Phar Lap Fan

Did Wood Court Inn win that race, when 2 y.o.? Would have probably been run in Summer.

It did show that there is an asphalt road quite close to the track that the horses follow. Not desirable if one loses its rider.

Stewards covered their arses (to be expected?) by claiming a legal decision but not justice when Smug ran further. Was the pre-race instruction talk examined for adequacy? A peripheral matter but it seemed that the open section had no protection on the rail ends. That is an animal welfare issue so nothing excuses the sloppy practice. "We will learn from this" but makes N.Z. racing look farcical. Unfortunately, have seen similar, daft things on European courses.

Ironic that this governemnt, which (theoretically) supports free enterprise, should allow a monopoly. Still, I haven't understood how it thought that it owned the T.A.B., but no desire to challenge in court?

If it is considered to be cheating, which it is as it could alter the performance of the horse, there should be relegation or disqualification. As with performance-enhancing drugs or interference that affects the placings, the rule should be enforced but there appears to be no will to do so, making it a joke.

Winx. Won over more distances and often with great ease. Also, 25 Group 1 wins - the opposition was what was available and she made them look bad or scared others away. Horses could have travelled to Australia to compete against her. Works both ways on how much advantage of home ground. P.S. In the comparitive case, one is greater, not the greatest. All speculative but Phar Lap and Tulloch were rated as having won the equivalent of 27 Gr. 1 races.

If a jockey can be charged with not allowing a horse to run on its merits, should the same apply to trainers? When there are sufficient trial races to prepare a horse, can punters be confident that a horse is fit and competitive? You would tnink that unlikely when you see horses finshing, or not, 200 metres last.

Died 26/4/2025, aged 90, at Palmerston North.Was this Clem Goss, former jockey and trainer?

Can't find the recent thread but ask if the times can be trusted. Apart from the hand-timing, races of 1,200 metres down the chute seem to produce times not compatible with other distances on the same days. Assume that the chute is not watered as the proper course, and not used as much, but wonder if the measurement is very acurate. High Glee ran 1:08 for six furlongs, about 60 years ago, and now under 1:07 can be achieved but times for olnger distances don't seem to have improved to a similar degree.

Taiona, the dam of Sovereign Red, Gurner's Lane and Delia's Choice. with Foxwood, Opposing Forces, Will Power and Mr. B. nearby. Ka Ying Rising looks to be an exceptional horse, perhaps the class of Black Caviar?

Apparently not much has been learnt. The track was tested but evidently not with large groups of horses that would use a greater width of the course. That the rail was moved 6 metres suggests that the course was not ready anyway, or parts below standard are acceptable? Years ago, I lived in Palmerston North, not far from the N.Z. Turf Institute. Nowadays, there is the N.Z. Sports Turf Institute (don't know its breeding) and farmers have been growing grass in N.Z. for more than 200 years. Somebody, somewhere, must know something.

So 8 of the 12 qualifying races for the Super What's-it Bonus series are to be run at Ellerslie, plus repetition of distances? Does Ellerslie attract larger crowds, relative to the population, than other cities? The "National Stadium" of Eden Park has a capacity of 50,000 (unique n N.Z.), which is approx. 3% of the population.

Were the fences used for hurdles and steeplechase races? I wasn't paying close attention but looked the same. The standard of jumping, cross-country and ring, at the Olympic Games was much higher. Are tracks too muddy for achieving much height? (t.i.c.)

There may be some rationale for that but it isn't rational.

Error - Aotearoa Classic is for 4 y.o. horses.