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Geez it's expensive to drink at the races if that is the discounted price, no wonder people stay at home.

It's a dangerous occupation all right. Such injuries end careers but Lance O'Sullivan came back from horrendous compound fracture injuries which most would have thought would be impossible to come back from and so hopefully we haven't seen the last of Mickey either. He's a tough and resilient bloke and very talented horsemen and I wish him all the best for a full recovery, even in the knowledge that it's a long road back. Patience is also a form of action Mickey.

My thoughts after seeing the head on was that there had to be a change to placings. Have a look at the race film of the race on NZTR from 2.20- 2.44 section. The Villain came out four times onto Bonjour in the run home. The bump at the 100m mark (start of the red rail) was a decent one with the rider of Bonjour having to stop riding out his horse and remember the margin was only a nose.

Fyi, from the Te Rapa Racing page(bars course-wide): PREFERMENT PAYS THIS SATURDAY Between 11.00am and 1.00pm the fabulous team at Brighthill Farm will be subsidising your drinks in our on course "Preferment Pays" promotion. All house wines and beers will be $5. The four time Group 1 winning son of Zabeel stands at the Waikato operation for a service fee of $9,500 + GST His on track performances saw him beat the best stayers in Australia and also a selection of the best from Europe, who competed in Australia. His maiden victory came in the Group 1 VRC Derby and he went on to add the prestigious Group 1 Turnbull stakes, Group 1 Australian Cup and the Grp 1 BMW to his CV for trainer Chris Waller Racing Find out more https://www.brighthillfarm.co.nz/stallions/preferment/overview/ #TeRapaRacing #PrefermentPays #TeRapaPartner

Coming up to date, as referenced above, VOLKAN STAR picked up a Group 3 at Longchamp yesterday afternoon but the British also triumphed in the Group 2 Maurice de Nieuil with old RED VERDON coming back to form and beating the French stayer CALLED TO THE BAR. RED VERDON has been down the field in the last two Caulfield Cups but he can still deliver on his day. Just to note the Malleret for the 3-y-o fillies over 2400m went to VAUCELLES who was fourth in the Saint-Alary but appreciated the step up in trip and could well go for the Vermeille in the autumn. LOVE will swerve this coming weekend's Irish Oaks and will wait for next month's Yorkshire Oaks. In other news, Goodwood are hoping to be able to have a crowd of 5,000 for the big meeting in a fortnight. They can do this because one enclosure, the Richmond, at the big meeting is reserved for Annual Members. Extend that to the Lennox Enclosure and you can probably take 5,000, none of whom would need tickets as they all have badges. Back with them would come the on-course bookmakers who have really suffered through all this. Goodwood's plans are dependent on Government approval but I know York and other tracks are looking on keenly to see if they can get the Members back if not the hoi-polloi. A quiet Saturday in Britain but The Curragh stages the first day of the two-day Oaks meeting. The feature race has 12 entries, six of which are trained by Aidan O'Brien. English Oaks runner up ENNISTYMON looks interesting but so too does Diane winner FANCY BLUE and her conqueror in the Irish 1000 Guineas, PEACEFUL. CAYENNE PEPPER chased home MAGICAL in the Pretty Polly but she'll do well to break the Ballydoyle stranglehold on this race. The supporting Group 2 races are the Railway for the juveniles over 1200m and the MInstrel for the older horses over 1400m. Sunday sees two more Group 2 events at The Curragh, the Kilboy Estate over 1600m and the Sapphire over 1000m. Meanwhile at Chantilly, we have the Group 1 Ispahan over 1800m and the Group 2 Papin for the juveniles over 1100m. Shock Coventry winner NANDO PERRADO and Norfolk winner THE LIR JET have both been declared. I'll pick these races up more later in the week.

Wrapping up last weekend's action up here, starting with the final day of the July Meeting at Newmarket and the feature race, the July Cup, over 1200m. Billed as a clash between the two big Ascot winners, GOLDEN HORDE representing the 3-y-o and HELLO YOUMZAIN representing the older horses, it turned out neither had any answer to OXTED who exploded onto the Group 1 sprinting scene with a clear-cut success. It's probably fair to say Roger Teal isn't one of the better known Newmarket handlers but this shows he can do the job with the right horse. The jockey, Cieren Fallon, is the son of the former champion Kieren Fallon, one of the top riders of the late 90s and early 00s winning the jockeys title six times. When I was a regular racegoer in the late 90s you could almost punt Fallon blind as every horse got a ride and you always felt you had a run for your money, win or lose. As is well known, Fallon Senior was not without his demons and it's to be hoped the son enjoys a smoother journey as he's clearly not short of talent. SCEPTICAL and GOLDEN HORDE fought out the minor money suggesting there 's very little between the 3-y-o and the older horses at this time. KHAADEM was a decent fourth and HELLO YOUMZAIN, for whom I suspect the ground had dried too much, was fifth. BRANDO ran an extraordinary race finishing sixth having lost lengths at the start - he was beaten just over four lengths and if you watch the race judge how close he would have been on level terms. OXTED had been targeted for this race after winning the Abernant but it still looked a big task moving from Group 3 to Group 1. I suspect swerving Ascot and the Diamond Jubilee was a very smart move - we've seen one or two not follow up from Ascot and I suspect, having had a quick prep before the Royal meeting, exertions in Berkshire took a heavier toll than seemed the case at the time. I imagine OXTED will head for Haydock while SCEPTICAL, for me, doesn't quite see out 1200m in this company. A stiff 1000m might suit better. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsB3E6XFqG8 The supporting Group 2 Superlative went to MASTER OF THE SEAS who did this very well beating a field of winners. He picked up some fancy quotes for next year's Guineas and the breeding suggests 2000m would be his optimum. SEVENTH KINGDOM is the one for me for the longer term. He couldn't go with them early on but ran on to finish third and he's the first horse I've seen this season who looks a Derby prospect for 2021. HUDSON RIVER was very disappointing and on early evidence the Ballydoyle juveniles have yet to really prove they are the equivalent of the English 2-y-o at this time. At Ascot, the Group 2 Summer Mile saw an impressive performance by MOHAATHER who thrashed these by nearly four lengths. Let's be honest - it all went wrong in the Queen Anne and it turned out the horse had a lovely pipe-opener in a Group 1. The benefit of that was obvious and the talk post-race was of the Sussex Stakes in a fortnight - that's lining up to be a huge race. Sunday saw a decent card at Deauville headed by the Jean Prat over 1400m. PINATUBO won this as he as entitled to having settled much better than at Ascot and Newmarket. This is his trip rather than the mile and he was too good for LOPE Y FERNANDEZ. The Fabre horses, ALSON and TROPBEAU, were very poor while the Jersey winner MOLATHAM ran a fair race in fifth. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOtEa_5abOk PINATUBO is 5/1 for the Sussex and this could be the race of the season so far: Current betting has Irish 2000 Guineas winner SISKIN at 6/4, MOHAATHER at 5/2, St James's Palace winner PALACE PIER at 5/2 and Queen Anne winner CIRCUS MAXIMUS at 7/2. 2000 Guineas winner KAMEKO is 7/1 with Falmouth winner NAZEEF also at 7s.

Counties just as bad today , i'd say Awapuni Saturday will be pretty much the same , but that's ok let's just keep running on these same few tracks every couple of weeks , form will come thru eventually .

Dont know about you but never looked like Bonjour was going to get there, sets a precedent for further contention during winter slogfest finishes

Yes, impressive winner at Newmarket the time before last. He beat THUNDEROUS who followed up in the Dante at York last week. The defeat by MISHRIF also now looks decent form. I've not seen the Lys but the step up to 2400m was bound to suit. As for future targets, he could run in the Voltigeur at York and the Irish Leger is open to geldings. Could he be a Cup horse as a 4-y-o? We'll see but he's an interesting prospect.

I told you to go back to your sandpit, ergo don’t tell me that I can’t respond to someone telling me to fuckoff If that’s patronising and you are upset that’s just tough. It was my polite way of telling you to xxx xxx I can’t see where any of my posts on this thread were caustic, it’s common knowledge that the Dick head thinks he was the greatest employee in the history of harness racing and that he’s got a grudge as previously posted by me As for you, why don’t you try actually answering queries that are directed at you following statements you make? You always dodge the questions or throw another comment in Mikie

Mike, your comments can be rather caustic at times and they evoke angry responses. I object to being told to go back to the sandpit, how patronising is that. It's you two boys throwing mud in each others face unnecesarily thats bringing the tone of the conversation down several notches. I'm sure you've heard much worse language in your time Mike

Yes Nomates I couldn't agree more to your statements

ha they need a false rail on the outside fence

When you live in fairyland long enough you begin to believe you actually are living in the real world and lose perspective . Clients are still being lost because of the loss of radio coverage . Unsustainable .

I posted this yesterday . This all could have been managed a lot more professionally and still can . I favour all raceday venue tracks being given a set of KPI's that they must maintain to remain a viable . No if's or but's , no maybe's , you fail to fulfill the brief your gone . Obviously some of the KPI's would be the obvious such as track standard , turnovers and facilities . What all the KPI's would be is for others to decide , but , they must cover all tracks , no discrimination . My only worry there is , having seen the state of some tracks of our bigger clubs since resumption , would they be up to standard . I'm sure others have ideas that could solve these issues , but simply putting a gun to a clubs head isn't the solve . If these clubs are choosing to operate this way it is not good . But as i keep saying the amount that these clubs may have been accessing through the amenities fund were never enough to " suck the industry dry " as is continually dished up for racings current shite financial position . Our current shite financial position is due in a large extent to many very poor thought out strategic projects and business decisions , made by people whose grandiose ideas were massively above their ability to deliver .

Doesn't matter what they do to the site now they will never regain the number of customers they had prior to its start. Once a Company loses customers because of a lack of confidence in their service and products they offer its the beginning of the end. Designed by clueless people unable to comprehend what was and is required by customers so unfortunately it was doomed from the start. Remember it was touted to pay for itself in three years, the first 6 months of this season shows how much of a fantasy that call was. I suppose when you live in Fairyland you will believe in fantasy's.

Aw shucks I have tried to be more amenable but when you're told to fark off by a chicken shit you get a tad angry Mikie

circle of death still exists....but a slightly faster death now.

This is classed as a Covid death Drip Drip Drip out comes the truth Fake

That and the price of even basic food is a large turn off for a large number of people who would like to attend .

Good stuff. Enjoy.

That would be 100% wrong i know the history I know what “you” did and what “they” did You have some sort of grudge with NZMTC and with HRNZ past CEO Telling someone to fuck off as you hide behind your keyboard is so brave of you I’d bet $100 you’re too gutless to front up without your screen in front of you I don’t hide like you Mike 2 Nottinghill Drive Blenheim Mikie

They wouldn't know the meaning of customer service. I don't struggle its the fact before it was one click to get to info now its more which wouldn't be a problem if it was so damm slow. Like many I gave up on the NZ TAB use TopSport in Aussie clean, easy to use site unlike the $50 million clunk of crap.

No problem with country tracks other than the cost of their upkeep and the cost of getting to them

The only way that site will ever improve is with a change of management.The biggest financial disaster in the NZ TAB's existence and it has had plenty in both human and software form.

Woodhouse demoted and Shane Reti promoted to the Health portfolio. Good for Northland. And she has only just got started.....

Mike, grandeur is not a problem of mine, you are the one who has been recently resurrected

You would need to ask Glenda and the previous board Greg

Sadly the way the industry here implements website/software devpt is to try and do our own bespoke thing - which has proven to be a dog and very expensive time after time. Why would you grab something that is proven and works overseas in much larger markets ??????

'What he did for me was miles bigger than anything I was capable of dreaming of' Owner Stuart Graham pays tribute to his horse of a lifetime Intisaab Intisaab with Stuart Graham (second right) after success in the Tote Scurry Handicap at the Curragh in 2018 Patrick McCann 1 of 1 By Stuart RileyUPDATED 5:34PM, JUN 29 2020 To most the news of Intisaab's retirement will result in little more than a nostalgic shrug, another high-class sprint handicapper you have almost certainly backed at some point in his 70-race career who will never go backed again. But Stuart Graham is not most people. He is Intisaab's owner, and the news his admirable nine-year-old had picked up a sesamoid injury that has put an end to his racing career had him in tears. It is not just that Intisaab is the first horse Graham ever owned, or that he was very good – an 11-time winner who reached a rating of 109 at his peak – but because Intisaab has taken him places beyond his wildest dreams. Graham lives in Immingham, a small industrial town in north-east Lincolnshire, in a house whose value would have to be multiplied several times to match the £433,073 Intisaab has amassed in win and place prize-money. A chance job on an oil rig off the Shetlands, on what he describes as "daft money", meant the mechanical fitter could afford to take a chance on the 18,000gns purchase. Intisaab (leading); won 11 races and £433,073 in prize-money Martin Lynch Graham got him from the horses-in-training sale at the end of his three-year-old season from Shadwell and Dermot Weld and knew anything more than one losing season would mean he had to sell. Six years later the pair are still together. "I've not been able to tell anyone yet, I just don't know how to – I've been quite upset," he explains. "You're upset he's injured as you care about him as an individual, but it's also the memories and the good times that you think you're never going to have again. "I thought I'd have him for a year. You don't expect to make money, and in the first year he ran six times and won twice. I was in the Shetlands for his first win, but for the second I was going to Doncaster for a mate's 40th and I said to Dave [O'Meara, trainer], 'Can we run him?' "There was a lady riders' race and there was a lass in the yard called Becky Heptonstall who claimed 7lb off him. I'm not even sure if she'd ever ridden a winner, but they went and won. That was an amazing day. Then he picked up an injury and I thought that might be it. "His first two runs back were poor and I said to Dave, 'If this is going to be it can we just have a proper day out with him?' So we went all the way down to Ascot and we were in the last race of the day. They fed us and it was just an incredible day – and then he came second. "They took us for champagne and we didn't come out for two and a half hours, they said they get given x amount of bottles per meeting and most of the owners hadn't come in that day so we could have as much as we liked. It was unreal. I have a 60-inch canvas on my wall of that day alone, we thought it'd be the pinnacle of our lives at that stage." It wasn't. Intisaab was rated 78 that day. Two wins at Ayr and a Coral Sprint Trophy later he ended the year rated 105. Stuart Graham: Immingham home is a shrine to his beloved Intisaab "That was a funny day," Graham, 45, says of his win at York. "I did a survival-of-the-fittest race in Nottingham with my lad, who was 17 at the time, they'd had us swimming about in the River Trent, and then we jumped straight in the car up to York. We changed in the car park, my 15-year-old Lexus next to all those posh cars, as the two of us tried to look presentable. "At the owners' enclosure they took one look at us, still sweaty and dirty, and they weren't going to let us in until we showed them our badges. Half an hour later he'd won and everyone was taking our photo. It was surreal, we carried on all day." Graham, whose living room is a shrine to the horse, could entertain you with stories of the places Intisaab has got him into for hours, whether it is the Aga Khan's box at the Curragh or business class flights to Qatar, but his favourite memory of all was when he finished one place outside the money in the July Cup Harry Angel won from Limato, Brando and Caravaggio. "The memory that will stick with me forever was the July Cup, and he didn't even win any prize-money," he says. "That's not a place your average youth-turned-knobhead from Immingham should be frequenting, let alone stood in the parade ring before one of the biggest races of the year. "I've never seen so many people. To see his board in the Champions Series presentation, to this day the experience is one of the greatest days of my life. At the furlong point I dared to dream he could do it, which is insane. "He was beaten only four lengths by Harry Angel, giving him 6lb. I look back at that piece of form and think it's unreal. It was an unbelievable day to be involved with, we went out in Newmarket afterwards and had an absolute ball – we celebrated like we'd won, I didn't even get to bed that night." Part of the reason Graham loves Intisaab so much is how he has broadened his horizons and taught him to dream bigger. "People say you've lived the dream but I've done so much more than that. The dream, the ultimate hope and the reason I went for a six-furlong horse was to have a runner in the Great St Wilfrid," he says. "What he did for me was miles bigger than anything I was capable of dreaming of. I would never even consider those things were possible. I just want to thank Dave and Jason [Kelly, O'Meara's assistant] for being bloody brilliant at picking horses – they deserve so much credit." Intisaab was second in a Great St Wilfrid, and the man who still has the Union Jack rug he wore when winning in Qatar framed on the wall's only comment is "he didn't half finish quickly that day", is testament to how Intisaab shattered the ceiling of his expectations. Intisaab (cheekpieces, right) finishes second in the 2016 Great St Wilfrid Handicap, fulfilling Graham's dream to have a runner in the race The Intisaab chapter may be closed – he will spend his retirement with Danielle, who has looked after him for the last four years, with regular visits from Graham – but he was such a money-spinner for Graham he also covered the cost of the attempt at a sequel. How long that runs is down to Maharg's Princess. "There's not a huge amount left as there have been five years of training fees and I've bought another horse with those proceeds, but I've never had to dip into my pocket – which is just as well because I couldn't afford to do that," he says. "He's funded himself and it's been so much fun, so this week has been heartbreaking. "It would be a shame to never be involved again but Intisaab has been retired and the filly we bought, who turned out to be Night Of Thunder's very first foal on the ground, ran a great race on debut. We expected a huge amount at Thirsk but she's picked up an injury too, it's just a little niggle but it will set her back a month or so – we hope she'll be out at the backend of the year." To see Intisaab's retirement from Graham's perspective makes the tears all the more understandable. This was not just an owner's horse of a lifetime, but a horse who for six years changed his owner's life.

Not too sure about "almost all posters welcomed Messara". When I read his proposal to close Timaru and keep Waikouaiti I figured that if he got that bit so wrong then the rest of the report wouldn't be worth reading. The rest of the report might have been brilliant, but I wouldn't know. It might have been like a student sitting an exam who gets all the easy questions wrong but somehow does brilliantly with the hard questions....

And still you don't answer my question Stables And you are wrong, WE don't have all WE asked for You are not ALL despite your feelings of grandeur Mikie

Don't panic I'm here and no doubt rdtdy will be a very happy chappy as well . comrade cindy got just 36.89% of the vote and was appointed the Nat's will fly that number then add in Act , game on

Same Murray Blue who blackballed prospective members, with a differing opinion to his, at the turn of the century. His vision for the club back then perhaps didn't pan out as well as he'd hoped?

It’s “All about the money and always has been the case”. The problem has been the “waste and mismanagement”.

I think they have an answer Leggy, but it just doesn't suit them Reading your posts gives me some hope for this site, but not a lot Mikie

Despite the advice that I always hand out of never engaging with an idiot I will reply to you Tasman Man No aggression at all, just a question which you answered in a roundabout way That reminds me, you promised to answer me as to why you would carry on business in a rented factory as opposed to one you owned, I'm still waiting. Be 2 months now, are you having troubles? I take exception to the '30 year' comment but then realise that you have no real idea, you just pulled a time frame out of the blue The train wreck that you believe I had an influence on? What influence do you believe I had? If you mean my family I would point out that they served on the NZRA, not the NZRIB, and things were not going downhill then but I doubt you would know that Who said I I long for the good old days? Where did I say I was resistant to change? Who said I couldn't see the train wreck? I thought most of my posts certainly make it obvious that I can see the train wreck I am all for change if it betters the industry, but as yet I haven't seen much action other than cost cutting from RITA that would better the industry. Perhaps you could enlighten me? Do you believe that running 75 meetings at Addington, on Friday/Sundays will result in a wave of new interest? Again, if you are referring to Marlborough, it is not my Club but if you think it is doomed then there can't be much hope for Nelson paying a huge rent, or a 'licence to occupy' as silly old Peter Malone called it can there? You asked what am I doing? Not a hell of a lot really as I have lost interest, plus I have to raise 2 teenagers and provide for 2 others, and in any case trying to fix the train wreck now is a little bit like applying to be Wilder's trainer before his second fight with Fury and missing out, then being asked to step in after 6 rounds of being knocked about and trying to resurrect the situation. Dean's finding that out I'd say Where have I ever encouraged any Club to take legal action? You are making things up as you go along I asked Stables and I will ask you, if Stratford paid for their own land pre-TAB days, and haven't received more than they generated from betting, then what right does Racing have to their assets moreso than the local Community? Try to stick to the point this time instead of making up false allegations as to my beliefs Mikie

This situation highlights the shitfest that the governing bodies of NZ racing have set in motion . From the first mention of track closures , thru to the Messara report , the underlying theme has been about reducing track numbers as we were seen as having too many , and i agree , but somewhere along the line someone upon high get the idea that these facilities actually belong to the industry as a whole . The idea being that the sale of said tracks would give a small pot of gold to the industry . But i keep asking why does the industry need this pot of gold , simply put , Serious Mismanagement . This pot of gold would fill the glaring hole in the industry funds that has pissed against the wall with as series of ill thought out and poorly managed ideas . The industry bodies have propagated the myth that the cost of maintaining all the tracks we have was a drain on the industry or put another way " sucking the industry dry " . I have yet to get a succinct and clear answer to the one question i and many others keep asking of the those that believe that the industry is being sucked dry , SHOW ME THE FIGURES ? . Even NZTR can produce any numbers to back their claim . They have now withdrawn dates to some clubs under the rouse of them being too expensive for owners to travel their horses to , yet we still have Ruakaka and Riverton with dates , go figure . We now have an industry that is at odds with itself , clubs having dates withdrawn for daring to stand their ground , others threatening legal action . Avondale back racing with 5 dates for next season by agreeing to a consultation process , but does anyone really believe they are going to relinquish their track and funds . My point is that this has all been poorly handled from racings management , they have for many years now treated lesser clubs with contempt , taking previously prime date and highly successful racedays , Stratford's New Years eve meeting was always a successful day for racing as a whole as well as the local community . Why would these lesser clubs ever feel like they belonged to one big happy industry , yet are now are be told for the betterment of their industry they should relinquish their assets . This all could have been managed a lot more professionally and still can . I favour all raceday venue tracks being given a set of KPI's that they must maintain to remain a viable . No if's or but's , no maybe's , you fail to fulfill the brief your gone . Obviously some of the KPI's would be the obvious such as track standard , turnovers and facilities . What all the KPI's would be is for others to decide , but , they must cover all tracks , no discrimination . My only worry there is , having seen the state of some tracks of our bigger clubs since resumption , would they be up to standard . I'm sure others have ideas that could solve these issues , but simply putting a gun to a clubs head isn't the solve . They say " for the betterment of the whole industry ", then the whole industry needs to be part of the solution and work together to find a solution . Not just bully , these clubs have a history that is part of our racing fabric and they should treated with such disdain . If MR B SAUNDRY isn't telling pork pies and that this is not about the "money " , then this should be easier to solve than the industry turning on each other .

Enlighten me Stables If Stratfordonians (if that's a word) or Stratfordites paid for their Track 128 years ago with their own money, and they have survived without handouts from NZTR since then why should they be sold up to prop up bigger Clubs who have traditionally been "paid" more than they "generated" anyway? Are you a Communist? Mikie

The TAB is slowly succeeding in turning me off gambling..... website debacle, machines on course and at pubs not being fit for purpose, no newspaper coverage, fiasco of form guides being published etc. But the absence of trackside radio has become an annoyance. A few times in the last week I have gone to listen to a race while out and about in the car etc and then remembered. I do miss the Saturday morning 8am show which set up the thinking for the day (the TV offering is 24 hours old, pre scratchings and with variable track conditions often a joke ... as are the selections). Oncourse at Riccarton Saturday I spoke to several people who felt the same way. It just feels like they would prefer to shut up shop ........ (and please no responses saying I am old fashioned etc etc etc - I do 90% of my punting on the phone or computer, and it used to be at a significant level - yes I can source info online etc )

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 !