Male only race confirmed for Blue September

A male-only race will be held at Motukarara to mark Blue September. 

This is the first year that Harness Racing New Zealand has been involved in the annual Prostate Cancer Foundation fundraiser.  Halfway through the campaign $6000 has been raised.  

The race at the Banks Peninsula Trotting Club meeting on Sunday, September 26 will feature 14 drivers, including six of the ten Blue September ambassadors – Blair Orange, Robbie Close, Mark Hurrell, Matty Williamson, Jonny Cox and Korbyn Newman. 

The other four are either restricted by Covid or work commitments and are unavailable for the race. 

To complement the six ambassadors will be eight invited drivers -  Murray Edmonds, John Dunn, Craig Thornley, Ben Hope, Ricky May, Jim Curtin, Colin DeFilippi and Tim Williams. 

The drivers will all wear the trainers colours for this race excluding the leading ambassador by wins who will wear the blue prostate cancer colours and the leading ambassador by money raised who will wear a set of white prostate cancer colours. The first three drivers home will also receive a prize courtesy of HRNZ which will be presented on the day. 

A designated male-only race like this hasn’t been held before and is modelled on the very successful all-female races that are held during HRNZ’s Teal Pants campaign that raises funds for and awareness of ovarian cancer.  

Over 3500 New Zealand men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year. Early detection is the key, with men aged 50 years or over encouraged to have regular blood tests for PSA (prostate specific antigen). 

The race on Sunday September 26 will be a R40-54 4YO and Older Pace over 2170m and will be penalty free with the drivers drawn at random.