Bright future for dog racing

With a new track and dozens of race meetings this season, the Manawatu Greyhound Racing Club is anticipating a bright future.
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The club runs trial meetings on Thursdays and Saturdays, allowing owners to get their dogs race-ready.

Races are held over three distances - 375m, 457m and 766m - with dogs travelling 60-70km an hour.

Mr Pandey says many people don't realise how much contact there is between the dogs as they jostle for the position they want.

"It's definitely a contact sport."

The 620m-long Manawatu track is known as a one-bend track, with dogs only needing to go round one corner for the sprint and middle distance races. Most tracks are smaller and consequently two- bend. One-bend tracks suit dogs with higher stamina as they have to sustain their speed for the entire race.

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