This is the fifth in a major series of articles concerning racetracks of the world starting with those in New Zealand.
WELLINGTON –
This review of Wellington area tracks will be by individual club, there being some crossover of venues utilised.
The first formal race meeting (thoroughbreds) held in the Wellington area took place at Petone in 1842 with sporadic matches and meetings held at locations such as Hutt Park, Lower Hutt and Burnham Water (Miramar lagoon drained leaving 200 acres of flat land). A grandstand was erected at Burnham Water lending claim to possibly being the first proper racecourse in New Zealand. Hutt Park was granted reserve status for racing by the government in 1854 becoming a permanent home for racing in the nation’s capital city (at differing times thoroughbreds and standardbreds).
Race meetings were recorded as being run at Hutt Park in March 1861, March 1867 (two days), 1868 (postponed until after the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh) before a very successful two day meeting on 5 and 7 March 1873, effectively being when the Wellington Jockey Club was formed. Further meetings followed in the succeeding years – 5/6 March 1874 in the presence of Sir James and Lady Ferguson; 3/5 December 1874 and December 1875. The club name was changed in 1879 to Wellington Racing Club with the installation of a totalisator at Hutt Park.
The Wellington RC’s success at Hutt Park meant expansion was necessary and Mr AE Whyte (honoured by annual mid-winter running of Whyte Hcp) determined Trentham was a worthy venue to take over from Hutt Park for thoroughbred racing. At a special Stewards meeting in August 1904, approval was given to relocate to Trentham (1800m), amazingly only a year later the course was completed enabling racing to commence with a meeting on 20 January 1906. In later years from 1927 to 1987 (sales are now held at NZ Bloodstock Karaka complex) Trentham was the venue for the National Thoroughbred Yearling Sales, earning a well-deserved international reputation.
In the late 1870’s – 1880’s, the Island Bay RC carried on racing at Burton Brothers racecourse until a lease of its course was obtained by the Wellington club. By 1890 the Hutt Hack RC had left the field entirely to the Wellington RC. It was also at this time that the first references are made of trotting in the Wellington area. The inaugural Wellington Trotting club meeting was held at the Island Bay Parade track, a one mile track used by Wellington RC, on 24 May 1892 and subsequently until 23 October 1892. Meetings moved to the Miramar Park track (approx. 1 mile) in Kilbirnie between 24 January 1893 and 1 June 1898. Both of these areas were not actually within Wellington City but a separate local authority called the Melrose Borough Council (and in the case of Miramar Park, possibly within the Miramar Borough Council).
The Wellington Trotting Club established a new trotting course on the Petone Recreation Ground in 1898 with racing taking place over the next two decades on the half mile Petone grass track. Beginning from 7 January 1899 to 1900 when the club wound up its affairs and went out of business. This track was used again several years later.
In the intervening years 1902 – 1906, trotting was conducted on the private property of Trentham hotel proprietor Francis J McGovern, on McGovern’s Beautiful Gardens, Trentham under the auspices of the Upper Hutt Trotting Club. Racing continued at this venue until McGovern’s death in 1906. An earlier version of this club raced on the club’s Trentham course between November 1893 and December 1895.
Altering the club’s name to Hutt Valley Trotting Club, trotting returned to the Petone Recreation Ground where racing was conducted until 21 January 1915. Following the second period of racing at Petone, the name changed to Wellington Trotting Club who then moved to its long term premises of Hutt Park its first meeting held on 21 January 1916. The original clay track instigated in 1929 was six furlongs in circumference, then in the 1959/60 season an all-weather four and a half furlong (900m) oval track was completed with racing under lights taking place on Saturday 27 February 1960 before an estimated crowd of 16,500. The two night Wellington Cup meeting of 26 February/1 March 1966 was the first use of the mobile gate in the capital city.
Significantly, the Second World War use of Hutt Park by the military meant meetings were transferred to Trentham (thoroughbred) racecourse between 13 September 1942 and 23 February 1946 meetings.
Her majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh’s two week visit 6 – 18 February 1963 included a Royal meeting at Hutt Park on Monday 11 February 1963. Cardigan Bay on 17 December 1963 time trialled in 1:56.2 at Hutt Park to break the New Zealand and Australasian mile record of 1:56.2, a record that stood for sixteen years until bettered by Lord Module’s 1:54.9TT at Addington, 1 December 1979. His owner Mrs Audrey Dean had been offered £600 for him to break the record of 1:57.6 which he shared with Caduceus.
Between the two world wars the Wellington Trotting Club played host to the NZ Gold Cup (1916 – 1938), NZ Cup Trial (1927 – 1937; again in 1952) and many other open class pacing and trotting races. Over its years of operation at Hutt Park, it has played host to many high class pacers and trotters particularly during the period 1950 – 1980.
Between 1998 and 2000 Wellington Trotting Club raced at the Trentham racecourse before holding its final meeting at Hutt Park on 3 February 2000. After this time it was transformed into a major sports park for football and touch rugby. A sports administration hub (the Pelorus Sports House) housing regional and national sporting bodies and an indoor sports facility with 10 indoor netball/football and cricket courts, a children’s indoor play space and a café.
The Hutt Park venue was used at various times by the Masterton/Wairarapa and Otago/Kapiti Coast clubs (see later) and on the odd occasion by Wanganui (1965), Nelson (1931) and Hawkes Bay (1933) clubs.
Also racing at Hutt Park were :
- Port Nicholson TC : trials run between November 1964 and March 1968
- Wellington OTB : trials run between December 1983 and May 1992
- Masterton TC (see under Wairarapa below)
- Hutt Valley TC (modern edition; see earlier above) : non-totes run between 28 January 1961 and 21 October 1962
The Johnsonville and Hutt County TC raced on a grass track three minutes from Johnsonville railway station during the period 21 May 1892 to 26 January 1898. The track size is unknown and is likely to have been located on the local athletics ground.
The Otaki TC/Kapiti Coast HRC (1996/7 season onwards) was established in 1936 holding matinee (non-tote) meetings in 1938 and 1939. After going into recess until 1948, the club obtained a licence to hold their first totalisator meeting on 27 May 1950 at the Otaki-Maori Racing Club’s course, Otaki (1811m), a course that had been operating since 1886.
After racing at Otaki in 1951, the course was unavailable in 1952 with the meeting being transferred to Hutt Park. Obtaining a second permit in the mid-1950’s, due to a bad meeting on 21 November 1959, Otaki deemed a transfer of race meetings to Hutt Park was warranted. They held their first two night meetings at Hutt Park on 11/14 February 1961 continuing to race at Hutt Park until the last meeting the club had at this venue on 29 September 1994 (an equalisator only meeting was held at Otaki on 1 January 1965). Since 16 April 1996, the Otaki, now Kapiti Cost HRC have held an annual two day meeting at Otaki Racecourse (normally January or February) until 2020 when a one day only Cups meeting for Pacers and Trotters was held – Otaki Cup (pacers) and Wellington Trotting Cup (for trotters). For the 2020/21 season, a dual code meeting with the thoroughbreds was held with the Otaki Cup for pacers contested.
WAIRARAPA –
What was essentially the Wairarapa Trotting Club raced at various courses under various club names in its early days of the late 1800’s and the first couple of decades of the 1900’s. The South Wairarapa TC initially held a four race meeting in June of 1891 followed by meetings on the Carterton Showgrounds (June to October 1893), a single meeting held on the Akura racecourse at Masterton in November 1894.
The South Wairarapa Hospital TC (27 October 1898 to 24 May 1899), the South Wairarapa Hospital Charitable TC (24 May 1900 until 3 June 1908) and the South Wairarapa TC (from June 1909 to June 1918), all raced at the Moroa, Greytown course of the old Wairarapa Jockey Club, established 1864. The South Wairarapa Trotting Club then moved to the Wairarapa Racing Club’s Tauherenikau racecourse at Carterton (1800m) for four years annual June meetings (1919 – 1922) and subsequently to the Clareville, Carterton RC course (1 mile) from June 1923 until March 1932. Following two wet weather days the club then amalgamated with the Wellington Trotting Club with a successful farewell meeting held at Hutt Park on 11 March 1933.
The Wairarapa Trotting Club held a series of meetings at Clareville racecourse, Carterton between December 1932 and February 1938. The Wairarapa club ceasing its operations until resurrected under the Masterton Trotting Club banner in 1955.
A previous Masterton Trotting Club had raced at the A&P Showgrounds, Solway Park during the period 27 October 1898 until 19 December 1907. Solway Park again came into use for the 1955/6 season with matinee meetings, two day and one. This was followed by non-tote equalisator meetings at Clareville racecourse, Carterton in March and November 1956. The first totalisator meeting of the Masterton TC was held on the Masterton RC’s course at Opaki (1¼m) on 16 November 1957. This venue was used for three annual meetings, the last held on 14 November 1959. These meetings lost money and approval was sought to race at night at Hutt Park’s new all-weather floodlit track.
Annual meetings continued at Hutt Park under the Masterton TC banner until the 1987/8 season when the club changed its name to the Wairarapa Harness Racing Club. Their final meeting at Hutt Park took place on Tuesday 23 January 1996. Since then the Wairarapa HRC have raced at Manawatu Raceway. Their opening meeting at this venue was held on Wednesday 19 March 1997. Over the past decade the Wairarapa HRC has run multiple meetings each season (two, three or four) at Manawatu plus a New Year’s dual code meeting with the thoroughbreds at Tauherenikau. The 2021 dual code meeting in early January featured five races, one of which was the Wellington Cup for pacers.
Trotting races were held on the programme of the Taratahi-Carterton Racing Club annual Christmas in December meeting between 1913 and 1915, racing being conducted on the Taratahi racecourse, Clareville, Carterton.
Peter Craig
27 January 2021
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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