Through an era of new and richer juvenile races, the Bathurst Gold Crown Carnival has successfully and proudly kept its place as a genuinely major event on the calendar.

There’s lots of factors behind it, but passion is its backbone. The passion of the club, its key people, the local community and the passion of those of cover plenty of territory to be part of it as often as they can.

And that passion shone brightly on what was truly a golden night for the Carnival at Bathurst last Saturday night.

There were so many great stories, some really special performances and loads of emotion shown across the major finals.

Passion oozed with abundance when a big group of largely Victorian-based owners – headed by the likes of Tom “Tara” Hogan, Fred Crews, Scott Whiteman, Mark Hunter, Gennaro “Spud” Sposato and others – snared their first Group 1 win with the exciting Idyllic (pictured) in the 3YO Gold Chalice final.

The Clayton Tonkin-trained pacer had been placed in last year’s Gold Crown and, more recently, the Vicbred 2YO final at Group 1 level and richly deserved his gritty win.

Having Tonkin and his partner Emma Stewart make Bathurst an annual event – they won the 2YO Gold Tiara with Joanna last year – is another big win for the Carnival.

I first met Russell Jack at Bathurst in 1995 when he won the Gold Tiara with one of the best fillies I’ve seen, Yeronga Songbird.

Jack won his first Tiara final since then when the superbly-bred Just Hope toyed with her rivals and Captains Queen gave him the quinella.

Knowing Jack, snaring another Bathurst final will rank up with the proudest achievements of his career.

And who could forget the victory salute from driver Darryl Perrot aboard Mister Rea in the Group 1 Gold Crown final itself.

Sure it was Perrot’s first Group 1 win, but the salute was as much for Mister Rea’s trainer Ray Walker, something of a local legend in Temora, a Riverina town best known in harness circles as the former home of the great Paleface Adios, aka “Temora Terror.”

There is a rich harness heritage in Temora and no doubt the town cheered as one when Mister Rea gave Walker his biggest moment in game.

Respected NSW horseman Rickie Alchin summed-up the thoughts of many straight after the win when he tweeted:

“Ray and Jane (Walker) have mentored a lot of people in the Riverina, including myself, and nobody deserves this more. (Mister Rea is) named after a very close friend of Ray’s who passed (away) too early. (It is) a great story … Temora will be buzzing tonight,” he said.

Mister Rea first stamped his potential when he blazed a much quicker first half than King Of Swing on Miracle Mile night and still kept going to win the Group 2 Sapling Stakes in a 1min52.1sec mile.

Although unbeaten in four starts, Mister Rea still looks raw and went roughly at times in the closing stages of the Bathurst victory. There’s every reason to think he’ll only keep improving.And then there was Anntonia, who despite some other great performances on the night, stole the show with her mesmerizing Group 1 3YO Gold Bracelet win.

Better known as a sit-sprinter, the NSW Oaks winner blasted to the front from the pole and always looked in cruise control.

She roared away to win by 15.6m and the time was phenomenal – a 1min52.1sec mile rate for 1730m, which broke the all-aged track record. And she seemed to win with plenty in hand.

It capped a heck of a month for young Kiwi horseman Jack Trainor, who won his first two Group 1’s back on February 27 at Menangle with Anntonia in the NSW Oaks and Stylish Memphis in the Ladyship Mile.

Long live Bathurst and all it brings to the sport.

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THE Riverina theme continues this week when some of the stars of the sport step-out at Wagga tomorrow (Tuesday) night.

It will be awesome to see big names like Wolf Stride, Maajida, Out To Play, Muscle Factory and Max Delight in action.

Even Lochinvar Art would have been there except for his injury issues.

It’s all because of the new NSW Riverina Championship series’ for four-year-old entires and geldings and another for four and five-year-old mares.

The clash of the night looks to be the second entires and geldings heat (race three) where former Victoria Derby winner and now comeback hero Muscle Factory meets Miracle Mile contestant Out To Play.

Muscle Factory, unbeaten in five runs on the comeback trail for new trainer Belinda McCarthy, has the advantage of a better draw (gate six), while Out To Play will start from the outside alley (eight) over 2270m.

Out To Play will be on the quick back-up after contesting Sunday’s Group 2 Horsham Cup where he made good late ground and smashed the clock late from an impossible to finish fourth.

Miracle Mile placegetter Wolf Stride, nominal favourite to win Saturday night’s $100,000 Group 1 final, should be too classy in his heat (race five) despite the outside draw.

Emma Stewart and Clayton Tonkin’s best mare, Maajida, returns after a mystifying flop in the Ladyship Mile on February 26. She’s the class runner in her heat (race seven) and being the lone back row runner looks a plus.

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