They're off and racing

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This was published 13 years ago

They're off and racing

Big day out ...  crowds boot home a winner at the Buchan Race Course.

Big day out ... crowds boot home a winner at the Buchan Race Course.Credit: Pat Scala

Alistair Smith previews the picnic race season which starts at Healesville next weekend.

The sun filters through gnarled gum trees and slowly moving cars stir dust into the air. Two boys, about 12, are playing kick-to-kick. One of them spills a mark and the ball sails straight for a young woman with a pram.

She automatically ducks to avoid it, trips and falls and the pram topples. I rush to her aid.

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''It's all right,'' she calls, picking herself up. ''It's not the baby, it's the Esky.'' Indeed it is and cans of VB beer are spread, unharmed, at my feet.

At that moment, I hear the call of ''they're off'' over a loudspeaker and the track broadcaster's traditional sing-song description of the race begins. Only it's by a woman.

Welcome to Victoria's picnic racing scene, a far cry from the high-profile corporate marquees, the multi-million dollar prize money and the glamour of the Spring Racing Carnival.

This is grass-roots stuff, the way horse-racing used to be, families and fun, intimate gatherings, a good, cheap day out.

Today, I'm at Balnarring on the Mornington Peninsula but I could equally be at Yea, or Healesville, up at Dederang in the Kiewa Valley or down at Drouin in Gippsland, at Alexandra, Omeo or Buchan.

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Here, the punters start arriving early, making sure they can set up their gazebos and makeshift shelters track-side. The barbecues and the portable coolers are unloaded, so the sausages or the leg of lamb can be ready before the first race.

Gradually the car parks, members and public, begin to fill in behind them, drivers seeking out shady spots beneath the trees. The size of the crowd depends on the weather: 1500 up to 6000 on a good day for the pre-Christmas meeting.

It costs them $10 to get in; the ticket booths are manned by the Lions club, which gets a commission - most people also make a donation to the local CFA volunteers.

Among the arrivals are groups having a day out together. There are social clubs from city offices, hen's and buck's turns, crazy ladies all wearing red hats, even a children's birthday party. They find a spot to set up camp for the day around a folding table or a picnic rug on the grassy mound that is the equivalent of a finishing post grandstand.

Individual outdoor chefs are competing with the Crib Point Footy Club, which is selling snags in bread for $2. They have plenty of competitors - vendors selling upmarket hot dogs, calamari, poffertjes, ice-creams and fairy floss. There's also a bar with alcohol at realistic prices.

Behind the row of stalls, a steady stream of children heads towards the bouncy castle, or the new children's playground that cost the club $46,000 to build. Games of cricket get under way.

But it is a race meeting after all, so we wander over to the horse stalls. Floats are still arriving. Trainers and jockeys greet each other as friends and exchange news and views as they hose down their charges, or call for the farrier to attend.

Over the loudspeakers, a voice is spruiking tickets in a raffle and something called the Punters Club, where you hand over $20 and the money is pooled, with the local panel of experts placing bets on your behalf.

The spruiker's voice sounds familiar. And it is, to anyone who can remember the era of the Cain government. It belongs to Dutch-born Peter Spyker, who held several portfolios under Cain, including minister for consumer affairs and minister for transport.

Spyker bought a block of land at nearby Teurong back in those days as his weekend escape, went to the races a couple of times and became a member. At one AGM, the club was short of a quorum and somebody called him in to make up the numbers. He got voted onto the committee and has been there ever since.

He's been president of the Balnarring Picnic Racing Club, founded in 1863, for 10 years and is a life member. ''I really love it,'' he says. ''It's not like Flemington or anything else. It's a family day. We're totally relaxed, it's a lovely setting under the trees, it's only $10 to get in, kids are free. We're creating an environment where families can come without having to think: 'Can I afford this?'

''It's all about the community as well. We're all part of the local community and everything goes back into the local community. We're very proud of what we've got here and we're constantly trying to improve it.''

Apart from the new children's playground, a recent improvement was to put up shade sails and asphalt the betting ring, where 10 to 12 bookmakers operate (there's a TAB as well).

''We had to do something,'' Spyker says. ''It was all very well when they used to pencil their bets but when they started using laptops, the dust from underfoot was causing havoc with their computers.''

I consult a form guide and lash out $5 each way on something called Angkor Wat, solely on the basis that I've been there. It's a 12-horse race for the Balnarring Cricket Club Trophy. That's a big field. The first race has four runners.

My bet is big. Many punters wager just a dollar. After all, we're not here to make a fortune but to have fun.

The race is called by Australia's only female race caller, Victoria Shaw, who is the regular broadcaster at many picnic meetings.

''People enjoy the atmosphere,'' she says. ''There's none of this business of you can't go here, you can't go there, restricted areas. It's a more relaxed day that's affordable. And with small fields, people always think they've got a better chance of picking a winner.

''But picnic races are also a great environment for people within the horse industry. People like myself, who need experience and to gain confidence and to grow and learn. Many trainers will give their horse an opportunity at a picnic meeting for a bit of race confidence, which is important.''

Angkor Wat plays up at the barrier and is scratched. This throws all the odds and payouts into confusion. That doesn't matter. I'll just buy a sausage with onions from the footy club and seek out my new friend, the lady with the pram, to see if she's got any of that VB left.

FAST FACTS

Victoria's picnic racing season begins at Healesville on October 30 and continues weekly at different locations until the end of April.

More information

See www.picnicracing.com.au or www.countryracing.com.au.

Getting there

V/Line has train services to many country race meetings, including the Kyneton Cup on November 3, with economy return tickets costing $38.80, including racecourse entry and shuttle to the track; and Hanging Rock Races on January 1 and January 26 for $34.80. See www.vline.com.au/racing for full list of services.

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