Design and manufacture the world's largest starting gate, to enable the Melbourne Cup to be started from one gate
In 2010 the Melbourne Cup was started for the very first time from one set of starting gates.
The Victorian Racing Club (VRC) approached Steriline to design a world first 25 stall starting gate, for the prestigious Melbourne Cup.
The Racecourse Manager, Mick Goodie, for many years had concerns about the weather conditions in Victoria. The space saved by using one gate instead of joining two together, enabled the race club to move the rail further out, providing a good racing surface for the major day of their Spring racing carnival.
Steriline had already developed many of the features that went into building the mammoth 25 stall structure, including;
special tyres to support the increased weight of the gate, whilst maintaining turf integrity;
newly designed back gates to enable faster and safer loading of the horses;
safety steps and handles to increase handler safety and productivity.
The major undertaking for building such a large starting gate was in the design of the truss. The truss design provided structural integrity across the long 24.5 metre span.
