News

By TAYLER STRONG

  The Otago Racing Club meeting at Cromwell on Sunday marked a 150 years of racing at that racecourse. The first horse race in Cromwell was held in conjunction with athletic sports meetings about 1862 although no records are available, states Historical Racing Records compiled by W. A. Saunders. The property was knows as Racing Hill racecourse. The first recorded race meeting at Cromwell was in August, 1869. The Cromwell Jockey Club was then formed and held its first race meeting in December that year. The racecourse was designated a reserve by parliament act in 1876. The club subsequently staged a two-day meeting in March until 1998 when it failed financially. The Cromwell Turf Club raced for four years from 1978, staging an on-course only betting meeting. The Otago Racing Club began racing at Cromwell in 1999 and now stages meetings on the track at the end of November and early March. The track and facilities are maintained by the Central Lakes Equestrian Club established in 1999 with funding from various trusts. The CLEC also caters for pony clubs and motorcycle rallies. The objective of the voluntary organisation is to promote amateur sports. The club replaced an aged grandstand with a new amenities structure in 2007 at a cost of $600,000. Harness racing with totalisator facilities came to Cromwell in January, 2008 with the Wyndham Trotting Club utilising a permit. The Cromwell Trotting Club has held an equalisator meeting of trial events on the track since 1991. The racecourse covers 94ha and there is a small airfield on the boundary.