THE SUNSHINE COAST NEWSPAPER COLUMN: CUP DAY AT CALOUNDRA AS THE CARNIVAL COMES TO THE COAST

By Graham Potter | Saturday, July 1, 2017

Graham Potter writes a weekly column for the Sunshine Coast daily. Due to demand from those having trouble accessing the paper these columns are now also published on HRO courtesy of the Sunshine Coast daily.
Today is ‘Cup Day’ at Corbould Park!

It is always a special day on the Sunshine Coast sporting and social calendar with the three feature races, the Caloundra Cup, the Glasshouse Handicap and the Group 3 Gold Coast Guineas highlighting a nine race card which, at the time of writing, has attracted one hundred and twenty five runners who will be chasing $845 000 in prize-money.

The big occasion is underscored by the fact that, while the large crowd will pack out the Sunshine Coast Turf Club’s facilities on the social side of the fence, no less than sixty six trainers will be active behind the scenes, saddling horses, attending to any last minute needs, giving riding instructions before going into spectator mode, their job done as far as they could take it.

While there are many local contenders, trainers have literally come from far and wide to help put on the show ... from Matamata to Murwillumbah, from Mt Gambier to Mornington, from Riccarton to Randwick, from Hunterville to Hawkesbury, from Warrnambool to Scone, from Flemington to Eagle Farm, from Warwick Farm to Warwick, from Canberra to Beaudesert and from Deagon to the Gold Coast and Toowoomba.

That is a massive national representation with the New Zealand trainers adding international spice to proceedings.

Then there are the jockeys ... thirty in all who will literally take over the reins on the trainer’s horses as preparation gives way to action. They get a leg-up, take the horse out onto the track and to the starting gates before racing at speed in dangerous close quarters to provide the thrill of the spectacle that is horse racing.

So that makes ninety-six direct players ... and that is before you add in the host of other categories of personnel who contribute essential services to the race-day model. Not quite a cast of thousands but it is a small army pushing the racing product forward.

For many of those the job is largely a thankless task with little acknowledgement but without their combined effort there could be no successful race-day.

If the past is anything to go by Cup Day will be a success. As we have seen though, the meeting doesn’t happen by itself so let’s remember to give credit to all who make it happen.

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