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Greyhound Racing Lures

The Safechase™ Greyhound Racing Lure System

Steriline Racing, in partnership with Covey Engineering, has developed a state-of-the-art, battery powered, remote controlled greyhound racing lure, known as the Safechase Lure System, specifically designed for greyhound track racing.

Steriline and Covey have been working together for nearly 20 years to provide safe, reliable, high quality equipment and products to the greyhound racing industry both in Australia and around the world.

The Australian designed and manufactured Safechase™ Lure System is a self-contained machine that has no other infrastructure except for the rail that it runs along. It is a remotely controlled electric vehicle powered by modern rechargeable lithium-ion battery technology. It requires no cable or live electric contact systems, improving safety for both animals and people and reducing operating and maintenance costs.

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What is a greyhound racing lure?

Modern dog racing is a competitive sport for greyhounds, or similar dog breeds, in which the dog chases a mechanically operated lure around or along a sand or grass track of between 300 and 650 metres in length. The sports aims to demonstrate and preserve the abilities for which greyhounds were originally bred.

How does a traditional lure system work?

Traditionally, greyhound racing lure systems comprise a carriage usually covered in fabric or fur that is mounted to a steel cable. The cable is pulled around the track by a large electric motor, with a series of spindles or pulleys around the rail maintaining the cable’s tension. There are numerous moving parts, making the cable lure system both expensive to operate and maintain, with significant risk to safety of nearby animals and people should the cable system fail. A snapped cable can also result in downtime and significant revenue losses for operators and betting agencies.

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Features of the Safechase™ Lure System

  • Advanced lightweight high capacity lithium battery pack which can safety complete up to 50 races (32km) with approximately 30% battery life remaining.
  • Charge the battery pack from 30% to full in approximately 3.5 hours with the standard charger or approximately 2 hours with the rapid charger.
  • Quick-change battery docking system that takes less than a minute to change a battery.
  • Optimised rail guide wheel arrangement for low rolling resistance meaning increased battery life and rapid acceleration.
  • Control system designed to have a similar feel of operation to traditional greyound lure systems for ease of driver training and transition.
  • Operate the remote control on battery for up to 20 hours per charge or with a direct plug pack into a standard wall socket.
  • Programmable auto-start feature to match individual track requirements.
  • Internal data logging system for tracking run time and total distance travelled.
  • Secure and reliable radio system with dual high gain antennas which provides a safe 500m range.
  • Regenerative braking embedded into the control system (a brake that converts the kinetic energy into extended battery life)
  • Remote-controlled hydraulic emergency brake with an adjustable braking force which is capable of safely stopping the lure from race speed (66km/h) in less than 30m.
  • Automatic brake activation for the end of straight tracks.
  • Remote-controlled high intensity LED locality lighting for assistance with poor visibility on bad weather days.
  • Robust design to handle the varied Australian climatic conditions and exposure to rain and sand kicked up by racing greyhounds.
  • End of straight track emergency impact buffers successfully tested to 70km/h.
  • Fully customisable lure arm dependent on the individual greyhound track requirements.
  • Can be retrofit to any Australian rail but can also be customised if an alternative rail profile has been utilised.

Benefits of the Safechase™ Lure System

Some of the many benefits of the Safechase™ Lure System over the traditional cable and live electric contact systems include:

  • Countless savings based around revenue loss due to failures as all tracks are supplied with 2 Safechase™ Greyhound Lures and they are interchangeable in a matter of minutes in comparison to the traditional systems where a failure could see the loss of a whole race meeting.
  • A reduction of up to 50% in maintenance and operational costs over 5 years.
  • Removes the safety and animal welfare issue of a 70km/h cable failure at the perimeter of the track.
  • Reduced infrastructure for new tracks by not requiring cable rollers every 3m and avoiding 3 phase power demand for a 30-45kW electric motor.
  • Less track length and therefore capital required for straight tracks due to the minimal run-up required for acceleration and braking.
  • Safechase™ Greyhound Lure can navigate tight rail curves of down to 14m radius without jeopardising acceleration rates meaning limited land required for straight track run-ups.
  • Infrastructure is safe from vandalism as the Safechase™ Greyhound Lure is easily removed from the track at the end of each race day.
  • Allows easy use of the inner oval/space where available or required.
  • The Safechase™ Greyhound Lure system uses approximately 87% less energy than the cable system which saves on running costs and delivers a reduced carbon footprint.
  • Clean operation with no rail or track contamination (grease).
  • Future options utilising the on-board power supply for lure cam (live broadcasting), artificial noise and additional lighting.