The new multi-million-dollar greyhound racing facility at Taree will hold its first official race meeting this Saturday, September 14.
The venue will conduct TAB race meetings as the Mid North Coast Racing Club after the Taree, Wauchope and Kempsey clubs agreed to merge into one club in 2022.
Greyhound Racing NSW Acting CEO, Wayne Billett, said the region, with its substantial participant population, deserved a facility such as this one.
“This truly is a magnificent, state-of-the-art facility which most importantly will provide trainers in the region a safe track to race their greyhounds,” Billett said.
“Unfortunately, we lost many days due to poor weather during the build, and I am sure this has seemed a very long process for all participants here on the Mid North Coast, but I think everyone will agree that the wait has been worth it.”
The first truck loads of sand being spread across the new Mid North Coast track
“The patience of Mid North Coast trainers and owners has now been rewarded and we look forward to racing kicking off at one of the premier venues in our state.”
The Taree track - which includes the latest safety measures - has been converted from grass to loam, a new rail and SafeChase lure system has been installed along with automated gates in the catching pen and return gate, as has a new irrigation monitoring system and a new tower.
A 300m grass slipping track has been built, along with new roads and paths around the facility, new landscaping has been done, and significant improvements to patron areas have been completed.
The new tower on track was constructed using modified and repurposed shipping containers
Mid North Coast Greyhound Racing Club Manager, Peter Cassar, said there’s a real sense of satisfaction around the area on the eve of a return to racing.
“This track is something we can all be proud of and we’ve got plenty of trainers very excited to finally get their dogs racing around here,” Cassar said.
“Brian Smoothy was the first one to get his dogs on the finished track and it was very exciting to see the them perform on the new surface. That’s the big thing, they just cruise around with such a smooth action, they weave in and out of corners with ease, it’s brilliant to watch.”
Night racing will be a welcome feature at the new Mid North Coast circuit
“We’ve probably had 170 trials in the last week and we’ve been blown away by the interest. Having an operational track will also encourage more breeding and ownership in the area because there’s nothing better than watching your dog go around…not to mention it will be a great social outing for people in the region.”
The Mid North Coast Racing Club will race on Wednesday nights and Saturday mornings.
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