The new season formally commenced last Sunday as Hong Kong’s Acting Chief Executive Carrie Lam struck the ceremonial gong at Sha Tin racecourse. The atmosphere was fantastic and the race meeting was a hit all round, as the day’s attendance of over 66,000 and the turnover of HK$1.032 billion were both the best figures we have had for a season opener in the past 20 years. All of us at the Club are delighted with the results and as I said at the time, it’s definitely more than a dream start for us.
Many race goers had the opportunity to experience our newly-opened facilities, both in the Members’ Stand and the Pak Sing public restaurant. I’m glad to have heard very positive reactions from our patrons about both of these venues. In fact, Sunday’s attendance figure at Sha Tin was 37% higher than the season opener in 2010, the year when the Racecourse Master Plan commenced, which is a remarkable increase and a testimony to our Racecourse Master Plan that it is progressing along the right track. Having said that, it’s not just about the attendance figure itself, it is also about the types of race goers in attendance and the quality of their experience. The feedback we’ve received from our customers reflects their satisfaction and as any organisation knows, happy customers are the best advertisement we can have to help us spread the word about the colour, fun and excitement that a day – or night – at the races can provide.
The figures were very encouraging, but it is the jockeys, trainers and horses that are always the star of the show and the action on Sunday definitely didn’t disappoint. Dennis Yip opened the defence of his trainers’ title with a winner, Tony Cruz had three, Douglas Whyte pleased his legion of fans with a first day winner and Zac Purton, Matthew Chadwick and Dicky Lui all had doubles. New Club Jockey Karis Teetan couldn’t have had a better start to his Hong Kong career, making his first ride a winning one in the very first race of the season. In the HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup Derek Cruz’s Cerise Cherry went one better than last year to win the season opening feature. It was also exciting for the future to see some impressive performances from race winners like Beauty Sparkle and Smart Volatility, two horses that I believe are worth noting. I will follow their progress closely in the coming weeks, as sure many of you will, too.
All in all I am optimistic that we can continue the early season momentum with an equally exciting race meeting at Happy Valley tonight. This, of course, marks the return of our Happy Wednesday race nights, and the commencement of our Valley series 1O1O Million Challenge that will last until March next year. Among tonight’s entries there are some proven performers like last season’s Million Challenge front runner Imperial Rome, as well as HKIS bonus winner Bullish Friend. I’m really looking forward to seeing which horses will draw their first blood by winning their Valley contests this evening.
Among the eight races on the card, the Big Wave Bay Handicap is a Class 2 over 1200m and is the sporting highlight of the day. The expected good pace should give every horse a good chance in the race with Bundle Of Love and Good Words from their low draws should be able to lead in a good tempo. Widely drawn Lucky Double Eight is capable of challenging them but may be content with competing with New Glory for the box-seat. Bullish Friend should be well placed in midfield with Imperial Rome following him and Flying Colours at his side. Lucky Double Eight and Bullish Friend are both upcoming 4-year-olds and they work well recently. These two horses are my favourites to win the race and it is not easy to choose between them, but I have slight preference for Bullish Friend. New Glory, Perfect Finish, as well as Good Words, are some interesting outsiders in this sprint event.
On top of the exciting races, to celebrate the start of the new season, we have arranged talented Welsh singer-songwriter Ben Semmens to launch his freshly-released Happy Wednesday anthem, Giddyup. Adding to the party vibe, Tess Collins and her red-hot band will also take the stage at various timeslots through the night.
Finally, please remember that next week at Happy Valley we race on Tuesday 17th September. I hope that many of you will come along and start your mid-Autumn Festival celebrations a little early!
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