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Could not agree more.... some clubs have very capable business leaders on their committees and if given half a chance might come up with something that works for their club, for their community and possibly for the industry as a whole. The current one size fits all,bend over and take it. ,keep your trap shut until your course is closed system is wasting that vast well of expertise in nearly every club. I dont know what to do to save racing but I am sure that at least one club has the recipe for success.

TT - So true and it has saved/enhanced racing in all of the states that have implemented casino/electronic gaming. Purses and breeeder awards have increased signnificantly. One of the more recent success stories come from Wyoming, one of our smaller racing states. Have a look at this article: https://www.paulickreport.com/news/the-biz/wyoming-breeders-program-awards-1-7-million-incentives-2017/ . Please note, all of this revenue was generated using "Historic Racing Terminals". Imagine the revenue that is being generated by racecourses having a full service casino (table games, slots, other electronic gaming, sports books). The racecourse that I cut my teeth on, Penn National, was dead on its arse until casino gaming was authorized at racecourses in Pennsylvania. Speaking for myself, I was moved in the direction of ownership because of increased purses at "racinos". I was a bit strategic in purchasing a horse who did well on Tapeta. My target was to run at a racecourse that had elevated purses from casino revenue; in addition to having Tapeta. That racetrack was Presque Isle Downs (PID) in Pennsylvania. PID did not even exist until the racecourse/casino inititive was approved in Pennsylvania. I claimed a horse (for $10K) out of a race at Hollywood Park (Cushion), but had previously done very well at Golden Gate (Tapeta). We shipped him east to PID, prepared him on grass, then campaigned him on the Tapeta. He then won a race valued at $31K and was placed in races for $24K, $41K and $51K. The races he was winning in California were only worth $8K-$11K at GG and $18K at HOL. Owners have benefitted greatly from racecourses that have casino revenue driven purses. Of course, without folks getting involved in ownership, there would be no racing. During my visit to NZ in 2018, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit 12 racecourses. Unfortunately, I was unable to make it to Riccarton (or any of the South Island racecourses, which means I'll be back for subsequent visits; just quit closing racecourses ). In most of my visits, I spoke with racecourse reps and spoke about the sustainability of racing in NZ, noting the overwhelming success of US/Canada racecourses with full service casinos and to a lesser degree those with slots/electronic gaming. From other members of this forum, it appears that Riccarton could be primed for this type of transition. If handled properly, it's something that could be implemented at the racecourses where there is a population base that could support it. It really could be a Win-Win for the NZ government and the NZ Horse Racing Industry.

Listen here Sheeps i'll try to explain it in terms you'll understand. Say if you are a little guy with a bunch of sheep and you wanted to earn some money racing these. But there is a weird old old system where a government agency makes all the laws on sheep racing. They try (not so hard) to encourage people to bet on sheep racing in the hope that will enrich the government and pay for the management of that enterprise. They really don't care much for sheep racing, but its been around for a very long time and some good piss ups can be found around it. I digress! After costs, there's trickle down - some funds to a mob that try and organise the sheep racing clubs, but its baaa-rely enough to keep the game viable and sheep are getting hurt on baaa -d tracks. People are not keen on betting on sheep anymore as it aint that exciting when only a few go along and you might see a sheep getting offed. Better stay away! So where does that leave you dag?

I get it alright. Its called the blame game. That blame lies squarely with NZTR and its appointments,lobbyists,and incompetent,s who are big on promises..'NZ racing will be the envy of the...world'and clearly HOPELESS on...delivering. All good blokes of course.See the world,get on board the NZTR gravy train.

As Premixer mentioned the Club released a statement to members recently on the insurance claim. It hadn't been paid then. And if it has now been paid they probably would've struggled to get a new stand built for last saturday So temporary facilities which unfortunately can lead to queues and dirty portaloos - just like every concert and beer festival you ever go to. The 3 cans thing is interesting - my pet hate during the two Cup Days is limiting you to two drinks per visit to the bar half way through the afternoon, and then one ...... as happened at Addington Tuesday. Bloody annoying when you are in a round of 4 people etc ... Did this not happen on Saturday ? Without being a w@nker I was in a Box and the fridge was open all day

the really good news too come out of this latest hoax failure by the dems/fake news is that it will be last time poor old ohoka ever gets sucked into the fake news/cnn again we have tried too tell him along the way but this will surely be the end of the ohoka/dems/fake news orgy..... what a complete and utter embarrassment this is turning into i guess they still got 12 months too make up some new made up hoax too keep the radical left base happy........

Thanks for that , very strange that it was not on AS website as they are usually pretty sharp on that front. Thats why i asked the question if anybody knew anything. That many rumors floating around it pays to be very careful What a shame although they do have a couple of worthy replacements Greg

Swing and a miss Ivannotsogreat. It was the Herald's guy that broke the story on Spankem late last night.

Don't expect to read it in the newspapers , the Herald Editor is too busy helping everyone back a winner at Rotorua well so he should the form in his paper reminds me of 1965. No trainers , 20% of jockeys not advised , no other printed matter. After seeing him last Monday , all day Tuesday , Friday and Sunday , yesterday was toooo much. O'h and his Cup day pix 10 selections of $100 per race after 3 races a place at $1.80 . Race 7 finished last , Race 8 $1.30 place , Race 10 everybody's pick Wainui Creeek Win's , 2 in the cup everybodys Spankem place , Favorite in the last wins. Well how crap is that for 8 hours talking ALL DAY.

Leg injury and ruled out of the inters, Auckland Cup and Miracle Mile.

Best to you RR - California as a state is a "freak show". Now that Santa Anita is off, the press and other anti-racing entities/fanatics are hammering Del Mar, who has had a rash of early meet fatalities. Not going to deal with the general topic of horse fatalities here, as that can be it's own topic/thread all unto itself. I don't believe we will ever see racing in California shutdown. It has too great of an economic impact and while attendance at the city racecourses may be sparse at times, California still has a very popular, well attended fair circuit (short meetings in Ferndale, Fresno, Los Alamitos, Pleasanton, Sacramento, and Santa Rosa). Santa Anita (SA) and Del Mar (DMR) are two of the most beautiful, scenic racecourses in the world. Both are racecourse gems and the racing is first-class. Focusing on racecourse fatalities only, Golden Gate (GG), in the San Francisco area, is rarely talked about because their fatality rate is very low (vs. SA and DMR). The reason is their main track surface is Tapeta, not dirt. I'm a firm believer that a dirt track can be as safe as grass or synthetic track. It's all down to the base, composition, and maintenance. Unfortunately, that isn't bearing itself out at either SA or DMR. There was a time when SA, DMR, GG, and the now shuttered Hollywood Park were mandated to use a synthetic surface. Only GG has prevailed with a synthetic (Tapeta). The other synthetic surfaces used in southern California did not have as great an impact on reducing equine fatalities and were allowed to return to dirt. Also, the trainers in southern California had an adverse experience with the synthetics used (Del Mar used Polytrack, San Anita used Cushion then Pro-RIde, and Hollywood Park used Cushion). Concerning SA, I believe that they may be mandated to go back to a synthetic main track. If so, the obvious choice for this would be the latest version of Tapeta, Tapeta 10. The success rate in reducing racecourse fatalities with tracks using Tapeta 10 have been excellent. Though, for SA to have a successful transition, the base of the track would have to be completely removed. They really would have to start from scratch; removing the dirt and base, then totally reconstruct the track. As an American, who grew up in Pennsylvania and currently lives in Florida; I have had the opportunity to visit California on many occasions and loved all of my visits. I've been to all of the existing racecourses and those that have closed. However, it has been over 5 years since my last visit and would not even consider going back due to the social and political atmosphere that currently exist. California has well and truly "gone off the rails". My hope is that thoroughbred racing doesn't follow suit.

They have been doing it USA and Canada for the last 10 years we have to learn, quickly

LEFT FIELD! How about clubs run themselves and on their own merits? Sack Rita, Sack NZRB, Sack NZ Racing, Sack TAB... Sack the lot and start from scratch. Save a lot on useless Salaries! The strongest survive and live on as in life!

Everyone agrees the present system isn't working, hasn't worked for a long time, and is not fit for purpose. Unfortunately, no one seems quite sure which bits of the current system should be dumped and which bits should be retained and what should be put in its place.

Been saying it for years, relocate the Casino to Riccarton in the ground floor new stand and have second floor for racing - glass floor to ceiling And if we are real committed a harness track inside the gallops and close Addington Just a dream but has potential

Laugh all you like but the present system is bankrupting racing

I had a young relative called Daniel had a great time there. NM

It's not about a lefty bid for world control..it is about right wing control and extreme right at that. A New World Order that finds big business in control and governing eventually., the T.P.P.A. is the chassis for that. And as far as global warming goes, the symptoms are created by H.A.A.R.P. and you'll have to You Tube it for an explaination..it's been manifest for about 40yrs so far.