Ellerslie’s newly developed StrathAyr track passed its first test on Monday since remedial work was undertaken following several slips on the surface earlier this year.

Those incidents led to Ellerslie’s final meeting of the season in May being transferred to Pukekohe so that scheduled remedial work could commence immediately.

Six horses galloped on the surface on Monday under leading jockeys Warren Kennedy and Craig Grylls, and Auckland Thoroughbred Racing chief executive Paul Wilcox was pleased to hear their positive feedback following their work.

“We conducted a trial of horses over our surface (on Monday) and we are very delighted to report that all went well,” Wilcox said. “We had senior jockeys Craig Grylls and Warren Kennedy, and they were both complimentary of the track.

“We have still got a body of work to do before our return to racing, but at this stage we are really happy and the feedback from the jockeys was just as good.”

Track Manager Jason Fulford was also pleased with the outcome on Monday, indicating that they are on track for a return to racing on a more tractable surface.

“We had six horses go around just for the purpose of (testing) the effect of the work that we did five weeks ago and how much work we will do before racing again here at Ellerslie,” Fulford said.

“It has certainly proven that we have broken that surface tension and just how strong the matter is with the root system.

“The horses were gaining traction, which is exactly what we wanted. We will stick out another 350 tonnes of sand on top of 450 (tonnes), which we stuck on five weeks ago.”

Ellerslie is set to host some of the most anticipated meetings in New Zealand next season, including the iconic TAB Karaka Millions meeting in January, and inaugural Champions Day on March 8, which will feature the first running of the $3.5 million NZB Kiwi (1500m).