The Warrnambool carnival is a special event for so many in the racing world.
It's a cavalcade of colour and movement, joy and heartbreak and puts the town on Victoria’s southwest coast in the national racing spotlight, attracting visitors from all over the country and providing a significant economic boost to the region's pubs, hotels, clubs and restaurants.
But at the heart of the three-day party - often dubbed Schoolies Week for the over 40s - are the major jumps racing events.
To call them time-honoured barely does justice to races like the Brierly Steeplechase and the marathon Grand Annual, the latter contested over 5500 metres and 33 fences and first run in 1872.
This post is for our free members
Thanks for your interest in The Straight. It looks like you are trying to access a free members article via an in-app browser on X, Facebook or LinkedIn. For the best experience, and instant access, sign on via the Social Sign In links below. You should only need to do this once.
If you wish to access or create an email-based account, please provide your email below. You will receive a link to click by email which will then open in your device’s native browser.
