November 10, 2016
Royal Randwick’s course proper has undergone an extensive renovation for its return to racing on Inglis Villiers Day Saturday 17 December, and to fully prepare the surface for the 2017 Sydney Autumn Carnival and The Championships.
The entire track from inside rail to the extreme outside fence has seen the refurbishment to enhance the track’s grass growth and drainage.
Included in the renovation is a sand grooving process, which has dug trenches 20mm wide and 150mm deep, complimenting the existing drainage.
After the track underwent this procedure, pure sand was injected into the trenches to further aid its ability to drain rainfall.
That sand grooving process followed mowing of the track down to 50mm, and a full scarifying program to remove dead grass and thatch from the surface.
Royal Randwick Racecourse Manager Nevesh Ramdhani said the renovation will have the track in top order for Inglis Villiers Day, and will help to prepare the surface for any heavy rain leading up to and during the Sydney Autumn Carnival.
The track will now undergo a an intensive fertilisation program that includes proactively managing pests and diseases to allow the grass optimal conditions for growth.
“We have bought in a special machine to groove and aerate the surface beyond what we have done before,’’ Mr Ramdhani said.
“We know that Autumn can throw us a curve ball with rain so we have concentrated on complimenting the existing drainage to get it through the surface quicker and then deeper into the profile.
“The sand grooving has the added advantage of aerating the track which also helps to enhance the vigour and growth of the surface.
“We are confident the track will be in excellent condition for Inglis Villiers Day, and give us plenty of lead in time around the New Year and early 2017 to prepare for our biggest races in the Autumn.’’
Mr Ramdhani said the renovation will be consistent across the entire surface so that no parts of the surface will be untouched.