There's no better time of the year in Dubbo for fans of harness racing.
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On Sunday a bumper nine-race meeting will be contested before the annual Carnival of Cups meeting headlined by Group 3 Red Ochre Mares Classic the following Friday.
Some of the biggest names in the sport are set to converge on the city in the coming week, much to the delight of Dubbo Harness Racing Club president Len Edwards.
"You get the best of the best, in a lot of ways," Edwards said.
"We got horses from far away coming, attracted by the prizemoney and some of the locals might not like it but it's something we're pleased about and the crowd gets to see top quality horses."
The Carnival of Cups night is also run at the same time as the Dubbo Show, creating a buzzing atmosphere at the track.
The final heat of the Red Ochre Mares Classic (2120m) is on Sunday, after previous qualifiers at Bathurst, Newcastle, Penrith, and Wagga.
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The biggest event on the Dubbo Harness Racing Club calendar, the $30,000 final is one the local community is extremely proud of.
Not just because of the prizemoney or the quality on show, but because it provides purely for mares and fillies.
Feature events for mares and fillies weren't all too common in the past but Dubbo provided a path, the first final was almost 20 years ago, and it's one that is being used much more frequently now.
"They (mares and fillies) were neglected for years and now they're being targeted and well supported," Edwards said.
"We need to establish good breeders to continue quality racing and we could see that aspect and the writing was on the wall.
"Now everyone else can see it and Harness Racing NSW has adopted policies for special fillies and mares races.
"We're proud to have introduced this Classic mares race."
In the past 18 months Harness Racing NSW has adopted a number of policies to boost mares and fillies racing.
Sunday's heat will only feature a field of six, but there will still be quality on show.
Horses from the stables of Steve and Amanda Turnbull will be own despite neither of them driving at the Dubbo meeting.
Steve will have Bid For Red and Ima Kennedy Two in the heat, while Bernie Hewitt will have Scarlett Babe in the race after back-to-back third-placed finishes in her most recent starts.
Nathan Hurst's Lucky To Make It and the first-up Million Dollar Gem, trained by Brett Woodhouse, round out the field.
The Arthur J Gallagher Little Red Jug and Club Dubbo/Garrards Golden Gig series' will also conclude on Carnival of Cups nights and two heats of each will also be run on Sunday.
Those events feature a number of hometown hopes, all eager to win through to Dubbo's night of nights at the track.
"The local boys are always keen and we've got some good local ones at the moment," Edwards said.
"Hopefully the locals can hold their own because it's always good seeing the locals go past the post first."
Racing starts at 12.54pm on Sunday.
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Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
