Date set for Carrathool races but doubts buses will run from Griffith

The Rivcott Carrathool Cup will celebrate its 139th year with a six race program expected to kick off from mid afternoon, Saturday March 2.

This year the committee was successful in locking in a later date for the annual feature after having held the event in February in recent years.

President Hamish Armstrong says the new date was a means to beat the heat.

"The last few events we've been having it in February because we lost our traditional spot while the pandemic was on," Mr Armstrong said.

"We want to get away from February because it gets hot but it has been tough with limited March weekends on the racing calendar.

"In this case we've come out lucky."

Mr Armstrong reflected on last years turnout as one of the most successful, especially considering it was the first following a two-year hiatus.

"In 2019 we had nearly 1000 so to have the numbers we did in 2023 after two years off was fantastic," he said.

"We had a couple of years off due to COVID and a couple of rained-out events. The key for me is it gets better when we keep racing year-on-year.

"One of the things we noticed in 2023 was people came from as far as the coast and even Victoria so our hope is they will not only return but bring their friends too.

"Hopefully we have a lot of pre-sale tickets as this shows an indication of numbers and helps prepare sufficient food and drink."

As with previous years, punters can expect additional entertainment in the iconic Jillaroo Sprint and Jackaroo Dash along with Fashions on the Field.

Marquees are also available for groups.

The only focal change could be the availability of bus shuttles from Griffith, with Mr Armstrong saying low demand last year could rule that out.

"We find most people choose to camp the night and surprisingly last year buses were basically empty from Griffith," he said.

"We will be talking with service providers and we will see what happens."

Last year Jerilderie's Phil Sweeney secured the Rivcott Cup when his bay gelding Bezazzalled won by three quarters of a length in the fifth race of the day.

This years racing is anticipated to start at 1pm, however this will be determined on weather and final instruction from Racing NSW.

Gates will open at 11am.

Pre-purchase tickets are available on the Carrathool Races website for $20 and will also be available at the gate for $25 on the date.