Valued Bathurst Harness Racing Club employee Tony Hagney moving on

After a three-decade stint as clerk of the course and 22 years as track curator, it's time for Tony Hagney's chapter at the Bathurst Harness Racing Club to end.

Having competed in polocrosse for years, Mr Hagney was an accomplished rider, so when the job as clerk of the course was advertised he decided to put his hand up.

ALSO MAKING NEWS:

Little did he know at the time that the role would become such a big part of his life, and even develop into a family affair.

"At some stages down there [the Bathurst Showground] the whole family was working," Mr Hagney said.

"Col [wife] as clerk of the course, Emma [daughter] was in the canteen, James [son] used to drive the mobile, Ben [son] was always helping and Amy [daughter] did the clerk of the course.

"They all helped out at some stage."

The clerks were introduced to horse racing for safety measures; to help drivers if they had a gear malfunction and to catch horses if they got loose.

After about 10 years in this role, on April 7, 2000, Mr Hagney took over the role as track curator as well.

A lot has changed from the early days at the showground to now maintaining the new grounds at the College Road premises.

When Mr Hagney took on the role, he had a sheet of mesh attached to the back of an open cabin tractor, that was used to even out the surface of the track between races and workouts.

As time has gone on and machinery has improved, there's now a lot more that goes into keeping the race track in good condition.

From track conditioner, to new equipment and improved tractors, Mr Hagney does it all.

"The new track is fantastic, the surface is good it's just keeping on top of it," he said.

"You have to watch the weather and you need to know if it's going to rain and whether to keep the track hard or soft."

Through his involvement with the harness club, Mr Hagney decided to get his training licence and enjoy the racing side as well.

He said he has created some fond memories and met some great people throughout the last three decades and he's looking forward to seeing how the industry progresses with the new training facility currently being built.

"It's exciting times coming up here for the next track curator," he said.

Mr Hagney will continue to train a small team of horses, but after retiring as track curator and clerk of the course he is looking forward to traveling Australia and having more time to spend with his family.

Wednesday night, July 13, will be the last time Mr Hagney jumps in the saddle to assist drivers at a harness racing meeting, with his official last day of work at the club being Thursday July 14.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: