Home Hill excited for annual Burdekin Cup meeting

By Garry Dell

Tonnes of fruit and vegetables will be given away free to patrons at the annual Burdekin Cup meeting this Saturday in a unique gesture which began 24 years ago.

A local grower, who was a keen racing follower, came up with the brainwave when they were struggling as a club. 

The club has never looked back and this year a record $88,000 in stakes money, including QTIS bonuses, over seven races has been allocated.

It's a big feather in the caps of the committee, particularly hard-working president and trainer Ricky Gudge and secretary and stable hand wife Leanne, who'll be burning the midnight oil from Sunday night onwards with nominations closing on Tuesday. 

They have a personal interest too with their horse Rebel Lake attempting to win the $15,000 Burdekin Cup over 1830 metres for the second successive year.

Both have been associated with the club virtually all of their lives, Leeanne as office worker, assistant-secretary and secretary-treasurer for the past three years and Ricky as president for the past three.

There's a real-life tragedy-to-triumph story associated with Rebel Lake.

Ricky began training at Mt Isa in 1993 and then gave the game away for a few years when he returned to his home and worked as a shed manager for a local vegetable grower at Gumlu.

The hours were long and he didn't have time for the hard slog associated with horses.

Then tragedy hit the family three years ago when Leeanne's brother's son died in a boating accident near Giru and his body was never found.

Scott's father Ron suggested to Ricky that they buy a horse to help with the loss and grieving.

They bid on a horse  in an online auction but were outbid.

Then Ron announced he had bid on a wrong horse and their offer of $3750 for the Dissident gelding, formerly trained by Mick Price at Caulfield, was a winner.

"He won his maiden in Townsville by five lengths and was unlucky in a couple of others when we put him into the Cup last year," Ricky said.

"He was only a Class 1 in a Benchmark 70 Handicap but Scott Sheargold rode him expertly and he got the money.

"Scott will be on him again next Saturday."

The Gudges don't have a runner for the Battle Of The Bush Home Hill Qualifier Open over 1180 metres as they have only four in work at the moment.

"It's pretty hard to get a jockey up here with only about 10 horses in training," he said.

"But, the practice is working at the moment so we'll stick with it."

There's plenty of extra attractions for patrons on Saturday with a lot of give-aways, besides the fruit and vegetables, and some great prizes in free-entry competitions.