Another great Aussie institution, the Come By Chance picnic races, happens this Saturday.
Come By Chance is stuck in the middle of a triangle formed by the towns of Coonamble, Walgett and Wee Waa in NSW, a pleasant 607 km drive north-west of Sydney.
Here’s a pen portrait about Come By Chance from the Walgett Shire Council’s website (with their numerous spelling mistakes corrected):
This pleasantly named village on the Baradine Creek (known locally as the Bungle Gully Creek) was pioneered by early settlers around the 1850's. The name Come by Chance originated when the sons of William Colless selected land in his name - previously informed, all lands in the area had been selected - hence the name of his property "Come by Chance Station". Mr Colless later owned the Post Office, Hotel, Police Station, Blacksmith Shop, Cemetery and other building blocks. Reputedly, the only privately owned village in the Southern Hemisphere.
Cattle were grazed in early days, then predominately wool and since the late 1960's cereal crops have been grown. In the early days, people didn’t need as much land to make a living. In those days, 2560 acres of land was considered as a living area. Today at least 10,000 acres of land are needed to earn a living. The development of artesian bore water early this (last) century was a terrific boost to primary production. It meant that properties could graze both cattle and sheep.
The annual Come By Chance Picnic Races have been held since 1947, with the first meeting concerning the idea held in 1946. The original race course was built behind the village, over towards the artesian bore. It was part of the stock route for years, until Dan. W. Atkinson fenced the land for W.D. Colless, it then became the Bore Paddock. The races are still held today and bring thousands of people out to the tiny village. The racecourse is now located at Gleneda, owned by the Allerton Family.
(There’s at least one other place named Come By Chance – it’s on the eastern extremity of Newfoundland in Canada, which looks and sounds far more remote than the Aussie version).
There are six races at Come By Chance on Saturday featuring 30 runners. Incredible how far so many people will travel to look at a horse and have a beer.
To prove that my reach knows no bounds, I bought one of the 30 as a yearling and sold another as a slow tried horse.
I selected Bloodsport (7g Foxhound (USA)-Make Haste, by Zoffany (USA)) as a yearling at the Classic Sale for a New Zealand friend. He could gallop. Unluckily beaten second at his first start, he then bolted in by 2.3 and 5.5 lengths respectively in his next two races at Hawkesbury. He looked like he could go all the way. Given a spell, he returned in a very hot race at Warwick Farm (won by Snippetson) but had a touch of “the virus” and ran below expectation ($3.80 starting price). Then, a niggling leg issue surfaced and the decision was taken to sell him. Almost a year later Bloodsport appeared for new connections and in the three years since he has travelled from Gosford to Townsville and back to Come By Chance. His 14 starts in that period have reaped a win at Newcastle and seconds at Carinda and Warren. He’s in the 1000m open trophy race at CBC, against four others, and will be first or second favourite. His breeders, the Gadsbys, have a share in the promising Waterhouse two-year-old filly Horizons (by Choisir).
Bloodsport’s trainer Philip Ayoub is also starting Glenorchy (5m Shinko King (Ire)-Aloisa, by Success Express (USA)) in the Class 4 1400m, one of four going to post. Glenorchy couldn’t keep up in a half pace track gallop when trained in Victoria. She’s had four wins and four placings in 20 starts in the bush for Philip who also trained the remarkable bush horse Velsontas (NZ) (Star Way (GB)-Merry Maiden, by Crested Wave (GB)).
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Come by Chance
As I pondered very weary o’er a volume long and dreary –
For the plot was void of interest – t’was that Postal Guide, in fact,
There I learnt the true location, distance, size and population
Of each township, town and village in the radius of the Act.
And I learnt that Puckawidgee stands beside the Murrumbidgee,
And that Booleroi and Bumble get their letters twice a year,
Also the post inspector, when he visited Collector,
Closed up the Office up instanter, and re-opened Dungalear.
But my languid mood forsook me, when I found a name that took me,
Quite by chance I came across it – “Come by Chance” was what I read;
No location was assigned it, not a thing to help one find it,
Just an ‘N’ which stood for northwood, and the rest was all unsaid.
I shall leave my home, and forthward wander stoutly to the northward
Till I come by chance across it, and I’ll straightway settle down,
For there can’t be any hurry, nor the slightest cause for worry
Where the telegraph don’t reach you nor the railways run to town.
And one’s letters and exchanges come by chance across the ranges,
Where a wiry young Australian leads a pack horse once a week,
And the good news grows by keeping, and you’re spared the pain of weeping
Over bad news when the mailman drops the letters in the creek.
But I fear, and more’s the pity, that there’s really no such city,
For there’s not a man can find it of the shrewdest folk I know,
“Come by Chance”, be sure it never means a land of fierce endeavour,
It is just the careless country where the dreamers only go.
* * * *
Though we work and toil and hustle in our life of haste and bustle,
All that makes our life worth living comes unstriven for and free;
Man may weary and importune, but the fickle goddess Fortune
Deals him out his pain or pleasure careless what his worth may be.
All the happy times entrancing, days of sport and nights of dancing,
Moonlit rides and stolen kisses, pouting lips and loving glance:
When you think of these be certain you have looked behind the curtain,
You have had the luck to linger just a while in “Come by Chance”.
A.B Banjo Paterson
The poem, Banjo Paterson wrote while visiting CBC.
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