Hagney dismounted his trusty steed Kal for the final time after race nine at Bathurst Harness Racing Club last Wednesday night, overwhelmed by the farewell wishes he received.

"On behalf of my two boys, Zeke and Kal, we would like to thank the club for their kind gestures and gifts," Hagney said.

"The night turned out to hold one surprise after another; I was very chuffed to see my photo on the front page of the programme and then I spotted a race named in my honour.

"I did not expect the lovely gifts nor the support and kind comments from my fellow co-workers and drivers."

Before Kal, Zeke was at every race meeting with Hagney; rain, hail or shine.

The pair caught many loose horses together over the years, giving drivers a sense of security in a sport that can be unpredictable.

The clerks of the course are involved in both harness and thoroughbred racing.

Their role is to help drivers/jockeys when they need to alter some gear, or if their horse is misbehaving, and at times are required to gallop at incredible speeds to catch horses on the loose.

"[Zeke] was three-years-old when I started on him and he was about 22 when I retired him," Hagney said.

"So it was about 20 odd years on him and he never missed a meeting.

"Probably my most favourite [memory] was on Zeke when a horse bolted at the showground, it's the fastest horse I've ever seen and Zeke lined him up and got him.

"One night there was a horse going the wrong way and I caught him and Tony [A.D] Turnbull come up and gave me a bit of a pat on the back and that meant a lot to me as well and he said 'anywhere else they would have stopped the race'."

After Zeke's retirement Kal took over and has been attending race meetings for the last five years.

The Hagney name is synonymous with Bathurst Harness Racing's clerks of the course, with Hagney's father, two brother's, nephew and sister-in-law all having stepped up into the stirrup and down into the saddle to help out on the track. Brother Tony is still one of the clerks.

"Having just turned seventy, I thought it was time that Tony could take the lead given I've taught him all he knows," Hagney joked.

He has also made life-long friendship along the way that he will cherish forever.

It takes a good team to ensure things run as smoothly as possible when you have multiple, half-tonne animals around you.

"One of the best parts is working with the guys down at the start, Mark [Evans], Chrissy [Brodie] and Darryl [Munro] we can always have a bit of a joke and a bit of a laugh," Hagney said.

"I've had the pleasure of working with great men like Tony Turnbull and great horses like Hondo Grattan; I've also seen a number of mini trotter drivers develop into professional drivers.

"I've really enjoyed it, I love working for these guys and I will miss it... It's been great."

Hagney is currently waiting on the delivery of his new caravan and plans to travel around Australia with his wife once COVID obliges.

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