Racing NSW is considering purchasing a farm in the state’s south to ensure an iconic once-a-year picnic meeting continues to be staged in its traditional and unique setting.
The Ardlethan picnics, an important community event in the Riverina region for decades, has been run on the private property Warri for 65 years but not in 2025 after protracted negotiations between the landowner and the committee broke down in January without a resolution being reached.
The dispute arose over the installation of a new plastic running rail at the track, a piece of infrastructure deemed necessary by Racing NSW to improve horse and jockey safety, but it is understood the owner of the farm declined to grant permission for the implementation of permanent new outside railing that would enclose the track.
After months and back-and-forth talks, the impasse forced the Ardlethan Picnic Race Club committee to assess its options of either abandoning the meeting or running it elsewhere.
As a result, the difficult decision was made in January to hold the March 22 race day at Narrandera, 66km southwest of Ardlethan.
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