Turnbull ties keeping Tambo & District Race Club ticking over

By Andrew Smith

From making sure the semaphore board was up to date, to becoming club president – there are not many roles that Andrew Turnbull has not taken on at the Tambo & District Race Club.

The club stalwart is the latest recipient of the Racing Queensland Cheer A Volunteer award.

The 64-year-old has spent over two thirds of his life volunteering at Tambo, which is the oldest racetrack in Queensland west of the Great Dividing Range.

Andrew explains how he came to be working at the Central West club in the early 1980s before working his way up to the top of the committee.

“I started there in 1981, my brother was president at the time - my first job was putting the jockeys’ names up on the semaphore board,” Andrew said.

“A couple of years after that, I got moved to assistant starter, and then starter, and then I was vice-president for a few years, and took over the presidency in 2014.

“Being involved with a bloke like Bill Rogers was great - he was associated with Tambo for 60 years or more being a jockey and he pretty much ran the club until he passed away a couple of years ago.

“I had 10 years a president and got out of that job this year, but I’m still involved with the club…I just enjoy the involvement with guys who are interested in racing.”

The club held its first official races in 1864 and originally raced 11 times a year with a handful of trainers based at the track, as late as the 1990s.

No trainers or horses are based at Tambo these days, and the club only holds two race meetings a year.

Stables from as far and wide as Blackall, Roma, Emerald, Longreach, Barcaldine and Charleville all converge on the small town, bringing together a cross-section of horses, trainers and jockeys that are rarely together at other tracks around Queensland.

The club was on a high after celebrating its 150th anniversary back in 2014, but unfortunately the weather forced this year’s July meeting to be called off.

“The 150^th meeting was very big for the town, there was thousands of people in Tambo when there is usually about 150 in it,” Andrew recalls.

“It was a bit of a shock, you drove into town and couldn't get a park!

“But we had a very good week and a great race day with about 1,200 odd people for the races that day. 

“Sadly, this year we had 20 mills of rain on the Tuesday afternoon in the storm, and that was pretty much the end of the site – you can’t get the track up after that in winter as it doesn’t dry out.

“We had a phantom meeting, and they had a pretty good turnout.”

One lasting memory that has long lived on for Andrew was when the club paid a special tribute to local thoroughbred owner and racing identity Mervyn "Rabbie" Cavanough following his passing.

“He raced quite a few horses here and did a bit of work for the club, and he was a pretty big punter and just one of the local characters,” Andrew explained.

“When he passed away a few years ago, they wanted to spread his ashes down the straight so we had a bit of a break during a meeting and did it after the third race.

“In the next race, (jockey) Ross Tilley’s horse shied at the ashes at the 100 metre mark and took him to the outside fence.

“A couple of the jockeys made a comment, including Ross, saying “Rabbie isn’t here but he is still getting us! (laughs)”

It is a true family affair for Andrew, with wife Heather involved with the club and their sons Alex and James also working on the barriers, in maintenance or as clerks of the course.

On top of that, his nephew (also named Andrew) is the new president, with his wife Brittany the club secretary.

In nominating him for the award, treasurer Victoria Carroll said Andrew was a dedicated and passionate member of the small country club.

“Andrew volunteers countless hours in the lead-up to ensure the racetrack is in perfect condition, by using his personal vehicle to drag the harrows around the racetrack until perfect, which often takes up to a week,” Victoria said.

“He is always the first to arrive and help set up, personally writing trainers’ names on the stalls and meticulously filling in holes left by the racehorses.

“Andrew steps into any role required — whether it’s as a starter, barrier attendant, or even assisting at other clubs when they’re short on volunteers, and no task is too small for him.

“Without Andrew’s unwavering commitment and long-standing service, racing at Tambo wouldn’t be what it is today.

“He is the backbone of the club and a driving force in preserving Tambo’s two race meets each year.”

In accepting the award, Andrew said he was surprised and humbled to be recognised for his efforts.

He was quick to praise the support he received from the rest of the Tambo club committee.

“Being all volunteer work, it's a hell of a lot of work just to keep a track up in order for just two meetings a year,” he said.

“We're only a very small committee, there's not many of us but everyone has their job and they do it.

“Victoria has got four young kids and it’s pretty hard for her as an accountant…people have only got so much time they can put into it.

“We've got Neil Donaldson, who's 80 odd and he still fronts up and helps me do the track, and his wife and my wife Heather do a lot for us on race days organising the trophies and the luncheons.

“I find everyone that's in a position with the time they've got, they get in and do it and we’re very fortunate.

“We just need to get some of the younger ones to come in and have a go, and hopefully that will some more young ones involved in and we start it with that next generation.”

Clubs are encouraged to nominate their valued volunteers for the award, which is sponsored by Neil Mansell Transport & Mittys.

State-wide, there are more than 8,300 volunteers who make an invaluable contribution to the industry, providing their time and expertise to sustain Queensland’s three codes of racing.

Click here for more information on Cheer A Volunteer and to nominate.