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

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  1. scooby3051

    RITA 6 Month Results

    But NONE have gone yet...it seems its taking a long time to get their snouts out of the trough..all the minows were dealt to swiftly..why not the other end too???
    5 points
  2. Because they only made $75m while they paid out $88m - i.e. they are giving more to the codes than they are making. False economics and the merry-go-round has stopped now with Covid in the 2nd half year. Desperate times. Thanks John Allen (and Bayliss, Brown, Hansen).
    4 points
  3. Oamaru club VERY DISAPPOINTED told pre locked down they would not be racing june or july ...over the last two seasons oamaru ran a bonus for any horse to win the oamaru cup and the winter cup .......60 k last year....during the week the winter cup is reinstated.....and new dates announced.....timaru racing club were granted the oamaru date''''..the 19th of july'''..........you would have thought if common sense had come into it'..oamaru should have kept their date .....and one horse and connections would have started in the winter cup going round for 120k......if BRAINS WERE DYNAMITE THEY WOULDNT HAVE ENOUGH TO BLOW THEIR NOSE....... Isnt Messara a woman's makeup? Isn't Winnie a horse's neigh?...........
    3 points
  4. I dont live down that way but the difficulties that Race got into I believe was getting involved in building and development. Bob Jones says all developers go broke. I have been a builder and developer and got caught on two specs but many were good and I kept the shirt on. Awapuni built a new stand then got into land development then got hit with a recession. Result sections didnt sell (and really was there a market for them at the time) But a perfect storm nonetheless. Lesson - Clubs should not get involved in things where they dont have the expertise. Land agents and banks are skimmers and take no risk. They can talk the unwary into unwise actions, in fact clubs are sitting ducks. And there is no accountability and that is the major flaw.
    3 points
  5. JJ Flash

    RITA 6 Month Results

    I agree Greg
    2 points
  6. 4 are voted on , 2 are direct appointments and 2 are head-hunted (and I use that term loosely, they can't have been picked for their knowledge) Now 1 of the latter 2 appointments is now the CEO on full pay plus travel and accomodation (and I bet meals as well) fronting up for less than 2 days a week If HRNZ is paying meals then why? Man has to eat wherever he is so why should HRNZ pay? Why should HRNZ pay travel and accomodation? Appointee's choice to reside outside of Christchurch Mikie
    2 points
  7. Im hearing you and there is now growing disenchantment with running and governance at HRNZ. How Spicer can stay on is getting beyond a joke. No wonder the game is going so poorly with amateurs running the show and a part time CEO all appointed by "you know who"
    2 points
  8. Red Rum

    VIRTUAL TIPSTERS THREAD

    Tilsit race 4 Newmarket tonight , 7s and 1.85 the place so almost money back . Won 19 lengths 2nd start . Pushed right out as ran green when red hot and beaten on debut . Horse that beat him has won at short odds since . Might be decent , well up in class now but no stars in the field . Out of half sister to Kingman .Charlie Hills trains and he is getting some good ones from biggest owners around .
    2 points
  9. You are a laugh. You do not even know what my disability is. FYI After 2 years of recovery from a wheel chair to crutches, and orthopedics, I still have 3 steel plates in my right foot and have trouble walking but can get on a horse you cynical prick. Thanks for the page promo. See also Riding for the disabled at https://www.rda.org.nz/
    2 points
  10. Over here, the growing dispute between the racecourses and "the Horsemen" (basically the owners) over prize money is intensifying. Courses are desperate to race - that might seem strange given they are getting no income through the gate or through food and drink sales - because they have a source of income via media rights. Instead of the usual 6-8 races per card, we are now regularly seeing 10 race cards as every race run means income for the course, the jockeys and of course a chance of prize money for owners and trainers. The real losers from all this are the on-course bookmakers who have been left completely high and dry. Those representing off-course firms will be okay but those running the business purely on course have no income and there's a real chance the on-course market will never recover from this. Less income for the courses means less money across the industry which leaves less for prize money. The big races have seen their pots cut to ribbons - the Derby last year had a first prize of £921,000 but this year it was £283,550 and the Oaks was half of that. To be fair, the bottom rung have not suffered - Class 6 races (the lowest grade) have been left unchanged but at just £2,800 to the winner that's a different and no less awkward question. The problem is there are many more bad horses than good ones so there's a need to run more lower-grade races but the problem is there simply aren't enough races being planned for the moderate horse population. At least four courses have been mothballed by the larger owning groups through the summer as the groups struggle financially (see above). What we've not yet been told by the bookmakers is the extent to which business has recovered since the easing of lockdown. Owners (two per horse) were allowed back last week but there seems little immediate prospect of a return for most racegoers.
    2 points
  11. Leggy

    RITA 6 Month Results

    Yes. Total revenue is dead flat. That's post the new platform, with most of the racefields fees coming in, and with the first phase of the betting duty reduction in place. And there's no reduction in expenses.
    1 point
  12. Hope it’s not abandoned . Keen on watching some jumps races.
    1 point
  13. chevy86

    Trump written off

    Brilliant interview on Bolt last night with black American woman who had a career working for Carter and the Clinton mafia. Basically she said Trump is the first President to be elected who is not silently "handcuffed" to either the Democrat or Republican party machine.Called out the savage attempt by the Democrats to try and call his democratic election illegitimate by then using fake Russia, Stormy, Ukraine, Covid narratives to try and bring him down because as Hilary duplicitous Clinton said "she deserved it"! Now the dumb press is saying Trump's Tulsa rally caused a second wave as thousands turned up. Hold on, didn't they say it was only a few mad NRA people and their dogs who attended after a Tik Tok sabotage. It's warming up beautifully and genital intruder Biden looking to duck any debate. I wonder why.
    1 point
  14. 100 1

    Trump written off

    Are you really that stupid? The people who have been surveilling/investigating the Smollett case are telling you who was involved and charges are coming. Directly from the horses mouth, something your little brain is incapable of comprehending. CNN are hiding it from you...that's ok because the truth is being told on Racecafe
    1 point
  15. Leggy

    RITA 6 Month Results

    2020 Budget 2020 2019 2018 Betting and gaming turnover 1,499,989 1,571,469 1,410,013 1,430,037 REVENUE Net betting turnover 146,957 148,211 143,200 151,057 Net Gaming turnover 15,001 14,927 14,606 13,298 NZ racing shown overseas turnover 11,689 12,584 12,624 11,146 Other revenue 13,497 12,624 13,106 12,584 TOTAL REVENUE 187,144 188,346 183,536 188,045 TURNOVER RELATED EXPENSES 39,355 39,874 35,388 36,259 OPERATING EXPENSES Broadcasting 4,727 4,497 4,529 4,718 Communication and technology 14,168 14,685 12,833 10,303 Premises and equipment 3,739 3,461 7,230 7,442 Staff 29,223 29,113 3,217 31,780 Depreciation and amortisation 11,163 11,715 8,227 10,334 Foreign exchange loss 194 127 24 Other 9,032 8,677 6,803 8,216 TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSES 72,246 72,148 71,596 72,817 TOTAL EXPENSES 111,601 112,022 107,354 109,076 NET PROFIT BEFORE DISTRIBUTIONS 75,543 76,324 76,182 79,009 Distributions 88,267 88,700 86,618 84,798 Provisons for undistributed gaming surplus 3,198 4,775 2,668 NET LOSS AFTER DISTRIBUTIONS -15,922 -12,376 -15,211 -8,457
    1 point
  16. Forget the above, ive done some hunting and suggest you go to RITA site and see the annual reports on bottom left hand corner. All the info is there . Hope this helps Greg
    1 point
  17. Uriah Heap

    Trump written off

    A buffoon, a bigot, a blowhard, a braggart..........you could go on and on about how President Trump is seen outside of the USA. And don't get me started about how President Putin of Russia views Trump. I'm sure he can't believe his luck, having this man as leader of the country he most detests. The rest of the world see a King with no clothes, whereas so many Americans continue to be deluded, despite the mounting evidence. It's not only Trump being laid bare, it's the whole country. We're seeing Americans for what they really are.Those "yanks are a different race" alright.....they're naive bumpkins. They are unbelievable.
    1 point
  18. To be honest Shane i have no idea . I suspect that if it were anywhere it would be on old NZRB website if it still exists. Failing that you could approach RITA direct. Of greater relevance will be the balance sheet after 12 months which will include recent Governments contribution and Covid effects on gaming and wagering Greg
    1 point
  19. A quick look at Friday's action at Newmarket which features the Group 1 Falmouth Stakes over 1600m. Just seven run and TEREBELLUM remains a firm 11/8 favourite. On her Queen Anne run, she's going to take a lot of beating. MAGIC WAND backs up quickly after her fourth in last Sunday's Eclipse while NAZEEF won a Group 2 at Ascot and ONE MASTER is the Foret winner who was second in this last year. It's a decent heat but it's hard to look beyond TEREBELLUM. The Duchess of Cambridge is a Group 2 for the juvenile fillies over 1200m. DANDELLA was hugely impressive in the Albany at Ascot winning by six lengths but the ground was soft and she is by Dandy man whose progeny love some juice in the ground. The Newmarket ground is currently Good. TIME SCALE was a strong winner on the other Newmarket track at the end of June and is on the upgrade. The interesting runner for me is MORE BEAUTIFUL who won convincingly on debut at Naas over 1000m. For those who don't know the Irish track, it's a stiff uphill finish and I was surprised to see Aidan O'Brien run her in the Queen Mary in which she got predictably outpaced. This is much more suitable and I rate her a big chance to overturn the locals.
    1 point
  20. Before I dish up some nonsense on Friday's racing, I thought I'd remind you all of my thoughts on the Jockey Club from last week. OCEAN ATLANTIQUE is the mount of Pierre Charles Boudot and bolted up in a Listed race last time. This is a big jump in class but from the yard of master trainer Andre Fabre that's less of a concern. THE SUMMIT was second to VICTOR LUDORUM in the Poulains and is a huge each way price at 22/1. However, I think this race is heading across La Manche or the English Channel courtesy of MISHRIF who sidestepped Epsom for this and was an impressive winner of the Listed Newmarket Stakes over 2000m beating VOLKAN STAR who followed up last weekend. I've backed him at 10s against the locals. I mean, I give you the winner AND the second - what more can I do? Anyway, enjoy the race but I doubt you'll enjoy it as much as I did. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZKPlVoARc0 With Mrs Stodge's steak and champagne supper secure, I thought all that had to happen was for ALPINE STAR to follow up in the Diane. Well, as the saying goes "the best laid plans" - to be fair, I thought she got a decent ride from Pasquier but whether it was the trip or the ground she just ran out of steam in the final 100m and this enabled Irish 1000 Guineas runner up FANCY BLUE to nick the race on the stick. The Irish 1000 Guineas winner PEACEFUL was third and it confirms the widely-held view that, LOVE apart, the 3-y-o fillies are nothing special so far. I suspect ALPINE STAR will come back to 1600m next time and I wonder if they may be tempted to run her against the colts in the Sussex. FANCY BLUE was young Donnacha O'Brien's first classic winner as a trainer but we can be certain it won't be the last. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL9hXfvHTR0 Just a quick mention of Saturday's big races at Belmont. VEKOMA put up a gutsy performance to win the Metropolitan Handicap and could be a serious player in the Breeders Cup Dirt Mile. MCKINZIE was disappointing and while CODE OF HONOR, the 2019 Kentucky Derby runner up, travelled into the race well, he just couldn't quicken against these specialist milers. I think he'll go back up to 2000m. Finally, INSTILLED REGARD just prevailed in a thrilling finish to the Manhattan over 2000m on the turf. I suspect the placed horses may fancy their chances of reversing the places at the Arlington Million in Chicago.
    1 point
  21. I believe the other horse or it's pony stable mate from the different property was actually at the track? Is that true? How many other undetected sick horse's were sold by Waikato Stud and put on trucks over the last few months and dispersed all over NZ ? I feel sorry for the little stable that has incurred the massive vet bills...loss of income and the owners who's racehorses are back in lockdown again after Covid-19 through no fault of their own !
    1 point
  22. We're Doomed

    New season stakes

    Programmes out now for August and Sept and stakes expected to be similar to last year. Bit of a worry that a lot of SI meetings have only 7 races programmed. There are going to be a lot of horses eliminated. Personally I would rather have seen 65s running for $20,000 and open horses for $32,000 and use the extra money to programme some decent 10 race cards, and perhaps a few extra meetings.
    1 point
  23. Just too stupid for words really. As I may have mentioned previously SI racing is run by fools, and by people who have never set foot on some of the tracks.
    1 point
  24. Insider

    Trials

    a] When will we know where the trials will be hold in the North during September? b] Will trials still be held at Te Teko? c] Te Awamutu have trials scheduled for 25 August! d] What's the difference between the status of Te Teko and Te Awamutu? Official racing wont take place at either venue going forward, but trials are scheduled for one but not the other. What gives? I know where I would rather trial in August/September, and it certainly isn't Te Awamutu irrespective of the transport costs. Come in Bernard Saundry, the Trainers Association and the Owner Association. Clarity is needed given that I am paying $3000 + per month, not knowing what is happening.
    1 point
  25. Trying to reinvent the wheel trying to put a race meeting on at Ascot Park during winter , 90% of the horses i reckon will have to travel hours as you say , and why would you when you have Ricc and Timaru . Oamaru has been the go to track for winter racing in the lower South Island for years , for a reason , but no , their going to try and get a round peg into a square hole . This just sums up the whole illogical thought processes used by our esteemed leaders .
    1 point
  26. Dingle

    Winton Gallops

    Winton jockey club were forced to race at Ascot Park.. The ascot track is not up to racing at this time of year, in fact not at any particular time of year. Recent rain just proved that . Now they are forced to race at Gore. Nothing against Gore but they have just raced last weekend and have another meeting at the end of the month. Pushing too much racing on one track .. What was/is wrong with Winton running its own meeting at home on a suitable track? Winton would have the best draining soil in Southland. The track and facilities are in great order. I cant see why the powers that be cant get their heads out of the sand and admit they have got it wrong. The blind leading the blind
    1 point
  27. nomates

    RITA 6 Month Results

    There's no teeth left . Still waiting for someone , anyone , been asking this question for a while , to show exactly which tracks/clubs , and for how much each of these clubs has been "sucking the industry dry " . Just the names and figures will do . Don't need rhetoric . The 2 clubs i know of do it almost exclusively thru volunteer effort and grants , got nothing to do with NZTR/RITA . If they have ever got anything it certainly wasn't helping to suck the industry dry .
    1 point
  28. True , but keep in mind that depreciation is a book figure and not cash .Plus the NZRB/Rita was always charged to pay out to codes their surplus. Hence there was nothing for a rainy day or to spend up on the new Betting platform. Herein lay their problem ,accentuated by the new platforms teething issues. Plus JAllen had been hanging his hat on the imminent windfall.....Racefields legislation , Point of consumption Fee ,and abolition of Gambling Duty.Duty alone had been $13 mill in 2018. So they had been paying out more than they earned for a good few years , with these changes in mind ! Unfortunately they made little apparent effort to slash costs such as salaries.In fact they wanted a 'world class ' betting system with hundreds of thousands of betting options per day [especially in Sports] which in view of NZ's size seemed questionable. Plus they were trapped by the lack of a collaborative approach from the Codes as a whole thru Regional bias etc which has dogged the Industry for 50 years as all towns regions want their track in their town.....this has been sucking the Industry dry ,yet even after Co-vid and the basic Insolvency of the TAB folk are still wanting to retain these distant venues with little horse population that are costing both owners, the communities and the TAB a small fortune to service. No one wants to change !
    1 point
  29. NZ race club and head office administration has been stuck in " Amateur Hour " for so long now it's become embarrassing . You only have to look at the back flips being made by NZTR/RITA to see they are just clutching at straws as to what to do to make effective change for the better and the long term . It appears they don't really know what to do about making a better future for NZ racing so are falling back into default mode and continuing to do the same old , same old . It all just seams too hard for them to come up with a cohesive plan to move NZ racing forward and " Great Again " . I personally would be happy if they could just come up with something sustainable , so that i and many others i know could confidently re enter the world ownership .
    1 point
  30. At a time when the powers that be are trying to close down all of the small innovative clubs and pour all of the resources into a chosen few, the lack of leadership and imagination shown by the chosen few is very disappointing; but sadly not at all surprising. You do wonder after all the effort that has been put into eliminating so many smaller clubs whether rita and NZTR have given the bigger clubs the message that they really have to lift their game and they can't expect to just have everything handed to them on a plate. Can anyone name the last innovative race the CJC has initiated? What is Canterbury's equivalent of the Everest? As far as I can recall, the last four or five feature races the CJC has added to their schedule have all been inherited from other clubs.
    1 point
  31. By the way Tony , congrats on the stables form . Takes a big man to step back and let the daughter have a crack . I'm sure your still having a large input tho .
    1 point
  32. Mikie

    Today's meeting

    If the Organised Crime Unit had any spare microphones after Inca Knock Knock (10.30am-ish) Are you free Dean? Not really Phoebe, I have to go see Bernard, apart from those delicious sausage rolls he has Apple Turnovers today. Why, what do you want? (Phoebe) Those guys from HRNZ are here to see you, they have an appointment at 10.40am, I wrote it in your Diary Damn Phoebe, I haven't had time to look at today's Diary. Who is here? (Phoebe) There's a Ken, a Colin and a guy I've never heard of before, he's Peter or Paul (or Mary) or something (Dean) You mean Phil? The golfer? (Phoebe) Tautarangi? No Phoebe, aw hell, his last name escapes me. I'm sure it's Phil but I'll cover, I'll just call him buddy while he's here. But you'll need to cover for me, I'll slip out the back and see Bernard, tell them I'm on a conference call with Paddy Power and Winston and that I'll be free by 11am (Phoebe) No worries Dean ....... ..... ..... 11.30am (Dean) Come in, come in Ken, Colin and buddy, how are you. Sorry for the delay. Busy times, busy times. You know how it goes. Tell me, what can I do for you? (Ken) Well Dean, we're here about this Forbury lot. (Dean) I see, I see ......... Silence Embarrassing silence (Dean) Well, what about them? (Ken) Well, you know, we consulted them by ringing them twice and we told them they can't race any more and when the Dates came out RITA gave them another 10 race days. We look like eggs. Then to make it worse we gave every Club our submissions so they all knew we looked like eggs. Then we issued a Release saying we were caught by surprise by them getting dates which back-fired a bit, made us look like were eggs who didn't know what was happening. (Dean) Ah I see. I remember now. We didn't make you look like eggs on purpose guys. Bernard rang me on Thursday about Avondale and the Forbury dates were a consequence of that phone call (Ken) But we didn't know Dean, and now we've told everyone we didn't know, so now like I said, we look like eggs (Dean) Not on purpose Ken, not on purpose. Just horrible timing, Bernard called me on a Thursday and buddy wasn't due back at work until Wednesday so we were stuffed, couldn't give you any warning (Colin) Fair enough Dean, we understand. We have fixed this moving forward, if you want to get hold of Phil on a Friday or a Monday you can ring the Golf Club and leave a message, Phil has said he will be only too happy to call you back after his round ends (Dean) Well, that's decent of you buddy, that will make things easier moving forward. Anything else? (Ken) Well yes Dean, on the way in we saw Bernard and we had a chat about Code funding. He said he has done his best for us but the most he can let us have is 18.5% of what you've allocated. (Dean) Isn't that enough chaps? (Colin) Well Dean, it means we will have to run races for under $6000 quite a lot (Dean) Well, that doesn't sound too bad Colin, $6000 is a decent winning stake (Colin) No, no Dean. $6000 total stake (Dean) Buga, that sounds low, what should we do about it? ......... ........... ............. Embarrassing silence (pHIL) Eureka, I've got it guys. We will ask some Clubs to race without any funding which will leave more for other Clubs (Ken) Ummm, Phil, you thought of that a couple of weeks ago. The Clubs didn't think it would work. Remember? ...... ...... ....... (Phil) Eureka, I've got it. We will slash the number of races by 50%, that will meant the funding for the remaining 50% will double. Then the stakes will go up (Ken, Colin) Wow, no wonder you can do the CEO's job in 2/5th's of the time anyone else can Phil. You're a bloody genius (Dean) Okayyyyyyy
    1 point
  33. Stables

    Cole - Court case

    What nonsense. There is no movement or consideration for that to happen in either party.
    1 point
  34. Shad

    Winton Gallops

    I guess kumara were lucky to keep racing, dodgy track that has seen many abandonments since they fiddled with it, poor grandstand and facilities, and out in the middle of nowhere, defies logic, like many of their decisions.
    1 point
  35. nomates

    Winton Gallops

    Sorry mate but it is a likely scenario , if you watch NZRB and NZTR they do look very much like morris dancers , all going around in ever decreasing circles , in different directions and weaving and dodging , all the while skipping because they are happy because they think they are achieving something . Find something else to do would be my suggestion .
    1 point
  36. von Smallhaussen

    Winton Gallops

    Due to these poor ongoing administrative decisions I have abandoned racing and found a new pass time. I just hope racing keeps these administrators because I could commit harriecarrie if any of them turn up on the board of Morris Dancing NZ.
    1 point
  37. Huey

    Winton Gallops

    And therein lies the problem with the whole venue plan, the tracks that provide the best racing should be the ones that are left to race not the tracks with the best stands,non voluntary staff or next to a population base, Generating revenue for racing is as someone has already mentioned all about off course turnover TV/Internet media etc. worrying about oncourse patrons outside of 3-4 racing centres is just an utter waste of resources and time at this point in the decline as is described.
    1 point
  38. We're Doomed

    Winton Gallops

    From Bernie's email it appears that the major reason for favouring Invercargill over Winton is because Invercargill has a bigger population base, which is of course true. Winton however is miles closer to Invercargill than Trentham is to Wgtn. On that basis Trentham is probably lucky to survive. It would even be quicker to get from central Invercargill to Winton than it would be to get from central ChCh to Riccarton. Invercargill's population of 55,000 is not much bigger than Nelson's 52,000, so does that mean NZTR might be looking to re-establish racing in Nelson sometime soon? Surely the sensible option would be to sell off Ascot Park, since it is in a bigger population area, and therefore there is demand for land, and establish a centrally located racecourse with good facilities at Winton? This appears to be a no-brainer. I am amazed it wasn't considered by the various high-powered reviews that have been undertaken.
    1 point
  39. Dingle

    Winton Gallops

    Here is in part Mr Saundry;s reply to an email I sent him. "Thank you for your email and apologies for the slight delay in replying. I appreciate and acknowledge your strong desire for racing to continue at Winton. However, NZTR's decision that Winton not race at its racecourse from the 2019/20 season onwards is final. We have been in communication with Howard Clarke recently regarding our decision and the principal reasons behind it. I note your comments regarding the track at Ascot Park. We have been in communication with Southland RC regarding the remediation work it is planning to undertake on its course proper to improve the performance of its track. We need Ascot Park to provide the best racing surface, and racing, that it can in view of Invercargill’s population base. We are therefore working closely with the Club on its plans for improving its track. We have also raised with Southland RC the possibility of a date swap with Winton to enable Winton to make the best, in the long term, of its new role as a tenant club. I can assure you that Winton is not being “picked on” and that in our view there are very good grounds for the decision we have made regarding its track. Our main focus in developing the draft NZTR Venue Plan was on identifying the venues that, in our view, would best help us deliver on our vision for the future of thoroughbred racing, which includes developing, on a regional basis, an optimal network of fit-for-purpose racing venues. As I said at our meeting with the Club in June, we are, as an industry, managing decline. Unless we make significant changes, that decline will continue and we will not have the future we all want for the industry. As hard as it might be, this means some clubs will need to race at new venues if they want to continue racing. A key factor in this regard is the need to drive greater wagering on our racing, both domestically and internationally, as (like it or not) wagering drives the industry and provides us with stakes money and the funds required to upgrade tracks and supporting infrastructure. We need punters (both domestic and international) to bet more on NZ racing in order to generate the returns that our owners and other industry participants need in order to remain in the industry. The clear evidence is that punters want consistency of tracks and racing in order to bet more. Accordingly, we need to ensure that we are putting on the best racing we can, and that we race more often at venues that punters know and understand, in order to attract greater wagering on our racing. Another key consideration for us in developing the draft NZTR Venue Plan was the limited amount of funds available to the industry for upgrading venues to meet increasing Health & Safety requirements (including animal welfare) and providing venues of the quality generally expected by industry participants, including owners. For example, all venues will need to install plastic running rails. For a venue like Winton, the cost of installing a plastic running is likely to be in the vicinity of $60,000 at least. From an industry perspective, there is little economic sense in meeting the cost of installing plastic running rails at all of our current venues. Clubs across the country have not had funding increases from NZTR for a number of years and many of them are struggling to carry out necessary maintenance work on their tracks and supporting infrastructure, let alone carry out improvements or redevelopments. As a result, we will need to spread the funds available to the industry for upgrading venues over a smaller number of venues in order to achieve the necessary improvements. In the case of Winton, there are a number of venues within reasonably close proximity of each other, with Wyndham already having made the decision voluntarily to race at Gore. Given horse and population numbers, we are of the view that we cannot support racing at all of those venues in the future, bearing in mind the cost required to upgrade them all. Unfortunately from Winton’s perspective, we came to the view that, in all the circumstances, we could no longer support it racing at Winton. We acknowledge that there will not necessarily be an automatic and identifiable amount saved for the industry as a result of this decision. However, it will mean that funds that would otherwise have had to spent at Winton on upgrading facilities can be spent on another venue that has more racing. Overall, the more we can centralise while still ensuring (to the extent we can) that New Zealanders still have reasonable access to racing, the better off the industry will be financially and the more money there will be for owners and other participants. I note your comments about the loss of sponsors and committee members if Winton does not race at its home track but there a number of examples of clubs who have benefitted greatly from centralisation, and have retained sponsors and community support despite racing at another venue." Up grading Ascot is a complete waste of industry funds and their own funds for that matter. They have already sold off, for retirement village, a huge parcel of land. The rest of the place should be sold as well.. There is a golf course closed down near the beach. What a wonderful place to build a track. Ruakaka of the south. There is an equestrian facility also down that way and the more it rains the better it seems to be. A natural all weather surface. Probably too late to purchase it now. Bugger
    1 point
  40. nomates

    Winton Gallops

    Suits making decisions without consultation with the people at the coal face , they made the decision to close these tracks with no local consultation and they'll be damned if they're going to consult now with the people who really understand local conditions and surfaces . They don't get that most tracks any where aren't in great repair now and aren't going to handle the extra meetings that they are asking them to take on and when one of these tracks fall over from overuse they will move meetings to some other tracks till they are all knackered , then what ?
    1 point
  41. We're Doomed

    Winton Gallops

    I am quite sure the powers that be know virtually nothing about SI racing and even less about Southland racing. I would love to see Southland racing properly integrated into the SI pattern of racing. At this time of the year all roads should be leading to Cup Week at Riccarton and Southland owners and trainers should be aspiring to get horses ready for that week. Sadly there is no 3yo racing in Southland at this time of the year so we never get Southland horses stringing together 2 or 3 wins, albeit in lesser company, and suddenly starting to think about the Guineas races. And Southland stayers never get wound up in time to consider the NZ Cup. Spring racing in Southland should be held on the best tracks rather than the Invercargill bog. And don't get me started on the dearth of 2yo racing in Southland: one for the year at Riverton in April from memory; hardly conducive to the modern pattern of racing.
    1 point
  42. tripple alliance

    Winton Gallops

    Winton's a great track and the grounds , facility's are nice on the eye , the only possible logic behind this forced move is race dates are going to be slashed , nothing else makes any sense , if that's the plan then Gore (which is on the list) might cope . Down here Winston received strong support , that's all gone and so is he , with his departure many of the proposed track closures will only happen if clubs agree to move .
    1 point
  43. Dingle

    Winton Gallops

    Yes I believe it is the first forced to change race meeting. It would have been embarrassing for nztr , but should have been the correct decision to race at Winton. Certainly wouldnt have embarrassed Winton. Gore was/has a reprieve I believe for a couple years at least. The one thing Winton has over Gore is the amount of starting distances.. Invercargill people have no interest in going to the races at their home track unless it is the Xmas booze up. Otherwise I doubt they even know that races are on. At the last Wairio meeting at Ascot I saw one person in the stand and that happened to be my nephew who only came to see my horse.
    1 point