New look Show Day to feature THE ASCENT and THE VELOCITY

THE ASCENT and THE VELOCITY have been unveiled as the names for Addington Raceway’s first ever slot races on Show Day, on Friday November 15.

Featuring the best three-year-old trotters and pacers, the two races will each be worth $500,000, and highlight what will now be known as the Show Day Twilight Races.

“We are delighted to get to this point,” says New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club Chair John Hartnell, “we felt Show Day needed a major makeover and these two races, worth a combined $1m, will certainly do that.”

“It promises to be a cracking spectacle,” says Harness Racing New Zealand Chief Executive Officer Brad Steele.

“We launched the Future Starts Now campaign for the 2024-25 season and we have challenged everyone in the sport to come up with something fresh and innovative.”

“The two slot races fit the bill perfectly, we’ve all seen how successful they have been at Cambridge and in Australia, they are sprouting up everywhere.”

THE ASCENT and THE VELOCITY will each feature 10 runners and be held over 1980m, with a preferential barrier draw based on sex. The configuration will be six off the front line four off the second line.

The two race names are a nod to the majestic Southern Alps.

THE ASCENT relates to the climb the three-year-old trotters are traversing towards potential greatness while THE VELOCITY is all about the speed of the three-year-old pacers as they blaze down the track, like a nor-wester sweeping across the Canterbury Plains.

“We love that the races have a strong link with Te Waipounamu, the South Island but at the same time have an universal theme of speed, excellence, and ambition,” says Hartnell.

“It’s very strong imagery,” says Steele, “we are confident both races will become iconic in their own right.”

Applications for the 20 slots open at 9am on Monday, August 19, and will close at 4pm on Friday August 30.

The slot-holders will be announced on September 9. They will then negotiate with owners and other interested parties to secure a horse to run in their slot.

“The thing about the slot races is that they get eyeballs,” says Steele, “there are always talking points about who’s getting involved and what horses they will get. We would love to see syndicates formed and make applications for a slot.”

“And when you are racing for $500,000 each slot race, it gets pretty competitive!”

The Show Day Twilight Races will feature a later than usual start, with an action-packed twilight programme starting mid-afternoon.

With the Renwick Farms Dominion Trot moving to IRT New Zealand Trotting Cup Day (Tuesday, November 12), THE ASCENT and THE VELOCITY will be centre stage on the Show Day Twilight Races along with the Pacing and Trotting Free-For-Alls, and the Dunstan Horsefeeds Sires’ Stakes 2YO Fillies’ Group 1, and the IRT Sires’ Stakes 2YO Trotters Championships.  All up stakes for the day will be around $2m.

From Harness Racing New Zealand