RaceCafe..#1...Tipsters Thread.... Share Your Fancies For Fun...Lets See Who The Best Tipsters Here Are.
We're Doomed

Kumara

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15 minutes ago, We're Doomed said:

So did anyone in any authority think of any contingency plans or did everyone believe the club president a few hours ago when he said everything was going to plan?

I think Coasters in general ,genuinely believe their weather is not "too bad" , and events over the years can go ahead regardless.

i have followed this West Coast saga on here for a while and Tom from Greymouth/Reefton did his best to convince us that the WC weather had been good of late and forecasts were often wrong and the West Coast was a huge area.

Has news not reached the WC that the NZMet Service actually gives specific forecasts for Reefton , Greymouth ,Hokitika,Westport and possibly other towns !

The site also displays a brilliant Radar picture which clearly shows the rain about ! You can see it coming !

The Tasman Sea is something like 6 degrees warmer at present , maybe Global warming ,and weather bombs are becoming more frequent and more brutal.

Extreme weather is now the norm.

These once a year race-tracks looked after by a diminishing band of volunteers are fun but in todays age of Compliance and Health and Safety they just don't cut the mustard any more.

So we can squeal all we like on race cafe and put forward our expert opinions on turf,grass growing and racing administration but until the message finally gets through to those at the top ,little will change.

As in most sports in NZ , there is little unity and collaboration in Racing so change will be slow.

Its pathetic !

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Do they need to think about turning the trails meeting currently scheduled for Ashburton on 18 Jan into a proper racemeeting? There is no other gallops scheduled for NZ on that day.  The next meeting scheduled for Canty isn't until 27 Jan and that has only one maiden race. Its a bloody mess. Is anyone giving any thought about what can be done for the poor bloody trainers, owners and jockeys?

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The 4 clubs on the Coast are very fragmented and inflexible to change. It is their right to do so. Just adds to the mystic of the Coast and its racing. All the best for Reefton and lets hope they get the fixtures calendar right in the future. Would it be a good move to shift the Coast's racing dates to another time in the year??

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24 minutes ago, We're Doomed said:

15 races at Reefton Tom? Or will the trainers all have given up and gone home?

suspect some will but we are working on an upgrade of the programme and hopefully to give all those who want a go an opportunity

For a brief time this morning we were shifting the day forward to Saturday(at NZTR's suggestion) but impractical with catering, liquor licencing, race books and staff etc plus the weather forecast still being dodgy.

If I had known yesterday that they would abandon and refuse to relocate I would have had time to get it organised

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34 minutes ago, tasman man 11 said:

I think Coasters in general ,genuinely believe their weather is not "too bad" , and events over the years can go ahead regardless.

i have followed this West Coast saga on here for a while and Tom from Greymouth/Reefton did his best to convince us that the WC weather had been good of late and forecasts were often wrong and the West Coast was a huge area.

Has news not reached the WC that the NZMet Service actually gives specific forecasts for Reefton , Greymouth ,Hokitika,Westport and possibly other towns !

The site also displays a brilliant Radar picture which clearly shows the rain about ! You can see it coming !

The Tasman Sea is something like 6 degrees warmer at present , maybe Global warming ,and weather bombs are becoming more frequent and more brutal.

Extreme weather is now the norm.

These once a year race-tracks looked after by a diminishing band of volunteers are fun but in todays age of Compliance and Health and Safety they just don't cut the mustard any more.

So we can squeal all we like on race cafe and put forward our expert opinions on turf,grass growing and racing administration but until the message finally gets through to those at the top ,little will change.

As in most sports in NZ , there is little unity and collaboration in Racing so change will be slow.

Its pathetic !

An expert in Coast weather are you?  I've been here 54 years and I don't look at the TV forecast or a computer screen - I know

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23 minutes ago, THE TORCH said:

The 4 clubs on the Coast are very fragmented and inflexible to change. It is their right to do so. Just adds to the mystic of the Coast and its racing. All the best for Reefton and lets hope they get the fixtures calendar right in the future. Would it be a good move to shift the Coast's racing dates to another time in the year??

Three of the four aren't and in any case every club in NZ is inflexible in their own way.  It is not unique to the Coast

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29 minutes ago, We're Doomed said:

Do they need to think about turning the trails meeting currently scheduled for Ashburton on 18 Jan into a proper racemeeting? There is no other gallops scheduled for NZ on that day.  The next meeting scheduled for Canty isn't until 27 Jan and that has only one maiden race. Its a bloody mess. Is anyone giving any thought about what can be done for the poor bloody trainers, owners and jockeys?

Well Kumara certainly didn't think of the Owners Trainers and Jockeys.  We were desperate to make sure that they had opportunities but the KRC only cared about the crowd they would  miss out on.

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Just now, TOM(the other Molloy) said:

Three of the four aren't and in any case every club in NZ is inflexible in their own way.  It is not unique to the Coast

Fair point. I reckon shifting the dates to April would be a great idea. Tie it in with the two Blenheim meetings and make it an extended circuit. Then move nicely into the Easter meeting at Riccarton. My 5 cents.

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25 minutes ago, THE TORCH said:

Fair point. I reckon shifting the dates to April would be a great idea. Tie it in with the two Blenheim meetings and make it an extended circuit. Then move nicely into the Easter meeting at Riccarton. My 5 cents.

Too big a risk of really bad weather, snow on the passes etc at that time of year

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39 minutes ago, TOM(the other Molloy) said:

suspect some will but we are working on an upgrade of the programme and hopefully to give all those who want a go an opportunity

For a brief time this morning we were shifting the day forward to Saturday(at NZTR's suggestion) but impractical with catering, liquor licencing, race books and staff etc plus the weather forecast still being dodgy.

If I had known yesterday that they would abandon and refuse to relocate I would have had time to get it organised

It was actually incredibly irresponsible for the club president to put our that very misleading statement yesterday. Is that something the RIU should be looking into?

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20 minutes ago, We're Doomed said:

It was actually incredibly irresponsible for the club president to put our that very misleading statement yesterday. Is that something the RIU should be looking into?

they are too busy hiding up trees in Marton and behind bushes in Omakau 

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$30k open 2000m added to Reefton Tuesday.  Thanks to NZTR and fastrack insurance - I have been critical of them(NZTR) in the past but they were bloody helpful this time. Needless to say they had no idea Kumara had been offered an alternative venue.

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Guest 2Admin2
24 minutes ago, TOM(the other Molloy) said:

$30k open 2000m added to Reefton Tuesday.  Thanks to NZTR and fastrack insurance - I have been critical of them(NZTR) in the past but they were bloody helpful this time. Needless to say they had no idea Kumara had been offered an alternative venue.

Has Riccarton or Ashburton offered Reefton an alternative?

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21 minutes ago, 2Admin2 said:

Has Riccarton or Ashburton offered Reefton an alternative?

an alternative what?

Reefton has had about 2 inches of rain and is still dead6/slow 7 insofar as i know.  Kumara and Co have had about 8 inches and heavy 11 AND knew they had a problem days ago

Barring a major weather event Reefton does not need an alternative as I t is a very well managed course(O'Malley's - top farmers - know what they are doing)

 

 

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8 inches, you would need thigh gumboots in the public area, do feel for them in the fact that a weather bomb has hit, we can't control that, pity they wouldn't consider another venue, or even acknowledge another offer, if this is the case, hopefully we get a break in the weather, and reefton get a good meeting.

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Guest 2Admin2
8 minutes ago, TOM(the other Molloy) said:

an alternative what?

Reefton has had about 2 inches of rain and is still dead6/slow 7 insofar as i know.  Kumara and Co have had about 8 inches and heavy 11 AND knew they had a problem days ago

Barring a major weather event Reefton does not need an alternative as I t is a very well managed course(O'Malley's - top farmers - know what they are doing)

 

 

The "problem they had days ago" is different to the one they have now is it not?  Weren't they irrigating?

I thought being the proactive individual you promote yourself as you would have contacted club's across the divide just in case the weather God's don't deliver.

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5 minutes ago, 2Admin2 said:

The "problem they had days ago" is different to the one they have now is it not?  Weren't they irrigating?

I thought being the proactive individual you promote yourself as you would have contacted club's across the divide just in case the weather God's don't deliver.

You trying to take the piss?

Being the proactive club Reefton is it didn't get itself into a situation whereby a track issue was likely to cost it the meeting.  That is first it has never renovated the track, secondly it does not spray weed killer willy nilly on windy days, third it has guys(the O'Malleys) who know lot about pasture management, fourthly it does not deny the shortcomings with its track but works with what it has to try to get the best possible result, fifthly it has a committee of people who actually know at least something about racing and have some empathy for the stakeholders, sixthly when it is offered practical help it will generally accept it, seventhly it does not have a superiority complex about is own position in NZ or West Coast racing, eighthly(if that is a word) the only time in my memory it had to abandon it did so many days ahead so stakeholders were not badly affected(and had the TAB co-operated it would not have needed to abandon just relocate to Greymouth) and ninethly well I have no idea but there must be another reason why we are so good.

Oh Lord its hard to be humble when you're perfect in every way!

And having said all that under Murphy's Law no doubt we will now have to abandon next week as well!

Seriously an alternative over the hill is not feasible.  They are 150 - 200 miles away and may not necessarily be in a state to hold a meeting.  If we had to relocate it would be Greymouth and it is much much wetter than we are.  And the TAB would no doubt refuse again to co operate(whereas in the Kumara case the TAB is shifting to Reefton anyway.

 

 

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21 minutes ago, Shad said:

8 inches, you would need thigh gumboots in the public area, do feel for them in the fact that a weather bomb has hit, we can't control that, pity they wouldn't consider another venue, or even acknowledge another offer, if this is the case, hopefully we get a break in the weather, and reefton get a good meeting.

I've seen it worse at the Kumara races.  In the early jetbet days the lighting was ferocious and the rain pelting down and water was pissing into the bar but the show went on no probs.  No H&S in those days

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12 minutes ago, Portfolio said:

Just heard they had 40mm rain in an hour? Maybe, it is a good decision a couple of days out. 

sun shower

I have said it before the Coast can handle it but tracks that have been renovated invariably do not handle a lot or rain well(or a little rain just before raceday).

Invercargill, Wingatui, Ashburton, Riccarton, Kumara, Omoto, Rangiora, Trentham, Awapuni .......   Need I go on?

 

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