The Beaumont Racing Club could provide the New Zealand racing industry with a blueprint for success.
At a time when the racing industry's clubs and race tracks are at a crossroads, the club has its course firmly plotted.
Debating the necessity of a club owning a racecourse - and particularly a country track - is a topic being widely debated in racing right now.
The Beaumont club did that more than two decades ago.
The club's meeting at Wingatui on Monday will mark 32 years since it moved its racing away from the Beaumont region.
During that time, and especially recently, the club has shown that not only do some clubs not need their own racetrack, but they can thrive without one.
The evidence of the club's success is seen both on and off the track.
The Beaumont club's race day, which features a dual-code meeting in conjunction with the Forbury Park Trotting Club, attracts one of the biggest crowds at Wingatui each year.
That popularity has helped the club record nine consecutive surpluses in its most recent annual reports.
One man better positioned than anyone to judge the merits of racing at Beaumont racecourse is long-serving committee member Bob Wood.
Wood has been attending Beaumont Racing Club meetings since the 1940s and has been on the club's committee since 1960.
When the club moved away from Beaumont region it left behind plenty of history, especially for the former club president and life member.
The club's former track was on property owned by the Wood family during the track's 88-year history.
Its closure was prompted by the decline of its existing facilities and the need for the club to build more.
Instead of building, the decision was made to leave its home area and rent the Wingatui racecourse.
Twenty-two years later, that decision is still a good one according to Wood, although he pointed out there was some initial opposition from the Beaumont community.
What keeps the club in such a stable position despite not owning a racetrack is a sound investment base and maintaining the strong ties it has with the Beaumont community.
Investments give the club a solid financial base.
That allows the club to give back to racing and provide an entertaining annual meeting for the community.
Its efforts are supported by a loyal band of sponsors and the support of the Otago Racing Club which owns Wingatui racecourse.
The arrangement between the two clubs is mutually beneficial, Beaumont club president Phil Williams said.
The relationship between the two clubs could also serve as a guideline for other country clubs pondering the future of their courses.
A raft of abandoned meetings has forced the racing industry to examine and possibly rationalise the nation's racecourses.
A survey which will help shape the decision-making process is open to all industry participants. It closes on April 13.
