TRACK work at the Allan Scott Glenburnie Racecourse has almost reached completion this week as the final 200 metres of grass is laid.
The turf is the finishing touch to what has been a $3.3m revamp of the Mount Gambier course.
While wet weather has mildly hindered the process, club general manager Brett Watson said the project is looking on schedule.
“We started laying the grass in late April and although we have had a bit of rain we are still on track,” he said.
“We are all very excited to be in our final stage of completion.”
The focus now is on making sure the grass consolidates and starts growing with the roots establishing well to create a stable racing surface.
“Over winter we will monitor the ground taking note of the reactions to rainfall and how it retains water,” Mr Watson said.
“We hope to gather around 12 months of data before we reopen for business as usual.”
The fences around the racecourse will now be replaced with the running rail back up by the end of the year to keep maintenance at a minimum.
“We will be in contact with Thoroughbred Racing SA throughout the next 12 months giving them an insight to how the ground is progressing,” Mr Watson said.
“Our next scheduled meet is in April, so we hope to run some trials before then to make sure everything is running as smooth as possible.”
Mr Watson said the club was pleased with how the track has developed and members were looking forward to the next season.
“The gold cup in May is our big event so it will be great to be able to have the track tried and tested well before then,” he said.
“It is great to have the final result coming together, everyone will soon be able to see what all the hard work has been for and how worth it the final product will be.”
