There were ladies who lunched, ladies who paraded and even ladies on the punt in Werribee yesterday.
The Wyndham Business and Tourism Association kicked off the 2016-17 racing season at Werribee racecourse with a ladies’ day luncheon, fashions on the field … and a race meeting.
Organiser Tonia Tribe said the occasion, which raised money for a new critical care unit at Werribee Mercy Hospital, was Werribee’s answer to Oaks Day.
Werribee Racing Club will host seven race meetings this season, including the headline Werribee Cup, which is the next event on the racing calendar.
The Cup will be run on Sunday, December 11, following a successful hosting of the event in December last year.
Historically, the Werribee Cup has been run on the Wednesday before the Melbourne Cup, but organisers have struggled to hold down a consistent date since the international quarantine centre opened in the suburb in 2010.
Racing club general manager Glenn Scott said he believed hosting the event on a Sunday close to Christmas was a winning formula.
The club cannot hold race meetings between September and mid-November because of quarantine restrictions, with many international horses stabled at the quarantine centre.
