On December 17th 2010, Sydney said farewell to part of its's cultural history, the famed Harold Park Paceway. For 120 years the site of the trots was a Sydney icon that served for pony racing, trotting and athletics. The cache is below the stairs so please be mindful of the surrounding vegetation on your way to GZ.
History
Founded in 1890, the course was first known as Forest Lodge, and for the first meeting, there were five events with total prize money of ninety-nine sovereigns. Just prior to the turn of the 20th century, and before meetings commenced at Forest Lodge, trotting and pacing were confined primarily to match races between enthusiasts without any serious attempt at organisation. Following some preliminary discussions, thirty-three of the sport's supporters met on 4 June 1902 at the saddlery shop of J. McGrath, a well-known harness maker of the day. Those present at the meeting raised the sum of 19 pounds 17 shillings and 6 pence to launch the proposed club. The general contribution was 2/6 per person, while the maximum donation was 10 guineas by J.A. Buckland, owner of a famous horse called "Fritz." The club was incorporated on 10 October 1902, with twenty-two members paying a subscription of two guineas, and the inaugural meeting was held on 19 November 1902. The course was leased from the Metropolitan Rugby Union. Following two meetings at Forest Lodge, racing moved to the Kensington Pony course until June 1904, before resuming at Forest Lodge, by then renamed Epping. In 1911 the New South Wales Trotting Club was recognised as the controlling authority of harness racing in the state by the Colonial Secretary. The club retained that status until 1976 when control was transferred to the Trotting Authority of New South Wales. In 1911, the club purchased the course from the Metropolitan Rugby Union for 10,400 pounds. On 21 March 1929, due to confusion of the name with the Sydney suburb, the track was renamed from Epping to Harold Park, after the imported trotter Childe Harold, one of the great progenitors of the stock of the early trotting days. The Kentucky-bred Childe Harold was imported from Glasgow, Scotland by Andrew Town of Richmond. 1 October 1949 marked the beginning of night racing, following legislation enacted with the support of all parties in the State Parliament. Harold Park, from that time, become known internationally as the mecca of Australian harness racing. From May 1927 until December 1987, Harold Park also hosted Greyhound racing meetings.
Races
The Miracle Mile Pace was the signature race at the Glebe circuit from 1967 to 2008, originally conceived by former Harold Park Chief Executive Len Smith. Winners have included some of the most successful horses of harness racing, including Robin Dundee, Young Quinn, Hondo Grattan, Mount Eden, Halwes, Paleface Adios, Chokin, Westburn Grant, Village Kid, Christian Cullen and Smooth Satin. Paleface Adios contested the race for seven consecutive years from 1974 to 1980. The Harold Park race record was held by the New Zealand champion Iraklis. The last Miracle Mile run at Harold Park was won by Divisive on 28 November 2008. The Miracle Mile moved to the new Menangle Park Paceway in 2009. The Inter Dominion was run at Harold Park on several occasions. Notable among the Inter Dominion pacing winners was Hondo Grattan who won the first of his two Inter-Dominions in 1973 with Tony Turnbull as driver. Brian Hancock won the race twice, in 1980 on Koala King and 1994 on Weona Warrior. 1988 saw Our Maestro give John Binskin his only Inter-Dominion win for the Bob Knight stable. In 1966 the Tasmanian Chamfer's Star made a clean sweep of the series for driver Brian Forrester and Bankstown trainer, Max Treuer. In 2002 Smooth Satin and trainer/driver Steve Turnbull added the race to his victories in the Miracle Mile, Ben Hur and Chariots of Fire. Some of the winners of Inter Dominion Trotting Championship, the trotter's edition of the series at Harold Park, have included Hano Direct, Yamamoto, Diamond Field and Precocious. All the leading trainers and drivers were familiar faces at Harold Park Paceway at its peak, including Donny McPherson, who had many wins there, Kevin Robinson, Kevin Newman, Jim Caffyn and Vic Frost.
Closure
A members vote on 26 October 2008 voted in favour of the sale of Harold Park, on the condition that the land is sold for a minimum of $150 million. On 10 December 2010, it was announced the site had been purchased by Mirvac for $185 million to be redeveloped for medium-density housing. The adjoining Rozelle Tram Depot was also part of the paceway complex and was turned into a food-centric retail complex that opened in September 2016. The last race meeting was held at Harold Park Paceway on 17 December 2010, with Karloo Mick winning the final event. A special commemorative racebook was issued for the occasion. The winning post was sold for $10,000 to Ray Hadley, with the proceeds going to Lifeline. Other attendees took home various other souvenirs from the 120-year-old paceway. The New South Wales Harness Racing Club relocated to the Menangle Park Paceway, a property that the Club had owned for many years. While Harold Park was in its final months, the new Menangle Park circuit was constructed, being 1400 metres in circumference - ideal for mile racing. Racing was then programmed for Saturday nights and the Club and complex continues to thrive in the Macarthur Region, one of Sydney's real growth areas.
