Last month's Victoria Racing Club event raised more than $100,000 for the new Australian Institute for Musculoskeletal Science at the Western Centre for Health Research and Education.

Institute director Professor Peter Ebeling said the national reference centre for research into bone, muscle and joint disorders would use the money to support programs that fight these conditions through exercise and proper diet.

Western Health chief executive Kathryn Cook said the service played a pivotal role in disease prevention as the west's population grew.

The fundraising easily surpassed last year's record total of $68,000.