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Favourite dog is Thrilling Ransom... Cost me plenty in the early days of his racing career when he was super quick but erratic, and now he's costing me even more as he's my recent GAP adoptee. Super dog

A new report shows 25% of New Zealand children live in poverty. An incredible 270,000 kiwi kids. That is a staggering statistic and a diabolical indictment on those in Government who can help these Children on behalf of all New Zealanders. These are not bad children. The hopeless position they are in is not of their own making. I feel it's safe to make a few long term assumptions about the effects of poverty on these children. Very difficult for many children to focus on their education when they are in poverty and their priorities are elsewhere. It's accepted by most that a poor education will hinder this child's chances of employment further down the track. Very difficult for these families to put enough priority on the children's health when there are other pressing priorities. That situation only compounds when as the result of poverty the child needs to go and see the doctor. Expenses there including prescriptions have many families avoiding a trip to the doctor as that will put even more pressure on a budget that already has no room to move. A person with limited education and poor health growing up will be significantly more likely to be involved in crime and end up in the prison system than those children who had the opposite. Less chance of gaining employment. More chance of ongoing health issues and being a drain on the health system. More chance of repeating the exact same cycle he grew up with when his own children come along. False economy big time! These children need and deserve help sooner rather than later. No money in the Government coffers to give extra help to these Children? Bullshit. There is always money if Governments wanted and or needed there to be. They will always find resources for a cause important to them. I believe three things are needed for our Government to put priority on Child Poverty. 1) This has to become an election issue in the same way health,education and employment etc are. The Politicians have shown they won't move unless forced one way or another. 2) What's needed is good old fashioned empathy from people who actually give a shit. Every single person who works with these Children empathizes with them. Those same people know what it's like to go without. They can do enough to help and generally all their help is on a voluntary basis. Bob Geldof witnessed first hand the starving children of Ethiopia. His empathy an enormous motivator. Compare that with John Key's response to the devastating statistics that scream out an urgent need for priority. "If you want to ultimately lift children out of poverty,the way to do it is through work,you've go to break the welfare cycle" As a long term goal that plan is a wonderful idealistic goal. As a plan to address the present situation it's absolutely fucking worthless. It displays an indifference and complete lack of empathy toward NZ Children that does not reflect well. How does Key's long term idealistic goal help these Children now in a practical tangible way? Is he in fact just brushing aside a very serious issue with pointless fluff? There seems no doubt whatsoever that the long term fluff will not help the present situation. What about the long term? What happens to Child Poverty in five or ten years if the long term breaking of the welfare cycle fails? Have politicians ever failed in the all important area of employment solutions previously? 3) This may well be a low blow but I believe what's happening to these children and the refusal of Politicians to act with urgency is good old fashioned "class discrimination". The victims are the lower class / working class. The people in a position to act on behalf of all New Zealanders are upper class. They want for nothing. Their Children want for nothing. The children of all their friends and colleagues want for nothing. It is now seen as unlawful to discriminate against people based on their ethnicity,their age,their gender and even their sexual orientation. If "class" was added to that list I believe child poverty would barely register in New Zealand within five years.

He's doing very well thank you - has settled in great and we have lots of fun together. Absolutely no regrets about adopting a greyhound and stoked to have got this big fella.

Racing is in decline for 2 key reasons & unless they think about addressing these areas within the next 10 yrs none of this is going to matter. 1) In the last 25yrs the discretionary $ has been stretched over Casinos, Pokies, Big Wednesday & Lotto, added to this the numbers no longer working 8:30am - 5:00pm Mon - Fri. This has impacted on the discretionary time as well creating a time & $ problem. 2) We have a society that during the last 25 yrs has changed significantly in the way it manages money, many purchases are made on the I want it now basis, which has seen the explosion of Credit Cards and Hire Purchase. Consequently the discretionary gambling spend has also taken on this same pattern & sees many now wanting mega returns from small spends, quickly. Racing has just not evolved fast enough to cope with this change in NZ culture, racing is perceived as a half day activity consuming time & money with little chance of a profit at the end of the day. Through into the mix that Racing is frowned upon as a losers or stuck up wankers activity & you have lost the vast majority of middle NZ. Take a wander around Ellerslie this week and you will see, stuck up wankers (often late Teens - mid 20's), old men in Grey Suits with flashed up tarts & people who look like they are investing their last of there beneficiary pay. Middle NZ is in problem no 1 above. Solution: NZ racing needs to start a re-education process to bring middle NZ back to the race track/industry, glam up the TAB's so they don't look like beneficiary hang outs, innovative products (like the triple trio), remove the ones that are not working and thinning the pools to much (trebles, place 6, doubles), Twillight racing, start marketing to mainstream NZ & take some pride in the product they deliver (Start treating the customer base as one that they will lose and not legislate to hold onto). Give significant deposit incentives for new or returning customers & market this fact on national television, race tracks TAB's etc.

just watching racing retro who thinks they need to bring back new zealand racing retro i think it would be a good idea due the amount of racing in new zealand in this day in age and due to racing being backed up hard they dont go in to great detail into what has happened in the races.

Being the owner of half a leg of one of Te Akau's recent Singapore stable additions I have had reason to take note of stewards reports from up there The other night I see a jockey dropped his stick and got told if he does it again they will 'consider charges' The horse in question won the race I might add but clearly making a mistake is not to be tolerated in those parts. That sort of talk might sharpen a few of the local chappies up???

That needs to be stuck on the wall in every office at NZRB. Without a change in perception the Govt is always going to view the racing industry as something slightly dodgy, and to be tolerated while it is bring in revenue, but ignored as much as possible. Contrast that with Australia where State and Federal Govts actively support the industry with $ for capital spend etc etc. This is where the NZRB has to be working - improving perception, stressing to the Govt the importance of the industry in terms of tax take, revenue from horse sales offshore, employment in NZ etc etc. Slowly the Govt will get the picture perhaps. In the meantime putting pokies in TABs works against that perception - it moves us back to the old days when TABs were all down alleyways hidden from the general public. (note I am not fundamentally oppposed to racing generating funds from pokies actually). Rationalisation of racecourses and improvement of facilities so the "mainstream" actually come out and have a good day, rather than wondering if they have walked into a public bar from the 1950's also makes sense. It should generate cash from the sale of obsolete courses as well. Get bars and function centres into racecourse which are open all the time, and get ordinary people on course on non-racing days, so the "step" to actually attending a race meeting doesn't seem so big. Reduce takeout rates and encourage punters (here and overseas). Make the TAB odds attractive and we will bet. Get the trackside channels sorted (I love racing but some days I just have to switch it off with the constant bombardment of race after race). Show prelims, have decent lead in times, drop the fancy in race camera angles and show us the race etc etc etc Waving a big stick at punters saying you shouldnt bet overseas etc just won't work. I have no problem with getting overseas agencies to pay a % for product, but the methodology seemingly adopted seems mickey mouse, and I am unconvinced as to how much $ there is in it for us, and hence how high a priority it is right now

Correct Hesi. You must have seen a different version as the one shown on Trackside did not have questions in it. Think you are being a little harsh on Bayliss. I think he's pretty astute and has at least got things underway in his 16 months in the job. Maybe progress not as fast as some would like but there is a hell of a job to do and it will take time to get it right.

He's taking the piss; has to be. He's either a primary school kid or mentally challenged, or he has slipped over from the trotting forum to stir people up.

I called NZRB this morning and asked why I could no longer view the AGM and would they put a link on their website so I (and others) could view it. I was put on hold several times while supervisors were contacted and eventually given some excuse about it being a technical problem and I was promised I would be emailed by the end of the day with a new link to the video. No surprises I haven't received an email.... If the video is ever made available again it would be most interesting to compare the original version (if anyone has a copy) with what is reposted to see if there is any editing....

Bugger, Feet up, cold beer, ready to watch the video. What a disappointment Oh well, Its a rare breed that's bullet proof.

You write like my mum texts mate.

I know that several of our group are not gallops followers so I think we should stick to the harness.

...Stevie~DAVIS, during the replay of AUK.R3's finish ..he superimposed himself as the voice of #6 Mic Player..objecting to the centrifuge of #7 Where's The Cat challenging upon his girths for the Winning of the race . . .ya had to witness it..but it was a hilarious mimic of a hound from a Hanna Barberra cartoon character or similar., Geeeze it was funny., ..he's the hosting star of Slackside that's for sure...and so Passionate about his Greyhounds TOO

Or is it just that since more people have backed it for more money, more people are watching that particular horse when it breaks?

Geez leggy, you have no proof the $35mill is grossly wrong and the question remains ,why should our competitors be allowed use NZ racing to operate their businesses for free.