Our legends stand tall at Watchem

The small Wimmera farming township of Watchem has unveiled the region’s latest silo art-featuring two harness racing local legends, the late Graeme Lang and late Ian McCallum.

The brilliant portraits, by recognized street artist Matt Adnate, are on a grain silo currently located in Hoban Street.

The larger-than-life artworks celebrate the achievements of the Watchem-born local heroes, who spent their early years in the farming district between Charlton and Warracknabeal.

“Dad was there until after he married in his early 20s, then moved away probably I am guessing around 1962,” said Lang’s son, Chris.

“Dad wanted to have a go at the horses, so he moved south, and then did a lot of things along the way as he was trying to establish the horse business. But this is truly a very nice memento. We are thrilled,” he said.

“We didn’t know anything about it until a couple of weeks ago, when someone mentioned dad had been shortlisted as one of the potential art subjects – then we got a call on Friday saying it was ready to go. It was huge surprise and quite an emotional thing to stand there and look at it.”

The Silo Art Trail in the Wimmera-Mallee region of northwest Victoria is promoted as the biggest outdoor gallery in Australia, featuring commissioned murals on different grain storage silos in a growing number of rural towns. Each tells a story on a towering scale.

Australia’s very first silo art was at Northam, WA, in 2016 and the Wimmera town of Brim had the first Victorian silo to be painted six years ago by Guido van Helten. That artwork sparked the Silo Art Trail concept, conceived by Yarriambiack Shire Council. The trail is now one of the most unique road trips in regional Victoria, and the silo art phenomenon appearing on silos on a national scale, and spreading to other forms of building and mural art.

Although thoroughbred figures have been honored previously on silo art, it is believe the Watchem site is the first to feature harness racing figures.

Both Lang and McCallum, brilliant horsemen in their own ways, spent a lifetime in the sport.

Ian “Macca” McCallum, the inaugural winner of the Gordon Rothacker Medal in 2002 (Victorian trotting’s highest accolade) became established a Charlton and was a regular competitor at most central and northwest Victorian meetings.

He thoroughly enjoyed competing at his beloved Mildura, Nyah and Ouyen meetings. Despite having sight in only one eye, he knocked up winning training and driving premierships until a horrific fall at Maryborough in 2008 put an end to his career.

McCallum passed away in June, 2013, aged 82. Two of his best horses over the years were undoubtedly Toffee Gent, a pacer that won its ways through to open class, and square-gaiter Beleva, who took out the 2008 Mildura Trotters Cup, just weeks before his accident. McCallum had two sons to follow him into the sport: Dale, of Charlton, who doesn’t drive anymore, but helps out at his hometown club, and Neil (Pecka), of Lockwood, a successful freelance reinsman.

Graeme Lang is regarded a doyen of harness racing. From the late 1960s through to the 80s he was a leading force and is remembered for his horsemanship with preparing brilliant trotter Scotch Notch.

Lang passed away in May, 2020, at the age of 87. He was the 2013 Gordon Rothacker Medallist and a 1998 inductee into the Caduceus Club’s Hall of Fame.

He was five times Victoria’s leading trainer, twice crowned the States leading driver and in 1979-80 the leading Australian Driver.

Lang’s first win was reportedly Vindason on May 1, 1954, and his last was with Save Our Pennys on January 19, 2019, driven by his son Gavin, who died in April the following year. Another son in Chris is an outstanding horseman, trainer and driver.

Members of both families travelled to the official opening of the silo art on Sunday.

“I hadn’t been back to Watchem for 20 years, but I spent a huge amount of time there as a kid, of course, going up for school holidays with cousins. My Aunty Beryl still lives locally, and we still have family on the farm there, so this will be a great excuse to bring the grandkids up as well for a lot of years yet!” Chris said.

By Terry Gange for Harnesslink