peters is trying to get across.’’
Williams said currently the trotting club is able to stage the Waimate track but the licence for thoroughbred racing there had been taken away.
‘‘We are hoping not to become a casualty of that as well.
‘‘We need the support of the community to get the message through to the authorities that rural communities need to keep their assets and their activities in their local areas.’’
Williams said the Waimate clubs are financially sustainable for a many years to come.
‘‘We are a small, one day country meeting and I don’t believe that we cost the industry anything.
‘‘We have all new assets. We can carry on now for 20 years without asking for any funds to develop the course in any way.
‘‘It’s all funding done by volunteers and local community support.’’
The highlight of Sunday’s meeting is the $15,000 Waimate Cup, which has attracted 13 runners. Some 178 trotters were nominated for the 11 races.
People can look forward to many activities for families on the day too.