Parkes Phoenix Editor

Preparations are well underway for the Bedgerabong Picnic Races on Saturday 13th February, which will this year commemorate the late Stuart Brown, who was Australia’s tallest jockey. There will again be a six race program,
with the feature race being race five- the “2016 The Stuart Brown Memorial Bedgerabong Picnic Race Club Cup”.

While weighing just 62 kilograms, Brown stood a whopping 187cm tall. Brown tragically lost his seven month battle with lung cancer in November last year aged 43, but not without making his native community in Bedgerabong proud.

He won more than 200 races in a 20- year career and his biggest thrill came in winning his first Bedgerabong Cup in 2004 on horse ‘Thuntastique’. He would collect two more. The gates will open at 11am on February 13 with the first race to commence at approximately 1pm, and the feature race taking place later in the day.

If you are heading out this way, there are buses being provided from Forbes leaving the Forbes Town Hall from 11.30 am to 3.00 pm and returning back into Forbes from 7 pm to 10.30 pm. Should you wish to drive, you head out the North Condobolin Road for 32 kms. Entry: $15 per person (kids under 15 free) with race books at $5 each.

There are a lot of facilities located on course, and with the entry fee set at just $14.00 per person, this is a great and affordable day out for the family. The children can enjoy a free jumping castle, footraces on the straight after the last race, raffles and a live band – House of Tribes – after the races finish. The public bar will sell a range of beers,
wines, cider, spirits and mixed drinks from 11.30am to 10.30pm. A TAB Van and Bookmakers (Local & Metropolitan) will be on course, as well as various caterers including takeaways, BBQ, coffee & ice cream. Make sure you bring cash with you if you want a bet as there are no ATM facilities on course.

During the day, Fashions on the Field will be judged after Race 5 so if you are interested in participating listen to the announcements on the day to find out how you can be involved. This caters for every age group and every type of fashion. In addition there will be local Bedgerabong hats, caps, stubby holders and bar mats available on the day with an Auction of “Bedgerabong Race Day” merchandise after the footraces.

Rainfall in the last two weeks has seen Forbes record three times its normal rainfall for January, while the month as a whole recorded average temperatures, the Bureau of Meteorology has said. Forbes Airport, where official weather recordings are taken for the town, received 81.4mm of rain, with the average over the last 20 years since the Airport readings were first launched being just 29.2mm.

The month started with two heat waves within the first two weeks, but ended with wetter and cooler conditions in the last fortnight. BOM climatologist Aga Turkey said while the month’s weather was variable it was not unusual.
“It was quite variable. Some of these events were quite significant, but when we compare it to the climate record, it’s not particularly record breaking.” Forbes had a daily average temperature of around 33 degrees, just short of the historical average of around 34 degrees, with the hottest day being 43 degrees on January 13.

Overnight lows stayed right on average at 18 degrees, while the wettest day in town was January 23 when 31.4mm fell. The current El Nino weather pattern, which normally brings warmer and drier conditions but can still cause rain events, is expected to persist through February before declining in early autumn, Ms Turkey said.

She added we could see more rain events as El Nino begins to decline, with neutral weather patterns expected to follow for the rest of the year, bringing good news to local farmers.

“When we have a break down of an El Nino, it’s not unusual for parts of Australia to get some good falls,” she said.
“Our climate outlook for the next three months is for wetter conditions for Central West NSW.”