History was expected to be rewritten last Saturday night, but just not in the manner that it eventually was.

Minutes prior to the running of the Ainsworth Free For All as race six, the heavens opened to dump inches of water onto the Menangle circuit and cause havoc.

While the 1400m facility is well known for its ability to cope with plenty of precipitation, this weather event was so severe that the meeting was subsequently postponed, which included the $1,000,000 sprint trip feature.

Significant surface water and corrugation to the inside were the major issues deeming the surface unsafe for racing and there was no push back from connections with runners engaged for the remainder of the evening.

The three remaining races, including the Southern Hemisphere’s richest event, were all pushed back a week, to take place as part of an eight-race card.

So, what have this year's Miracle Mile aspirants been up to over the last week?

The McCarthy trio have all followed the same program, including the odds-on favourite to win his third-straight Miracle Mile, KING OF SWING. He alongside SPIRIT OF ST LOUIS and EXPENSIVE EGO stayed on course at Menangle Saturday evening before having a solid hit-out off the pegs on the main track Sunday morning.

Subsequently to the weekend, the Cobbity Equine facilities were inundated by water, putting the majority of their training facilities out of action. The equine treadmill was put to good use on Tuesday morning, though, and kept the work up to all three before they again went to Menangle to fast work Wednesday.

Both BONDI LOCKDOWN and MACH DAN also had an extra night’s sleep over at Menangle before fast working Sunday morning.

Bondi Lockdown then travelled back to the property of James Rattray where he has been staying and has continued to work as normal throughout the week. Aaron Dunn has reported that his stable star is “shining” and the extra week will do his chances no harm.

Mach Dan will also now have three weeks between runs after his Newcastle Mile performance to qualify for the Miracle Mile. Staying out at the Cobbity Equine facility, he has followed much the same program as the McCarthy runners despite the trying conditions.

While most of the field has stayed near to Menangle, BUNDORAN has been clocking up the kilometres. The one-way trip of three hours between The Lagoon and Menangle has blown out even further due to the flooding and road closures, making the journey even more taxing. Amanda Turnbull has noted that the week-to-week racing does suit her rising star a little better, but doesn’t believe the extra travel will be overly detrimental to his chances.

One horse has managed to stay high and dry, while sticking within a kilometre of the track where he will attempt to achieve his biggest success. MAJESTIC CRUISER was back in his stable before most of the on-course patrons had even left the establishment Saturday evening. Trained out of the Menangle Training Centre, the Jason Grimson representative was able to have two strong hit-outs on Monday and Wednesday to keep his routine regular.

It has been a challenging week for the Larajay Farm team. Both Jess Tubbs and Greg Sugars packed up to head home Sunday morning with TRIPLE EIGHT to re-join their Victorian base for a few days, but struck several roadblocks and delays due to road flooding and an eventual float issue. BETTER ECLIPSE has stayed out his extra week with Blake and Lisa Fitzpatrick, his home away from home in what has been two extremely successful Sydney campaigns in the last four months.

With no obvious concerns or reasons to expect the delay to be of any great disadvantage to King Of Swing, he is still the one to beat in the rescheduled version of the 2022 Miracle Mile.

The club has done a remarkable clean-up job to have its world class facility back up to scratch to welcome patrons on course again, and there are still some hospitality packages available as well as free general admission.

Sky Racing Active will again have full coverage of the evening, as well as Sky Thoroughbred Central covering the big one from 8.30pm.

Pictures: Club Menangle

BEST of the weekend – R4 N11 @ Menangle Saturday Tardelli

Brittany Graham is a regular host on Sky Racing and the Sky Racing Active app, plus In The Gig with Ben Way and Gareth Hall every Tuesday night on Sky Racing 2 from 6pm.

The opinions expressed in The Forum are those of the author and may not be attributed to or represent policies of Harness Racing Victoria, which is the state authority and owner of thetrots.com.au.