A revolutionary new innovation, a pioneering advancement in greyhound safety, is being introduced in concert with the imminent opening of the Lithgow greyhound track.
Already being used in trialling, and set to be introduced to racing for the first time on November 2, a new extended lure arm – with a width of 2m and 2.5m – which can be fitted with either one or two lures, works to encourage a wider spread of the greyhounds throughout the race.
This new spread helps reduce dog convergence and consolidation at starts and during the race. The extended arm also encourages greater separation between the greyhounds and the lure rail at bends which in turn will improve greyhound safety at Lithgow.
“At GRNSW we are continually looking at way in which we can improve the safety of our racing,” GRNSW Chief Executive Officer Steve Griffin said.
“At Lithgow the engineering team came to us with this proposal about a revolutionary new extended lure arm. Based on their studies, they believed improve safety with less congestion of greyhounds.
“We decided to trial it to see the results and we have been very impressed by what we have seen.”
The extended lure arm was developed based on recommendations from Professor David Eager in his research into greyhound safety and track improvements.
The track infrastructure at Lithgow has been designed to accommodate the extended lure arm and the SafeChase lure system was tested to ensure it can accommodate the additional forces on the carriage.
Trialling the extended lure arm at Lithgow will provide proof of concept and the improvements in greyhound safety, and if as expected it results in reduced injuries, it could be replicated at other suitable GRNSW tracks.
Lithgow president and group 1 winning trainer Syd Swain is an advocate for the new lure, and cannot wait for November 2 to roll around.
“I put a dog around here the other day with the extended lure, and it usually jumps out of the boxes and goes straight to the arm,” Swain explained. “It’s a bad crasher at Richmond but it came out and went straight as a gun barrel. I’m not saying all dogs will do the same but it appeared to me that this will lead to cleaner, safer racing.
“It’s great to finally see this rebuild of Lithgow come to life. It’s been a long period and a long time having no track between Richmond and Dubbo, but have a look at this place … it’s all worthwhile now.
“The best part about the new Lithgow is that with GRNSW owning the venue, they have invested much more than the initial plan was.
“Originally the plan was to just upgrade the track which would have been great, but GRNSW decided that they wanted to really make this place stand out, and make it something the sport can be proud of, and their extra investment has certainly achieved that.”
Lithgow Mayor Cassandra Coleman has been a major supporter of the upgrade since it was announced late last year. She attended the track on Thursday for a close look at the venue and to see the asset her community now has.
“This new facility is tremendous news for the Lithgow community,” Ms Coleman said.
“I recall being here back in December last year when we broke ground with the Racing Minister, and to come down here today and see the amazing transformation of the venue which is now a state of the art facility, is truly wonderful for the people of Lithgow and surrounds.
“This facility will not only be beneficial to the local racing participants and the wider community, but importantly it will bring people to Lithgow and that has huge a flow on benefit for our local businesses.
“In fact, I was recently speaking with a new Lithgow local who has moved across the Mountains from Penrith, specifically because this facility was being built.
“This side of the Blue Mountains has been in desperate need of this facility since the Bathurst greyhound track closed four years ago, and we are delighted that Lithgow will now be the focus of the sport in the Central West.”
Mr Griffin added that suggestions there was a large blow out to the budget for Lithgow were totally incorrect.
“The original plan and budget was just for an upgrade to the track,” he said. “But we felt there was an opportunity to invest in the club and help deliver an asset that was not only of minimum standards, but one our sport could be extremely proud of.
“I think when we open on November 2 and when we have a grand opening on November 15, everyone will see and agree that the investment at Lithgow has been well worthwhile and the facility will be one of the best in the state.”
