Sale meeting transfers
21 Jun 2012 | Racing Victoria Ltd As part of its commitment to horse and rider safety, Racing Victoria (RV) on Thursday announced that it will transfer four upcoming meetings at Sale to allow work to be undertaken on the track’s drainage infrastructure.
RV has been utilising state-of-the-art technology to inspect the drainage systems at tracks across the state, particularly those that have been affected by wet weather. It was this proactive process that led to a decision for the works to be undertaken at Sale.
“There is not an issue with the racing surface at Sale, but our inspection has identified the potential for it to be impacted at some point in the future due to weaknesses in the drainage infrastructure,” RV Racing Operations Manager, Paul Bloodworth, said.
“Thus we have made the decision to undertake the necessary remedial works now before the racing surface is potentially impacted in future years which would then pose a risk to horse and rider safety.”
Bloodworth said the works were not extensive but explained that a conservative approach would be taken with Sale’s return to racing given the likely impacts of winter weather and the fact it has seven meetings programmed from September to December including its 28 October Cup.
“It’s important that we give the track sufficient time to consolidate following the completion of the works at which time we intend to conduct official trials for participants to be fully satisfied that it is safe for the resumption of racing on Saturday, 8 September,” he said.
Following are the transfer venues for Sale’s remaining winter meetings; 3 July (Traralgon), 15 July (Bairnsdale), 29 July (Cranbourne), 16 August (TBC).