Some 3,000 punters descended to the dusty racetrack for the 142nd edition of the historic Birdsville Races on Friday 6 September and Saturday 7 September.
Staged in the Simpson Desert of outback Queensland, the races are the most remote thoroughbred horse race in the world. It’s hosted by the Birdsville Race Club to raise funds for the important medical work of the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), as well as to generate millions of dollars in tourism spending for outback Queensland.
The Birdsville Races are a full TAB meet with the combined prize money for the 13-race carnival topping more than $300,000. The total prize pool for the Simpson Desert Racing Carnival, which includes the Birdsville Races, as well as the Betoota and Bedourie Races, now sits at a record $452,000. The Birdsville Cup prize money alone is $50,000.
“We’re thrilled with the numbers we’ve had through the gates and it looks like we’ve just pipped our 2023 crowd,” Birdsville Race Club vice president Gary Brook said.
“It’s awesome to see so many making the trip out to Birdsville for the races. We’ve had Group 1 winning trainer Phillip Stokes make a surprise visit to bring three generations of Stokes racing royalty to the event, joining his son Tommy, who manages his Adelaide operation and dad Ron and their stable of horses including cup favourites and last year’s winner, Neodium, and his beloved stable mate Trumpsta.
“We have other trainers with deep connections to Birdsville such as Darwin-based Phillip Cole who has travelled the furthest, alongside first-timers keen to experience the magic of the outback for themselves.”
The event kicked off with a carnival known as the Melbourne Cup of the Outback where trainers and jockeys hailed from as far as South Australia, Victoria, Northern Territory, and of course from the home state of Queensland.
This year’s event featured a strong line-up of female jockeys, including Chloe Lowe, Savannah McCann, and Dakota Gillett who hit the dusty track for the first time.
The event also welcomed back stalwarts including race caller Josh Fleming who has been calling the Birdsville Races since 1998, when he was just 14 years old. He’s now the chief races caller for Sky Racing Brisbane’s Group 1 major metropolitan meets.
“So many of us have been coming for 20 to 30 years. It’s like an annual family reunion. There’s something very special about the Birdsville Races that keeps all of us who work on it, as well as punters, coming back year after year,” Fleming said.
A Birdsville Races RFDS ‘Light the Lanterns’ Gala was staged for the first time to help further fundraise for the RFDS. Additionally, the event saw a collaboration with Western Queensland Spirit on a limited edition Birdsville Races Gin, where sales of the gin added to the RFDS fundraising tally.
“The gala event gave racegoers a unique opportunity to experience the Birdsville Racetrack at night under the stars – and it raised nearly $17,000 for the RFDS. The lanterns lit down the track were beautiful. It’s something that will become a permanent fixture on the event line-up was so well received,” Birdsville Race Club event manager Ginnie Hope-Johnstone said.