RACING: Ruakaka ushers in new era as a training centre

AUGUST is the start of the 2009-10 racing season and for the Whangarei Racing Club a new era with Ruakaka being termed a Strategic Training Centre (STC) from this month.

This is recognition by NZ Thoroughbred Racing of Ruakaka being one of the largest of the 15 training venues in the country.
Effort is being made to target industry funds towards the STCs as they provide about 70 per cent of all thoroughbred starters in the country.
Ruakaka is eligible because of the number of horses starting per season and the number of trainers using the facilities.
With more than 130 horses starting more than 650 times for 15 trainers, the centre is classified as a "B" venue and receives a small annual training subsidy.
More importantly it may be able to access infrastructure funding in the future to invest in improving its facilities.
Irrigation is a high priority - to ensure maintenance of a good turf surface throughout the year, the kikuyu and rye grass needs to be well-watered during the summer months.
Other facilities such as walkers, a swimming pool, barns and in time additional training tracks with lighting, are desirable.
Current facilities are basic and improvements will be needed to retain and attract more trainers in the future.
Private facilities currently competing with the centre, such as the newly opened Byerley Park, now offer excellent standards of accommodation for horses and state of the art equipment.
An advantage Ruakaka currently has to the other training centres is the suitability of the track for winter training.
At this time of year, our trainers do especially well as the horses have not had to be spelled for long periods through the winter and usually have a good surface to prepare on, due to the sand-based track.
It is important for regional racing that training facilities are retained in the area and having a large base of local horses is essential to ensure Ruakaka racing attracts good starter numbers at its own race meetings.
This will become even more important as synthetic all-weather tracks are introduced to areas such as Matamata in the future, with trainers from those areas not expected to travel north so often.
WEDNESDAY CHANCES:
Local starters at this meeting are  26 out of 104 acceptances (25 per cent).
The Logan & Gibbs stable has 11, Kenny & Lisa Rae six, Alan Johnson, Brent Wells, Rick Wells with two each and Peter Macken, Michael Manson and Todd McDonald one each.
Donna Logan rates Nike Princess, El Mauricio, Come On Cuba, El Presidente and Jetsetter as horses to follow from the Logan & Gibbs stable.
Punters will be interested to follow Le Baron's upcoming trip to Sydney.
He travels to Sydney tomorrow  and will race at Rosehill on Saturday in an open 1800m race. His long-term target is the Metropolitan on October 3, a race the Logan Stable won with Victory Smile
 in 2001.