Night Trotting Popular

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30294, 21 November 1963, Page 17

Night Trotting Popular

About 14,000 “first nighters” saw Cardigan Bay set a worldclass standard for Addington Raceway's night trotting meeting last night. As if to give the venture his seal of. approval, the famous horse shot around the bend under the floodlights to set a new world record time of 3min 18 l-ssec for 13 furlongs. With the bonus of £5OO for breaking the record, Cardigan Bay brought his winnings to more than £52,400. “It cost us £5OO. which we were very pleased to pay.” said the club's president (Mr J. K. Davidson). “It's the best £5OO we’ve ever spent ” Earlier in the evening a eool one. which kept the crowd down to about 14,000 —Mr Davidson had ceremonially pressed the button which turned on the banks of lights on 17 poles round the course. He claimed the lighting was more intense than that on any other track. Everyone seemed satisfied with th" lighting, and indeed the punters appeared to be enjoying their evening. The floodlights were used first for the third race, and the knot of horses and sulkies could be clearly seen moving

round the track against the white fence. The far fence-top across the course was ragged with illuminated faces—the Scotsman's grandstand. Race starts were dramatic. Lights everywhere except over the track went out, leaving the crowd in near darkness as soon as the race began. And again near the end of each race, a bank of lights flashed on at the finishing line as soon as the horses rounded the bend into the straight. Drivers’ silks, the birdcage turf, and all other colours ' seemed more vivid under the I floodlights—an effect which : was heightened by the back(drop of the blue-black night ’sky. i “Can you see all right?” ; someone asked a friend, and : the reply. “Yeah, good,” I seemed to sum up the . crowd’s verdict on the light- : ing. A more articulate com- , ment came from a visitor, Mr J. R- Reeves, the presii dent of the New South Wales ; Trotting Club. “I didn’t i think it was possible to ilI luminate a track like this,” ’ he said. I In Mr Reeves’s opinion, [nothing at the track could 1 be improved. Thr racing had been excellent, and the new 1 stand could not be better. The idea of having total isator windows on the mezzanine floor was one that had been incorporated for the new stand at Harold Park. Mr Reeves had a good look

at the new running rail, too. He said his club had thought of having. one, but considered that it would be dangerous. “It doesn’t appear to be dangerous here,” he commented. After watching Cardigan Bay set his world record, Mr : Reeves described him as the best horse in the world. “We haven’t seen the best of him at Harold Park,” he said. “He plays much better with your horses than he does , with ours.” Most punters went prepar- , ed for the cold night, but there. were many girts in short-sleeved frocks who were apparently feeling the ! cold. A few parents brought quite small children, and there were undoubtedly many non-racegoers there i just for the fun. Bars were closed, but snack counters did a fast trade be--1 tween races in soup, coffee, pies, chips, frankfurters, and ' hot dogs. An odd sight was ■ the cloud of cigarette smoke billowing into the darkness 1 from under the veranda of each stand. Mr Davidson said he felt night trotting at Addington had been proved a success. He was very happy with the atmosphere at the track. The crowd at the raceway had been very well behaved, said a police officer last evening. There had been no disorderly behaviour, and no overcrowding round the totalisators or elsewhere. Very little drinking had been observed in the ear parks.