With the racing season well and truly underway at Ladbrokes Park Elwick in Hobart for 2025-26 ahead of an action-packed calendar, track manager Chris Hay (pictured in September) and his dedicated team are working as hard as ever to ensure the facility presents in world-class condition.

Elwick’s picturesque track, located just north of Hobart’s CBD, after undergoing some renovations in September following a quick break from thoroughbred racing after a busy winter period, welcomed back patrons for its Melbourne Cup Day races on Tuesday, November 4 for the first time since August with 24 thoroughbred race meetings scheduled across the 2025/26 season.

Major thoroughbred meetings in Hobart, such as the Tasmanian Derby and Hobart Cup, to be run on Friday February 6 and Sunday February 8 next year will be its showcase events with the season to conclude on July 19 with the Punters Club Day. 

The two major Group 3 meetings will form part of a festival of racing across Tasmania, in particular Elwick through the January-February period which also includes The Inevitable Stakes Day on December 28, Summer Cup Day on January 18 and the Kevin Sharkie Elwick Stakes Day on January 25.

Hay, who won the ASTMA’s Sportsfields and Grounds Excellence award at the 2024 conference, said his staff of 10 - scattered between the facilities thoroughbred, harness and greyhound tracks as well as garden maintenance - were looking forward to the months ahead after taking some time to rejuvenate the track (pictured right on Melbourne Cup Day).

“It was certainly a busy time over the winter period. We cut the track down to a bit under two inches, scarified, cored it, top-dressed, seeded it and fertilised.  It’s pretty full on. I also supervise a training facility out in Brighton so there’s been plenty happening,” he said.

The experienced turf manager joined Tasracing in 2021 and has been a major catalyst in completely turning around the Elwick track following its prior redevelopment. Hay also spends time travelling across Tasmania to various Tasracing turf tracks to oversee the facilities and provide advice to fellow managers.

He believed the Elwick track was in strong shape for a successful racing season and becoming easier to manage as the track matured.

“The new track is about seven or eight years old, it’s just evolving and getting better and better as times gone on. It’s in its sweet spot now for racing, and some of the jockeys come down here from the mainland and rave about our tracks,” he said. “Each year we’re trying to improve, and when I first started it was probably a bit daunting but now dealing with contractors, getting people in and out logistically, I’ve got better at that and timing the run with our track.

“We’ve got our (Tasmanian) Derby and then the (Hobart) Cup two days apart so we’ve got better with the quick turnaround, so we’ve been better with moving rail, watering and that sort of thing. I dare say we’ve improved as a team each year.

“The infiltration rate has slowed down quite a lot so it’s a lot more manageable and I’m trying to control the water. For us in Tassie, February, March and April is probably our most steady consistent weather, it’s warm so we basically know what we’re going to get in those months.”

Hay said it was a “challenging” position overseeing operations at Elwick, which also hosts harness and greyhound racing but praised his team for stepping up to the plate. 

“It’s challenging. Running through codes is a challenge in itself. To have thoroughbreds, harness and greyhounds on the one site, there’s always someone that wants a piece of you and your time. In saying that I’ve got pretty good staff which makes a big difference,” he said.

“Thoroughbred is the most high profile so it dictates a lot of my time, and my speciality is in turf so I dedicate myself a bit more around that track. We’ve got guys who have more experience in harness and greyhounds and they just report back to me in that sense and if there’s an issue that needs to be dealt with I’ll go from there.

“I enjoy it despite the challenge, you’re dealing with people whose livelihoods do depend on their horses winning so from my point of view, I prepare the track for the jockeys, drivers, and dogs to go home safely, I’m not worried about times, or track ratings, as long as they are safe tracks.”

Elwick’s next race day meeting will be held on November 23, 2026. For the full 2025/26 Tasracing schedule, CLICK HERE.

Story by Nick Creely/ Pictures by Nick Creely and Chris Hay