The small town of Penong, on the Nullarbor Plain, lies on the Eyre Highway in South Australia and is located some 855 kilometres north-west of state capital Adelaide, and just 73 kilometres west of Ceduna. The earliest Europeans to settle in the area arrived in the 19th century, but the town was firmly established in 1915 by Sir Donald Bradman. The town’s biggest source of income is from its vast wheatfields, interspersed with windmills pumping water from the underground Anjutabie basin to supply the crop with the necessary water. Despite being a relatively small town it has its own thriving racing club, the Penong Racing Club, which organises one meeting each year, normally on the second Saturday in March. |
By the middle of the century Penong Picnic Races were an established part of the racing calendar, with prize money donated by the Penong Race Club. One such meeting was staged on Saturday 21st October 1950 when the feature race, the Penong Handicap over 1 mile, was won by Chatterwings ridden by N Dunn, defeating Sunion ridden by M Dunn. |
The highlight of the Penong Racing Calendar is the Penong Cup over 1600 metres, with a list of recent winners shown below.
Penong Cup Winners
2005 The Penong Cup ($3,000) over 1600 metres was won by Grey Nipper (2/1) trained by G Trenowden and ridden by P Johnstone, beating Prince D’Or and King’s Choice 5 ran
2007 The Penong Cup ($3,500) over 1600 metres was won by Odysseas (7/2) trained by A Gow-Whyte and ridden by M Morita, beating Doujean and Chading 5 ran
2008 The Penong Cup ($3,850) over 1600 metres was won by What a Shamble (4/5 fav) trained by Mick Whittle and ridden by M Croser, beating Eagle Juan and Devices 6 ran
2009 The Penong Cup ($3,850) over 1600 metres was won by Granzig (3/1) trained by Mick Whittle and ridden by Melanie Tyndall, beating Double Cover and Buster Typhoon 6 ran
2010 The Penong Cup ($4,550) over 1600 metres was won by Roll On Royce (5/2) trained by John Dunn and ridden by Krystal Bishop, beating Sea Factor and Deshann 7 ran
2011 The Penong Cup ($5,400) over 1600 metres was won by Generous Huka (100/30) trained by G Dawson and ridden by Peter Roff, beating Yarterbery and Roll On Royce 8 ran
2012 The Penong Cup ($5,400) over 1600 metres was won by Granzig (4/1) trained by Mick Whittle and ridden by L J Miller, beating Epochal and Bracken Blue 6 ran
2013 The Penong Cup ($5,400) over 1600 metres was won by Street Related (Evens) trained by Brian Lear and ridden by Murray Henderson, beating Testate and Konowalchuk 4 ran
2014 The Penong Cup ($5,400) over 1600 metres was won by Joken Jim (3/1) trained by April Cornell and ridden by Wayne Kerford, beating Street Related and Tresette 7 ran
2015 The Penong Cup ($5,400) over 1600 metres was won by Costly Argument (8/15 fav) trained by Trevor Trenowden and ridden by Ruby Mayers, beating Terrapinna and Joken Jim 4 ran
2016 The Penong Cup ($5,400) over 1600 metres was won by Alert The World (5/1) trained by Annette Harder and ridden by Tamara Zanker, beating Japan Voodoo and Black Magic 7 ran
2017 The Penong Cup ($6,700) over 1600 metres was won by New Wave (9/1) trained by Tony Haddy and ridden by Tamara Zanker, beating Value As and Moon Devil 6 ran |
