Big wet bumps Birdsville off road map just 100km from destination for disappointed Brisbane jockeys

TWO Brisbane-based jockeys were notable absentees from Sunday’s bumper Birdsville card after the big wet conspired against them.

Let’s go racing: It was touch and go but finally the sun arrived just time for trackside action at Birdsville. Picture: Peter Wallis

TWO notable absentees from Sunday’s bumper Birdsville card were Brisbane-based jockeys Ryan Wiggins and Nathan Day, who both had to be replaced on their respective mounts after the big wet conspired against them.

“It’s a long story, but long story short, we left Monday, were going to take our time getting out there, plenty of pit stops, we got to within 100km of Birdsville and got turned around,” Wiggins explained on Radio TAB’s Past the Post on Sunday.

The pair had differing views on whether they should try and cross the waterlogged road that confronted them.

“Nathan is a bit of a larrikin and we were getting to the stage of the trip where it was looking a bit hairy,” Wiggins said.

All roads closed in and out of Birdsville after heavy rain last week. Picture: Peter Wallis

“We weren’t exactly in a luxury four wheel drive and we had to make a decision. Nath wanted to go through and I convinced him not to and I’m glad I did.”

Even the daredevil Day admitted his wingman made the right call.

Wet under foot but beer still flowing at the famous Birdsville pub. Picture: Peter Wallis

“I’m glad he convinced me because we’d still be in the middle of a river out there,” Day said.

“It was entertainment. We had a lot of fun on the way out. I would have liked to get to Birdsville. It’s the ultimate fun in racing. It’s a bit of a bucket list.”

The wet racetrack at Birdsville in the days leading up to the famous meeting. Picture: Peter Wallis

Wiggins said the pair might try for a bigger crew and drag some extra jockeys along next year.

“It hasn’t beaten us yet. We will go next year, be a little bit more prepared and hopefully there’s no more rain,” he said.

The trip also took in bathtub and Yabby racing, where the pair outlaid $500 on a local ‘hope’.

“No result there either,” Wiggins quipped.

Tractors and graders work to prepare the Birdsville track for Sunday’s 11-race meeting. Picture: Peter Wallis

J-Mac doesn’t want to be too far Astern over 1400m trek

JAMES McDonald has placed a slight distance query on Astern ahead of his tilt for repeat wins in the Group 1 Golden Rose on Saturday.

McDonald and trainer John O’Shea won last year’s Golden Rose with Exosphere and Astern has a similar profile, having both flopped in the Golden Slipper and then brilliantly winning the Run to the Rose first up at three.

McDonald said he “hopes” he’s on the right horse, but 1400m is new ground for Astern.

“He’s got to run the seven furlongs. Looking at him he won’t do it,” McDonald said.

“It’s a funny race that Golden Rose. We won it with a sprinting horse last year with Exosphere and he’s in a similar sort of boat, so hopefully we get the same result.”

BRC tracking towards new technology at Farm

THE Brisbane Racing Club hopes to have the new Trakus timing and mapping technology up and running at Eagle Farm before the end of the year.

“We had approvals we needed that we hadn’t anticipated because of the Heritage listing at Eagle Farm and that set us back a month or two,” chairman Neville Bell said.

“It will be pretty much an identical system to the one in use in Singapore where we can produce many different reports, including how much ground a horse has covered. We are hoping it arms punters with more tools in their form assessment.”

Bell said if the Trakus technology proves a success at Eagle Farm and meets expectations, the club will then look at installing it at Doomben as well.

Leading jockey Jim Byrne said the Eagle Farm track showed signs of improvement on Saturday.

“If you looked at a lot of the horses that were back in the field, they weren’t coming back caked in mud like they have been,” he said.

“They weren’t throwing back the dinner plate sized clods this time.

“I thought it raced pretty well given the rain we had.”

Originally published as Big wet bumps Birdsville off road map just 100km from destination for disappointed Brisbane jockeys