OBE UNPLUGGED - GOOD PLACE, GOOD PEOPLE ... BUT NO LUCK FOR THE SUNSHINE COAST

By Mark Oberhardt | Monday, January 28, 2013

Mark Oberhardt has been a racing and sports reporter for 40 years. He has written racing for the Courier Mail, Brisbane Telegraph, Sydney Sunday Telegraph, Sportsman, Australian Associated Press, etc. He has also written many sports columns including the Courier Mail’s The Ear. Mark has also been a regular on RadioTAB for 20 years. Mark’s personal blog, Obe Unplugged, will appear every Monday on HRO.

IT was hard not to feel sorry for the Sunshine Coast Turf Club staff and committee last Saturday.

They had their first to ever stand-alone Saturday meeting away from the Winter Carnival and had put an enormous amount of work into it. The club was confident it would get at least 4000 patrons on course and even had 500 picnic baskets on stand by for a family day.

As it turned out they got about 1000 brave souls who fronted the torrential rain … although I must say Corbould Park missed much of it.

Never-the-less, as is the case whenever I visit Caloundra it was a fun day.

I got to see a first in my fifty odd years of race going when apprentice Braydn Swaffer won a race while riding like a throw-back to the 1800s straight back riders.

And, as always, everyone went out of their way to make certain we could file our stories and get all the information we needed. In other words I like going to Caloundra and I like the people there.

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That makes it hard for me to be hard-hearted in the debate about the role the Sunshine Coast will play in the Queensland racing picture.

There is currently debate about whether the club should lose some of its 50 odd Sunday meetings and race on Saturday and Friday nights. I know I am being a big sook but I can see both sides of the story. (Perhaps, I am getting soft in my old age).

The Sunshine Coast Turf Cub has built itself into the most well-known Sunday club in Australia. But I am told there is a trend away from betting on it on Sunday meetings. Also the club has an excellent set of lights and it is stupid not to use them.

I don't know if the horse pool in the area would stand up to two meetings a weekend on a regular basis. It means a decision would have to be made about which way to jump.

I suppose I would have to pump for a trial of a mixture of Saturday-Friday night racing with about half the number of current Sundays … but I don't want to see the hard work of successive committees at Caloundra ruined.

Of course the whole thing could be solved by a decent injection of money from the government.

More prize-money on Saturday nights would soothe a few. But I am told I am more chance of winning a Walkley Award than that happening.

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Also being discussed at length on Saturday was the future of Toowoomba. The cushion track is to be ripped up and Clifford Park will revert to grass.

Again I should make it very clear I spent a good deal of my childhood at Clifford Park as my father's family are from Toowoomba. It obviously means I am a bit biased.

However, it makes sense that Toowoomba must flourish. In days gone by when Toowoomba racing was strong Queensland racing was strong.

We can't afford to let the industry in Toowoomba wither and I am afraid for the critics that means making the hard decision to revert to grass.

What has not been explained at length is that there is now a deal in place to make certain the new grass track will have enough water.

It also hasn't been revealed that there is $4million in reserve for another cushion track. I know that money is only for a cushion track but surely that money can be freed to allow for a grass track.

After all there was money for three cushion tracks and we only have two!

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There was also much debate about the role of the Gold Coast which has seen its horses in training numbers slump in recent years with some of the bigger stables cutting back numbers.

The Gold Coast has also been under attack from the northern rivers clubs. It is no secret some want to strip the Gold Coast from having meetings every Saturday meetings.

Again I can see the pros and cons of both sides of that story. (Gee, I am weak-kneed).

But for all that perhaps something radical is needed with the Gold Coast and Caloundra sharing the Wednesday circuit with the city clubs.I would also like to see the Gold Coast get some Sundays.

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One thing is all the debate about the provincial clubs has meant little is being said about the city clubs.

But wait until it is fully comprehended that next year there will only be one metropolitan Saturday race meeting in Brisbane during a five weeks holiday period.

Brisbane is a city of two million people (it is actually just outside the 100 biggest cities in the world) so how we are expected to go without racing for so long is mind boggling to say the least.

But that is a year away and there is a good chance I will be at that great racetrack in the sky where all disputes are decided by a bloke named Solomon.

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