What an exciting day March 8 next year will be at Birchip.
For all the crucial brand and wagering importance of our major metropolitan features, embracing and celebrating harness racing’s grass roots remains vital.
It’s important in thoroughbred racing, but even more so in harness.
Simply, we’re more of a bushie’s sport and need to embrace that.
When I first heard the news Birchip would host Victoria’s first slot race, it sparked memories of the birth of the Breeders Crown back in the late 1990s.
That golden first decade of the Breeders Crown, especially those initial seven years at Bendigo, were really special.
It felt different and it was never the same when it was moved to Melton and became just another big race at headquarters.
In its early days, the Crown was a genuine carnival and close as Victorian harness racing had to the iconic three days of the Warrnambool May Carnival.
The launch of the $125,000 Running of the Bulls at Birchip’s once-a-year meeting is something to celebrate.
Earlier this year, on the spur of the moment, Gareth Hall and I did the road trip to Albury for a leg of the NSW Carnival of Cups.
It was wonderful.
The joint was packed and, for those who’d been to Albury many years ago like me, it was a walk down memory lane to exciting times.
On a lesser scale, we had some of that feeling when the heats of the 2022 Inter Dominion were spread around Shepparton, Ballarat and Geelong.
The country and regional centres can still make a real event out of a big harness racing day or night.
Anyone who’s been to Birchip in recent years comes home raving about the experience.
And the extra love of the new slot race and associated promotion and coverage can only take it to another level.
It’s great to see HRV embracing that and not just with Birchip.
A backbone of the revamped Summer of Glory for early next year is the country and regional factor.
Rather than run three Melton meetings in a row, five of the six meetings are out of town. A road trip, if you like.
It starts with Bendigo on January 10, moves to Shepparton (January 17), Ballarat (January 24) and Cranbourne (January 31) before the $150,000 Group 1 Kilmore Pacing Cup meeting on February 7.
Then the cake is iced in town with the running of the great Hunter Cup at Melton.
There’s no doubting the tough climate for the game we love in Victoria at present, but things like the greater focus on the biggest country cups and Birchip’s golden day should build some optimism.
It does for me, anyway.
