Echuca Racing Club general manager Garry Armstrong said there were about 2400 people on course, which was well above what he was expecting.
It was also more than the club had catered for, which meant Armstrong had to make a couple of “mercy dashes” into Echuca for supplies.
“The crowd number was terrific from a club point of view,” he said.
“All the other numbers will be up as well.”
Armstrong said while a lot of people decided on the day to attend, corporate and member facilities were also bulging at the seams on a perfect autumn day for the $100,000 Moama Bowling Club-sponsored cup.
“Another of the reasons for the big crowd was the fact that more than 200 people took advantage of the Thank You campaign (offering free admission for essential workers),” he said.
“Having so many people turn up on the day probably caught us by surprise, because during COVID-19 everyone had to pre-book.
“I had to make a couple of trips into town. If we hadn’t have restocked, we would have ran dry in a couple of situations.”
The racecourse emptied out by about 6pm as courtesy buses were kept busy.
“Everything went great, apart from a situation where one of the buses stalled in the driveway. The passengers, 15 of them at least, got out and push-started it in the driveway,” Armstrong said.
He said the crowd was really well behaved and club president Craig Sutton was delighted with the day.
“There was a nice and casual, relaxed style to the day. I hope we keep that,” Armstrong said.
The club has a Sunday meeting in April, followed by a Saturday meeting in May.
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