Horse racing in Nelson Mandela Bay returns to the Fairview grass track on Friday, after the poly surface saved the day.
The heavy rains earlier this month played havoc with sporting events in the Bay, and if it wasn’t for the Polytrack a few race meetings would have been lost. After the rain, the turf track in Greenbushes was unsuitable for racing, but the meetings were able to continue on the poly.
In 2013, when the Arlington track in Walmer was closed, the all-weather poly surface was installed alongside the Fairview turf track.
A few years ago millions of rands were pumped into an upgrade of the Polytrack, and it proved to be worth the effort.
June is a very busy month, with five meetings at Fairview. After this Friday’s meeting it is a return to the poly on Monday, followed by the East Cape Breeders Stakes meeting on June 28.
There have been interesting entries from out of town for this race. Some very speedy fillies and mares will take each other on over 1 200m. It should be a really exciting event.
The East Cape season will end with a meeting on Monday, July 29. Time is starting to run out for those who want to make sure of an award or a milestone.
June is a hectic month, but it gets even busier next month with two Tuesday meetings and a Monday event, added to the regular Friday Fairview slot. This means there will be seven meetings next month, and the East Cape trainers’ title race should get interesting.
Alan Greeff is leading, but the defending champion, Gavin Smith, is within striking distance, eight winners behind.
Cape Town-based Richard Fourie will retain the East Cape jockey title in what is an absolutely brilliant season for him.
Fourie has already broken the record for the most wins in a South African season – 334 set by Anthony Delpech 25 years ago – and will add to that number in the upcoming meetings.
The Fairview meetings, where Fourie mostly rides for the Greeff stable, has played a significant role in his record quest.
Fourie rode 107 winners at Fairview this season and should pass the East Cape record mark of 116, set by Greg Cheyne five years ago.
Fourie’s incredible achievement is inspiring aspiring young jockeys all over South Africa.
On Saturday at Fairview there will be a huge opportunity for youngsters who are interested in becoming professional jockeys.
If you weigh 47kg or less, not taller than 1.66m, and between 16 and 20 years old, you should get to Fairview when the South African Jockey Academy holds recruitment interviews.
The meeting on Friday starts at 12:25.
