'Not the experience that we want to deliver' – VRC’s public holiday problem rolls on

*The Victoria Racing Club has come under fire for what it admits to a below-par “experience” for Anzac Day racegoers at Flemington. (Photo by Vince Caligiuri/Getty Images)*

A year since chief executive Kylie Rogers admitted the club was struggling with a vision for public holiday racing, the Victoria Racing Club has been forced to acknowledge its service fell short of standards on last Saturday’s feature Anzac Day meeting.

VRC members and other attendees lashed out at the club on social media this week, citing long waits for food and drink and complaints about table service.

Rogers sent an email out to members on Tuesday admitting that there were issues for patrons at the meeting, which saw attendance increase by 33 per cent, with the VRC saying it was the largest-ever Anzac Day crowd at Flemington.

The surge could have been readily expected as the holiday fell on a Saturday for the first time since 2020, when the country was in the initial COVID-19 lockdown. That meant the last time Flemington hosted a Saturday Anzac Day meeting to a full crowd was in 2015.

“While there were plenty of positives, we do want to recognise that for some of you, some aspects of the service fell short of the standards we set for ourselves and what you are entitled to expect,” Rogers said.

“That’s not the experience that we want to deliver, and I want to acknowledge that directly.”

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Criticism from members was centred on the new catering company, Delaware North, which recently took over from Crown, the hospitality partner for the past four years.

Rogers said the VRC was working closely with Delaware North to “address challenges experienced and put the right fixes in place ahead of Andrew Ramsden Race Day on Saturday, May 16″.

“We’re committed to getting it right and delivering the level of experience you expect and deserve. Thank you for your patience and your continued loyalty to the VRC.”

Speaking to The Straight last year, Rogers, who has been in the chief executive’s job since September 2024, admitted that public holiday racing was an ongoing challenge for the club.

“We struggle during public holidays,” she said.

“And it is a discussion that we are having with Racing Victoria (RV) around the scheduling of races to ensure that we can put our best foot forward to be profitable.”

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At that time, RV conceded that racing on public holidays depended on the day of the week they fell. It is clear that Saturday proved a success in terms of attendance, but not in terms of their experience.

Last year, the VRC switched its traditional New Year’s Day public holiday to New Year’s Eve.

“It is important that we continue to add new and engaging innovations to a well-established format of racing and events at Flemington,” Rogers said when that initiative was announced in May last year.

Of its 21 scheduled meetings per season. Flemington now hosts race meetings on two public holidays, the other being Melbourne Cup Day.

Saturday marked the 65th anniversary of an Anzac Day meeting at Flemington, following a change in Victorian law in 1960 that allowed racing to take place.

Anzac Day at Flemington featured eight races, the fewest of any Saturday this year, due to the mandated 1pm start.