Busy Week - More Lost Racecourses on Racing.com

It's been a busy week. Episode three in my series with Racing.com went to air on Monday, as did my sit down interview with Edward Sadler and Sam Lyons.

Racing on Ocean Grove Beach

In the third episode of "They Once Raced Here" Ed and I went to the beach. No, not for a swim, but to take a look at racing on Ocean Grove Beach.

For a period time, the Ocean Grove racecourse was the beach and interestingly that isn’t unique as I’ve seen it at Airey’s Inlet, Sorrento, Apollo Bay, Portsea and Portland. Technically, the first race meeting was held in Ocean Grove in 1985 when a match race was first held between two horses. From 1986 to 1989 the cup was transferred to the beach at Black Rock,

The move from Collendina to Black Rock, at the western end of Thirteenth Beach where horses are allowed to exercise and local trainers still use, was driven by the Ocean Grove Foreshore Committee not allowing horse riding on the beach. After this the race was returned to Collendina in 1991. There was a short lapse in races until the Apex Club took up the challenge to host them which took place from 1995 until 2001.

The 1995 version of the races was held on 26 February. There were four races that day each run over 600 metres on the sand. The races commenced in front of the Ocean Grove Surf Life Saving Club and headed westward. The following year, quite understandably, the start was moved to the east so that the finishing line was located in front of the built-up area of Surf Life Saving Club.

In 2001, the final year of racing, the running direction was once again reversed with the start now to the west of the Surf Life Saving Club but with the finishing post still in front of the built up area near it. "Heats" were over 600m and the "Collendina cup" was run over 1,000m.

Richard Grimmett, who was the chairman of Apex in Ocean Grove at the time the races became more formal and organised, remembers the race days well. "A day at the beach and a day at the races" he called it, adding that they put signs such as this over the Bellarine to generate interest.

The starter lined the horses up as best he could using a piece of elastic and a star picket. He recalled that the later in the day the wetter the course became. The course was paced out on the beach by the Apex Club and the running was marked with star pickets and hessian fencing.

The last meeting was held on the beach on 18 February 2001 and it obtained a lot of press in the Age and the Sun Herald. The race caller that day was Adam Oszlanski and the course compere was Robert ‘Dipper’ Dipierdomenico. Mat Hill also called the races at Ocean Grove on a couple of occassions.

The 2001 meeting was the last to be held as the Apex Club of Ocean Grove had become too Reality is that Racing and Betting Legislation was changed in May 2001, after the 2001 races. In what looks like a move to close a loophole – it was decreed that any mixed sports gathering held on any land whatsoever in Victoria shall be deemed to be a race-meeting for the purposes of this Act. And to race – you needed a license. They were never going to get one for the beach, or anywhere else for that matter.

You can watch the story here: http://www.racing.com/videos?videoId=6372684057112

They Once Raced Here - The inside story

I also sat down with Ed and Sam Lyons to discuss my three books (to date) and how this all came about. You can find that here: http://www.racing.com/videos?videoId=6372687167112

And for those interested, episide four is "in the can", airing very soon. Ed and I are off to the countryside to film episode five in the next couple of weeks. If you're listening carefully, I gave the location away in the panel interview.

Until next time, have fun out there, you never know what you are going to find.

Chris