There's been a lot of sleepless nights for Ken Waterford in recent months but on Sunday afternoon he was able to stand back with a beer and savour one of the great days at Coonamble Jockey Club.
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It was a day to remember for the club president and his committee, not just because of the huge crowd on hand to take in the Country Championships meeting.
It was also because the Coonamble Jockey Club was awarded the Western Racing Association club of the year prize midway through the day.
The award didn't take into account Sunday's achievements, with last year's successful Gold Cup meeting the major reason the club claimed the prize.
That meeting, combined with Sunday's bumper event and award, capped off a memorable period for the club and Waterford was most proud to see it benefit the local community.
"We're just coming out of the worst drought in living memory and the crowd here today is unbelievable," he said.
"We've never seen such a crowd. Last night (at the calcutta) we raised $32,000 for our junior sporting clubs and at our Gold Cup we raised $44,000 for our local cancer council.
"It's all about the community. It's not just the races, it's about bringing the community together."
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While delighted with the award and recognition, Waterford admitted it all came as a shock.
While he was the one to be handed the club of the year award on Sunday, he heaped praise on his hard-working committee for all the work they'd done in the past year, not just the weeks leading into Sunday's meeting.
A new irrigation system had been installed in recent times and the benefit of that, and some recent rain, was clear to see on Sunday.
"Without them this day doesn't happen. I'm just the president and it's a great credit to the committee," he said.
"It just doesn't happen today. We've spent months and months and endless hours of work to get this ready. We started in December to get the track and show ready. It hasn't stopped, there's been a lot of sleepless nights."
The highlight of the action on the track came when Dubbo's Kody Nestor trained the quinella in the Western Racing Association Country Championships Qualifier (1400m).
Sneak Preview and Fast Talking secured passage to the $500,000 final at Royal Randwick on April 4 and while that was a thrill for all involved, it was some of the passing comments throughout the day which will stick with Waterford.
"Talking to some old Coonamble identities and they've never seen a raceday like this in Coonamble in their memories," he said.
"We're so lucky to have the Country Championships and it's a credit to Racing NSW to have a bit of foresight and give us the chance to put this on and I just hope we've done them proud."
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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.
