Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) will send Poppy, our trots mascot, to Wedderburn on Monday for Hamish and Andy's Race That Slows Down The Nation.
Hamish and Andy host one of the most popular drive time shows on Australian radio, the program beaming live into all capital cities and also across regional networks.
The race itself will see 50 different entrants wearing horse suits racing around the 800-metre track. HRV's Adam Havelberg has been selected to wear the Poppy suit, the AFL Victoria umpire sure to put up a good show – though he will have a sulky in tow.
Despite the suit weighing more than it seems, and the fact he'll be pulling a sulky, Poppy's trainer Andy Gath is hopeful – not confident – that Poppy can go close.
>> Video of Andy Gath talking about Poppy's training
The organisers of Monday's event, to be held at the Wedderburn trotting track, have two popular musical acts playing live on the day – Birds of Tokyo and Jessica Mauboy – and a huge crowd of thousands will flock to the venue for the festivities.
HRV will have a strong presence on the day with the Trots Cruiser set up and promo girls handing out showbags containing trots merchandise, while people will also be encouraged to enter the draw to win the Trots Cruiser.
>> Check out a Snapchat Story of Poppy's training day at Andy Gath's
Follow our social media channels @HRVnews on Twitter, @Trotshots on Instagram and Facebook.com/harnessracingvictoria to stay in touch with all the action!
This is a great opportunity for the trots to get some mainstream media coverage and HRV is eager to make the most of it.
If you can come along on the day and cheer on Poppy, it'd be great to see some trots fans there!
A big thank you to Andy Gath for agreeing to train Poppy in preparation for Monday's assignment!