ON Wednesday morning Bathurst Thoroughbred Racing’s general manager Michelle Tarpenning was looking at the ominous grey skies and hoping the predicted 40 millimetres rain did not fall.
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In the end 13.4mm was dumped on Bathurst, which means the Tyers Park track is likely to be rated a Heavy 10 for Monday’s seven-race meeting.
It is not ideal, but after having three race meetings washed-out earlier this year, club officials will be happy to simply see racing get underway.
“The grass coverage is great, we spent a lot of time working on the track after the last race meeting to get it right,” Tarpenning said.
“The track does conduct water very well, but it is just that we are at saturation point at the moment.”
Racing on a heavy track is not an ideal, but it is a challenge that trainers across the state have been unable to avoid of late given the widespread heavy rain.
“I think at the moment there are a lot of places, because the tracks have been so heavy, that trainers are looking at as options,” Tarpenning said.
“Early on in the season they were picky as not everyone had experienced that rain and if tracks were heavy they had options. But now, trainers have got to accept that there are heavy tracks everywhere. Particularly in this area, everyone has copped it from the rain.”
