Taking charge: Jarratt Farley has been unveiled as Echuca Racing Club’s new club manager. Photo: Aidan Briggs
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
Echuca Racing Club has a new club manager, former Mildura Racing Club club manager Jarratt Farley.
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Mr Farley said he was excited to take on the role, seeing it as a step up in country racing.
“It is an exciting opportunity for my family and me,” Mr Farley said.
“I worked at Sunraysia TAFE for about 10 years, looking after the education teaching department, after starting as a plumbing teacher, as I was a plumber initially.
“Then the Mildura Racing Club advertised for a club manager.
“I was always into the races, but from the other side of the bar and liked a bit of a punt, so the position was an opportunity for a career change.
“That was seven years ago, and I was successful in the position and have been there until moving here to join Echuca Racing Club.”
One of his primary roles at Mildura Racing Club was re-engaging with the community, making the club more inclusive.
“We improved the facilities,” Mr Farley said.
“One of the things with the Mildura racecourse is it is a beautiful venue, but there were very few events on the course apart from the eight race meets a year.
“I managed to attract outside events like caravan and camping shows, field days and fun fairs and all that sort of stuff.
“Mildura didn’t have trainers on the course, only a couple of staff members, and less race meetings, whereas here in Echuca, there are more staff members, horses trained on track and more functions.”
Mr Farley knows Echuca Racing Club is already successful.
“It is just a matter of improving what is here, increasing our engagement with the local community, with local businesses regarding sponsorship, and trying to grow our attendance at our feature race meetings, as well as the smaller ones,” he said.
“If people are looking for something to do on a race day and are aware that it is a race day and (of) our facilities, they can feel like they can come on in and have a nice day at the races.
At helm: Jarratt Farley is the new Echuca Racing Club general manager.
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
“It is about increasing engagement with sponsors, businesses and the local community.
“It is a bit of a strategic role as well, with a lot of future planning, looking at what sort of developments we can do out here to improve and increase the use of the facility outside of race days.”
Mr Farley, his wife, Angela, and their three children are excited about getting involved in the Echuca community.
“All my kids are heavily involved in sports,” he said.
“I’ve been the president of a basketball club and coached cricket and football, so I am looking forward to actually not only getting involved in the racing side of things but also engaging with all the local community, including sport and everything that goes with it.
“It is such a cool place; you walk down the street, and there is just a vibe to it.”
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