The Rangitikei Racing Club (RRC) is to run a $150,000 feature black type race at Awapuni on Anzac Day next year as part of the Club’s 150th Sesqui jubilee celebration.
RRC President Neil Wells said that their Club is pulling out all stops to make their 150th Sesqui anniversary raceday a memorable event. “The Rangitikei Racing Club is looking forward to staging the richest ever raceday in the Club’s 150 year history, with total prizemoney of at least $266,000 across the Wednesday eight race programme.”
The new race will be a 1600m Listed Open Handicap to be run on Anzac Day, 25 April 2007. The feature event, to be known as the James Bull Rangitikei Sesqui Gold Cup, looks to be very well placed on the New Zealand Racing calendar coming 12 days after the Group One Easter Handicap (1600m) at Ellerslie.
The RACE Group of Clubs has allocated Rangitikei the Feilding Jockey Club’s Anzac day licence for 2007 to allow the Club to promote their Sesqui anniversary. While the Rangitikei Racing Club was first registered in 1857, there are reports of racing having been conducted in the District for a number of years before that date. As part of the Club’s special 150th Jubilee celebrations the Club is to host a gala cocktail party for around 500 guests in a marquee at the Bulls racecourse on the Saturday before their race meeting. The Club also plans to stage a reunion luncheon for 400 sponsors and guests at Awapuni on Anzac Day before the races.
Manawatu District Mayor Ian McKelvie, a Life Member and Past President of the Rangitikei Racing Club, along with former NZ Racing Conference (now NZTR) Chairman Jim Bull, a long-time sponsor of the Club, have been members of a special subcommittee responsible for raising sponsorship for the Sesqui meeting. Neil Wells stated that many of the Rangitikei District families that were involved with the Club’s centenary back in 1957 are generously supporting the Club’s 150th Sesqui Anniversary. “The Club has secured major sponsors for all eight races on the day and is now busy selling supporting sponsorship packages around the event and our other two race meetings this season to underwrite the Sesqui promotions.”
The Bank of New Zealand was one of the first big sponsors to sign up to the event as naming sponsor for the Sesqui celebrations. The Rangitikei Racing Club is one of the Bank’s oldest customers. Jim Bull has sponsored the Rangitikei Gold Cup since 1993. This year’s stake was $25,000.
History recalls that James Bull Senior opened a store in the Rangitikei district back in 1859. When the local settlers required goods they got into a habit of saying: “get it at Bulls” and that is how the township of Bulls is said to have got its name.