Melbourne series for trotters

Press, 14 March 1987, Page 30

Melbourne series for trotters

A new deal for trotters has been decided on by the Victorian Harness Racing Board and a series of events will be run at Moonee Valley early in 1988. The board has been granted permission by the Inter-Dominion Harness Racing Council to conduct the trotters’ section of the Inter-Dominion Championships for the next three years at Moonee Valley. This policy was adopted after approval had been given for the InterDominion series to be run in Sydney in 1988, Hobart in 1989 and Perth in 1990 to be restricted to pacers. The Melbourne series will be run on February 13, 20 and 27, 1988. It is intended to run heats over

1970 m and 2380 m, with a final over 2870 m. Heats, numbering two or three on each of the first two nights of the carnival, and the final will all be started by the mobile barrier. Stakes for the heats will be $15,000 and that for the final will be $75,000. The board will also programme an extended series of rich races for trotters offering minimum stake-money of $272,000. The other races include the $25,000 V. L. Dullard Cup and the Australasian Trotters’ Championship, the final of which will carry a stake of $35,000. New Zealand interest in the series is great, according to inquiries made by Victorian officials in the last fortnight.