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Soft target, not likely to appeal ... yada yada

Simple....the Te Akau factor.....

gee I'm surprised it took to page 2 before our resident conspiracy theorist gave us his views......

Zabeel Classic, Eight Carat Classic, Eulogy Stakes, Soliloquy Stakes, Gold Trail Stakes, Foxbridge Plate, Mufhasa Stakes, Lowland Stakes, Sir Tristram Fillies Classic, Mr Tiz Trophy, Desert Gold Stakes just off the top of my head and these are just black type races

The govt is totally gun-shy now after getting some flak about moving quickly back to level 1 last time. They were at fault for not checking on the 10 or so contacts who didn't respond to calls, but at the end of the day it came down to one thicko who didn't obey the rules. So this time there is no way they will move back a level earlier than seven days. Although there is no reason for the rest of the country to stay at level two for seven days. There is probably no reason why the Derby can't be scheduled for next Sunday with the venue to be confirmed; either Ellerslie or Te Aroha. Tricky for catering I know, but at level 2 not much catering would be needed anyhow. Given results over the next few days you would think an announcement should be forthcoming by Thur at the latest; although to be honest this Govt is more about their PR image than anything else.

Just announced: New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) and the Auckland Racing Club (ARC) held discussions this morning regarding the impact of last night's announcement that Auckland was moving back into Covid Alert Level 3 for seven days. Of primary concern to the racing industry is the Group One Vodafone New Zealand Derby, which was due to be run at Ellerslie on Saturday, 6 March. Under the current status with Auckland at Alert Level 3 and the remainder of the country at Alert Level 2 the meeting is unable to be held at Ellerslie on that day. NZTR and the ARC's preferred solution is to move the Vodafone New Zealand Derby meeting to Sunday, 7 March in the hope that Auckland would move back to Alert Level 2 at the end of the seven-day period announced by the government. "While this is the 'best case' scenario, it is by no means a certainty," NZTR CEO Bernard Saundry said. "We are continuing to work through different options should indications be that Auckland will not come out of Alert Level 3 at that time. Our focus, and that of the ARC, is to ensure that the country's blue riband event for our three-year-olds goes ahead. Two World Wars failed to see the New Zealand Derby stopped and we are determined that covid won't either." "There are a couple of options we are considering in conjunction with our stakeholders and we are all focused on making the best of the cards we have been dealt,” he said. ARC CEO Paul Wilcox agreed that the focus must be on making any change work for stakeholders. “Our priority is to ensure horses and trainers do not have their planned programmes unduly impacted. In what is a tricky situation running the Derby on Sunday is the best course of action, we have plans in place should that not eventuate but we are hoping we do not need to activate these,” he said. With the ARC unable to race on Saturday 6 March the meeting scheduled for Awapuni on Friday, 5 March will move to the following day to provide two race meetings on Saturday. NZTR is also continuing to work with Hawke’s Bay Racing Incorporated (3 March) and Otago RC (6 March) to determine they have protocols in place for racing under Alert Level 2 ENDS

10 Meetings in 35 days ( 6 Feb - 13 March) at a time of the year of least horses in training many mid week Meetings deleted in Sept - Nov ( threads written about this) at a time when highest number of horses in training......and majority of novice horses beginning their careers stayed in their boxes and couldn't get a run Clearly a kneejerk at the time from NZTR dancing to McKenzie's tune....laughable

Noel Eales Memorial

Are you saying all races WFA , even midweek plodders ? , that would destroy betting and send the vast majority of horses to the big retirement paddock . There has to be some banding system and rating system for the majority of racing .

The Forbury Park Trotting Club was only awarded the Interdominions after Auckland, whose turn it was to stage the series, turned the opportunity down in 1963. That left the club 16 months to prepare to host Australasia's premier harness racing contest. The racecourse's existing facilities were deemed insufficient and so a new stand - considered at the time as the most up to date in New Zealand - was constructed at a cost of £106,000 (the average wage at the time was under £50 a week). The Forbury Park Interdominions marked the first time the series had been held under lights in New Zealand and the first time the races were broadcast live (on radio) since the club had changed to night trotting in 1961. The series lived up to expectations in many ways, with 15,760 people attending the final night on March 3 ( a Wednesday!) and 52,354 attending the four nights in total. The £147,901 on-course betting total on final night was a record for Otago and Southland, while the off-course figure of £182,362 was the largest bet on a night trotting meeting to that point. The ODT of March 4 recorded that over the series the racegoers consumed 45,000 cups of tea, 50,000 pies, 2000 gallons of beer and chips equivalent to 100 sacks of potatoes. The racing itself had a sensational climax when the pacing final ended in a dead-heat between Jay Ar and classy mare Robin Dundee, but only after Jay Ar was originally decorated as the outright winner and was parading with the victory sash while Robin Dundee was taken to the stabling area. Robin Dundee's driver, Doody Townley, who had kept insisting the presentation was premature, had told Jay Ar's trainer-driver, George Noble as the horses eased down: "I think I got you, George" to which Noble had replied: "Yes, I think you did." In the trotting final, champion South Australian mare Gramel, who had won her three heats from the back mark of 36yd, was upset by Southland mare Poupette.

A couple of people on here often criticize me for being overly critical of NZTR, but I see no reason why gross incompetence shouldn't be pointed out. Lets hope this new management, "the best we have ever had", clean up some of the incompetents who are making so many bad decisons.

Too high risk to take the punt on the Sunday I recon, could all look good all week then a couple of positive cases Friday or Saturday and they will stay at level 3 at best I would think. Race behind closed doors at another track the safest option....

Congrats to Peter and, as always, appreciation to Ponderosa and Scooby. It beats me how slow some (most?) folk are to give thanks to folk who are doing you a service (especially if that is voluntary) . I went to Otaki, Scooby, and picked the longshot quinela in the Weight For Age race. 'Highlight' of the day, mind, was having to drve back into Wellington wirth a bubbling partner who wouldn't shut up about the fact that little ol' her had put $7 on a horse called Lunar Fox on the spurious grounds that 'the Guineas field didn't look up to much'. Sometimes, I swear, there just isn't enough vomit in the world...

Yes, probably Ruakaka would be good. Sea breezes to keep away any greeblies and well away from Tamaki McCovid ( for the PC brigade).

Heres the stupidity of this.. Younger relatives flew out of Auckland airport yesterday morning. They will be staying in hotels and huts on walking tracks. They could be "super spreaders." Yet Auckland the economic hub of NZ gets shut down. another billion down the drain for the week. Just 2 more cases and someone went to a gym. You dont go to a gym feeling unwell. And if you dont have symptoms you cant pass the virus on.. Have you noticed that the sainted Ashley tries to deflect away from the border leakage. He is as bigger bullshiter as Ardern.

I dont know why she does not stop ALL people coming in so we could have a farking normal life...other countries do it why cant we !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gordons.I have the odd one here and there.Normally on a Saturday arvo. However my old man was a major in it.Group one performer on the ginny gin. I try not to come on here after imbibing.

Clearly we are Governed by incompetent idiots

I have noticed over recent weeks watching Aussie racing that just about every Saturday in Sydney and Melbourne there is a major race named after a trainer of years gone by. It got me thinking how many top NZ races are named after famous trainers, and I couldn't think of any. I am sure there must be some, but none spring to mind. It just shows how differently we view racing in NZ and Australia. We have very few races named after famous horses, trainers or jockeys. To give Auckland credit they at least have introduced the Bonecrusher, Sunline and Uncle Remus races in recent years. Other clubs would do well to follow their lead.

https://ndhadeliver.natlib.govt.nz/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?dps_pid=IE34790356

People are the problem, even the Govt, which of course is made up of people, but society is what will cause covid to expand, not the Govt. The amount of people that left Auckland before 6am Sunday was astounding, made it a waste of time having a lock down, as the virus could have escaped before 6 am. The virus does not know times or borders or area's, it will go where the people take it. The whole point of a lock down is to keep the virus contained, escaping the area is not what should be happening. As soon as it was announced everyone in the Auckland areas should have gone into lock down regardless of the 6am timeline. 5 Million people are not doing what is best for NZ.

Up here, the fixture list of 1,486 UK meetings was confirmed last week but the number of Flat races will be down by 70 as it is expected there will be fewer horses in training this year as owners and breeders have cut back because of Covid. The impact will be felt, I suspect, in a couple of years as well. Just for information, of the 1,486 meetings, 40% are jumps, 40% are turf flat meetings and 20% are flat meetings on artificial surfaces.

But how many races named after trainers or jockeys?

The Canterbury Belle, Cuddle Stakes....

Agree, let's get rid. I note the defenders of the numerous others being caught for varying offenses staying quiet on this one. No ... "yeh but his or her life has not been good" or other reasons etc. Probably because it is becoming very apparent it is everywhere.

It's all a "dry run" of population control for future One World Marxist Government Meomy! The world softened up by China-released virus.Covid kills according to Ardern (what a scholar!!)- well so do motorbikes, cigarettes, drugs, sepsis, sharks-------------------------------------------------

Nice win .....aggressive drive too. But margin suggested clearly best horse on night.

Ok..can someone enlighten me as to how come apprentice Sam O'Malley copped a $750 fine and a 12 day holiday after a ride in race 7 at Otaki yesterday...changing ground at 1200 and hampering a horse who still went on to win......compared to Danielle Johnsons ride in race 2 at Ellerslie last week where she almost did a Hugh Bowman and got away with a warning.

yup because they new if they crossed the tagrine everyone be after them

Seems to be the new norm in all facets of life Augusta. You know the mantra "we are equal to men and need to be treated as equal.P.S. but in reality we are not so we need a few concessions" A bit like NZPGA in it's new incarnation--men and women (and any undecideds) play together at the same time but the women from tees approximately 20% shorter than the men's tees (Muriwai Open ) and everyone is supposed to be excited when some of the weaker dears place in the top 10! This in spite of Women's long-driving world champion and female pro Phyllis Meti being able to knock it out there further than most of the men. So who decided women were inherently 20% weaker than the men? Probably some BS decision driven by female leadership at helm of NZPGA. Anyway a pretty f---kd up world and only getting worse with gender denial, tokenism etc and getting back to mares and fillies--Why is 2kg the gold standard? Why not based on bodyweight??(Empire Rose, Sunline), Stride length?? Height at wither??Number of Group wins before it is lost?? 1KG?? Why not 5KG?? Wouldn't hurt to re-visit the apparent anachronism. Surely wouldn't upset the breeders??

The Lack of ‘common sense ‘surrounding this is beyond belief. I noticed the Dragon boats racing at Orakei Basin yesterday with a very large contigent of South Aucklanders in attendance... to believe you can trace and stop the invisible is insanity... ive just been out Te atatu ,the Motorway is busy, so much for staying home ....... Where are the Deaths? ....... the latest Guy went to the Gym as ‘Coronavirus ‘positive and was Benching 140kg... obviously a Death Sentence getting this Bug

Given this strain of the virus has a longer incubation period before people are testing postive (up to 5 days), reducing the Level 3 restriction after the initial 7 day period appears a forlorn hope. This assumes EVERYONE who is a close contact or casual plus contact has a test within the next 48 hours (and stay at home which, given the recent scenario we can assume is unlikely to happen), and they all test negative. Unless this happens, lifting Level 3 after 7 appears a long shot. And the government advised that the latest employer support will be calclated bi-weekly, which also implies they anticipate it be longer than 7 days. Beng an employer involved in the accommodation industry I can tell you any level above 1 is a blow to business on top of our border closures

Big risk Ted for out of town horses like the 2nd favourite from Otaki. Not much time to take the horse to the races if an announcement at 6am to drop to Level 2 on Sunday. Horse racing isn't only for the benefit of Northern horses.

Te Aroha would be my guess. Right handed and can handle the big fields.

yes, well done well deserved, Jacob.

Should of been run Boxing Day. As Blueanytime would say Fuckwits

Cindy is being directed by the WHO . One f;:$& d up brigade directed by Billy G . Not rocket Science,

Could the Derby be run on Auckland Cup day so that we avoid the Kung Flu garbage.

Great prediction , and fabulous win from 2nd last in running getting to the last quarter mile, and rounding them up like a little champion out wide. deserved Miracle Mile spot.

How can people ‘spread’ the invisible without being Symptomatic? Remember the wife of one of the first victims on the Cruise ship in Japan , she survived the Ship then got transported in a Plane full of ‘Symptomatic’ patients back to US , then ran a 4.32 mile 4 days later.... this is not a death sentence, snap out of it

Her toes are getting itchy - she can't travel like she did once, so she has placed herself at the head of the queue for the jab. Is this wise? If she does get the jab first and tootles overseas, who will take over the so called covid crisis here. Hip Hop - surely not. When he was in charge of schools our learning ratings plummeted!

You may care to translate that into Greek, as your English is beyond my comprehension.