Early meetings and clubs stallion (Old) Hector, who sired some early Australian Standardbred and
Thoroughbred racehorses. Trotting races commenced on 30 April 1810 at
Parramatta, New South Wales, when the first event was held during a sports carnival and was won by Miss Kitty by the imported (Old) Hector, an Arabian stallion that was used for breeding
Thoroughbreds. In 1834 Western Australia held its first trotting race at Fremantle and in 1844 Tasmania recorded its first trotting event at Launceston. The first organised race meeting for trotters and pacers in Australia was held 21 January 1860 on the racecourse at
Flemington, Victoria. The feature event was the Harness Race, which had a purse of 100 sovereigns. Trotting under saddle was another event which held that day and it had a purse of 50 sovereigns. The Ballarat and Creswick Trotting Club was established in 1861 becoming Australia's first club formed specifically to promote Harness Racing. In 1882 Australia's first harness racing track was constructed at Elsternwick Park (Melbourne). The same year Queensland's first trotting race was arranged by the Brisbane Driving Park Club and held at Eagle Farm. Tasmania's first all-trotting meeting was held at Newtown in 1884. A meeting was conducted under electric lights on 6 February 1890 at what is now Harold Park Paceway. Further introductions of night trotting on floodlit tracks led to an increase in attendances and the development of a major racing industry. In 1902 the New South Wales Trotting Club was established to formalise harness racing after the Government had banned unregistered racing. On 19 November 1902, the inaugural meeting was held on the Forest Lodge course as it was then known, later known as Epping until 21 March 1929, and then afterwards known as Harold Park. The rapid rise of Trotting in South Australia with legalised betting in 1934 was beyond the wildest of dreams with huge attendances and South Australia became the Commonwealths most important trotting State. In fact S.A Trotting then gave a lot of money to charity as exemplified by giving the Government seven thousand pounds over a short period of time to help replace the ill-fated
HMAS Sydney. In front of Saturday Afternoon crowds of over 25,000 spectators one of the most successful South Australian trainer/reinsmen during this halcyon period was
Brooklyn Park horseman Malcolm Allan. Malcolm's wife Mary Allan (McGowan) was also a pioneer female rider in harness racing in the 1920s, winning 16 trophies in 16 races (see
Brooklyn Park for further information on Malcolm and Mary Allan). A mobile barrier was first used at Harold Park, New South Wales track on 2 November 1956 in a mile race won by Mineral Spring in 2:01.2. However the barrier was deemed unsafe after two races and it took a further 9 years before further attempts were made. The prototype hydraulically operated mobile barrier was introduced into NSW in 1963 by William (Bill) George Smith, a Sydney motor body builder who had a passion for harness racing and wanted to make it more exciting for the public and punters. On 14 October 1970 in an article on the success of the Miracle Mile the Sydney Morning Herald reflected on the introduction of new barrier in 1965. The article stated that after months of testing the barrier at Sunday gymkhanas, shows and trials during 1964 and 65 it was then decided to introduce the barrier at Harold Park. Harold Park trialled and approved the use of the Smith designed barrier on 21 May 1965. 'Late in 1966 The New South Wales Trotting club Ltd and H O & W D Wills promoted a new feature race call the Craven Filter Miracle Mile'. the idea was to break the two minute mile and for Australian horses to gain worldwide recognition. The first Miracle Mile was held at Harold Park in 1967 and the New Zealand mare Robyn Dundee won by breaking the two minute barrier at 1:59. On 7 July 1975 in Queensland, Junior Harness Racing was founded by a group of breeders to give young people, aged between 6 and 16, an opportunity to obtain a practical introduction to the Harness Racing Industry. The children have the opportunity to drive
Shetland ponies in harness under race conditions. No prizemoney is payable on pony races, however winners and place getters receive medallions.
Horses Harness racing became a popular sport as few people could afford the expense of a
hack, let alone a Thoroughbred racehorse, whereas most families had a horse which could be driven as well as ridden. Initially trotting events were scheduled for
Trotting under saddle and
Hack trots. Various allowances were made for horses measuring under 15 hands 1 inch, too. In 1893 hopples were used for the first time in a race at a
Kensington, New South Wales meeting on the imported gelding, Plain Bill. Early in the twentieth century races for trotters drawing light carts or high two-wheeled sulkies were introduced and later specially designed light, smaller wheeled gigs were used. He was by Mozart (GB) from a mare by te same Mozart. This gelding was able to maintain a good speed while racing free-legged, i.e. unhoppled, and was the best Australian bred harness horse up until the 1870s. Andrew Town of
Richmond, New South Wales, imported the Kentucky bred, Childe Harold (by Harold) in 1882 for £3,935. Childe Harold had won in 1874 the International Trot at
Liverpool, England. In 1879, he won an important race in France, and he was then taken on a tour of the Continent. In that year, he won races in Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany and also in Russia, where he won two big trotting events. This stallion produced superior quality trotters and 45 of his sons became sires. Childe Harold's name can still be found in some of today's Standardbred pedigrees. Harold Park was named in honour of Childe Harold. Globe Derby, foaled 1910 in Australia, was the champion pacer of his day and then went on to become a Leading Australian Sire for twelve successive seasons and still has present day descendants racing. In 1952 at Harold Park Avian Derby became the first two-minute pacer in Australia. Ribands broke the two-minute mile in 1954 at Harold Park in a time trial of 1:58.7. He raced later in America where he took his total of wins to 41 and earnings to $82,385. In 1958 Edgar Tatlow imported Meadow Vance (USA) by
Adios from Subway by Billy Direct, who sired 328 winners and was the first Australian sire to get 100 credits under 2:10. Meadow Vance was also an outstanding broodmare sire. In 1963
Cardigan Bay from New Zealand, one of the racehorses, won the Inter Dominion Pacing Championship final in
Adelaide before going to America. There he became the ninth horse worldwide to win one million dollars, (the first eight were
Thoroughbreds). The dual gaited, Mount Eden (1966) won eight of his eleven starts including, six successive races as a three-year-old (3yo), shattering a series of State, Australian and World Records in the process, including the world record 2:04.0 for a 3yo over 1½ miles (1970). His owners later accepted an American offer of $300,000, at that time the highest price paid for an Australian horse – Standardbred or Thoroughbred. Mount Eden was unraced in America owing to injury and retired to stud there but he was poorly patronized and returned to Western Australia.
Maori's Idol became the first Australian trotter to break two minutes with a time of 1:59.3. on 19 November 1977 at Moonee Valley. He was one of Australia's greatest trotters and he won 24 successive races before placing in the 1978 Melbourne Inter-Dominion Final. Popular Alm (1976-2000) was one of the fastest pacers Australia has produced, running exceptional times over many distances. Popular Alm set a world record for a mile time trial at Moonee Valley on 13 May 1983, running 1:53.2. He raced 62 times over seven seasons for 49 wins, seven seconds and three thirds for stake earnings of $710,883
Gammalite won 16 Group one races and became the first Australian bred Standardbred horse to win a million dollars in 1983. He was also the
Australasian Pacers Grand Circuit champion during 1982, 1983 and 1984, and twice won the Inter Dominion Pacing Championship Grand Final. The second highest number of wins has been recorded by the legendary
Paleface Adios with a total of 108 wins, followed by Destreos with 101 wins, Village Kid with 93 wins and the trotters, True Roman, a gelding with 73 wins and the filly
Scotch Notch with 67 wins and winner of two Inter Dominion trotting championships.
Our Sir Vancelot (NZ) was the first horse to win three successive Inter Dominion Pacing Championships, during 1997-98-99 and also numerous Grand Circuit and Group One events.
Blacks A Fake won the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010 Inter Dominion Championships, making him the only four-time winner of Australasia's premier harness race and the world's highest prizemoney winning pacer. Our Waikiki Beach ended a run on 19 consecutive wins on July 5, 2016 at TABcorp Park Menangle when he was beaten by Ideal Situation in a mile-rate of 1:52.8. Australia was one of the last harness racing and Standardbred breeding countries to adopt Artificial Insemination (AI) as a legitimate means of equine reproduction.
EI outbreak Equine influenza (EI) was initially discovered in a metropolitan Sydney horse complex in late August 2007, and spread to many areas of New South Wales and southern Queensland, mainly through the pleasure horse industry. This immediately stopped all equine pursuits nationwide, but soon racing in those states without EI cases resumed. The entire racing industry was put under great pressure because of a lack of racing for Standardbreds and Thoroughbreds. ==State by state synopsis of harness racing in Australia==