Orange’s Towac Park Racecourse has been selected as the Central Districts’ location of choice for the 2025 Country Championships heat in February.

Racing Orange executive officer Bree McMinn said being awarded the $150,000 Country Championships qualifier (1400 metres) for the Central Districts region on February 28 is “the feather in the cap” for the organisation.

“We were striving to achieve that [hosting a Country Championships qualifier] for quite a few years now. It’s super-exciting we are hosting next year,” Bree said.

“It’s certainly an incentive for country trainers to be preparing horses for that event with some phenomenal prize money on offer.”

To be eligible for the Country Championships, horses must be trained by a trainer living in, and licenced in, that particular district.

The top two finishers then earn the right to contest the $1 million Country Championships final at Royal Randwick on Saturday, April 5.

When Bree Minn took hold of the reins at Racing Orange, it was at a challenging time for the club. The first few years were a struggle trying to balance the books while also improving facilities and overall race-day experience.

It was a job that required the administrative knowledge to nurse Racing Orange through hard times to better days, while also requiring the practical skills to master track maintenance and irrigation.

“Had to be,” she said modestly of her all-round skills, adding that it was only possible thanks to the hard work of groundsman Ben Theobald, their two casual staff Sam Connell and Zack Theobald, and volunteers who have kept the course and surrounds in good order.

“We have fantastic staff,” Bree said. “A small but amazing team who are very passionate about the club.

"Track preparation is a massive deal for us. We want to be presenting a track that is in as absolute good order as we can have it, every single race meeting.

“We get great feedback from trainers and jockeys that the track is great to race on... that’s one way we measure our success.”

But those dark days are behind them, Bree said, with Racing Orange now in a financially secure position and looking to the future.

“Now it’s all about making improvements. We aim to do whatever we can to make it a better experience trackside,” she said.

“We’re constantly moving forward and constantly looking at ways we can improve the venue.”

Racing Orange will host 10 race meetings in 2024/25 season, but Bree said the club would love to start its season in September and add an extra meeting or two in the future.

One local meeting that continues to grow is the Tradies and Ladies Race Day held annually in November.

The crowd figure was around 1500 for this year’s event on November 22 and Bree expects it will only build from there.

“It’s attracting a lot of interest,” she said of last month’s eight-race meeting.

“We just hosted that and it was a fantastic day. We had sensational weather and such a good crowd through the gate.”

But right now, the focus for Racing Orange is the final event for 2024, The Oriana New Year Celebration, which is expected to attract a similar crowd through the gates on December 30.