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This decision comes as a proactive response to recent track issues and concerns raised by stakeholders ... A proactive response would have been to do the sensible thing after the partial abandonment on 10 April...ie transfer the Easter meet to another course and begin the "planned winter renovation" from 11 April. Max travelled to Ellerslie from the glorious North on Saturday to support a mate (a first-time owner) whose horse was in Race 8. Imagine the disappointment/frustration...and 5 hours on the road for sweet f-a. When the young lass fell off Opaea Joe earlier in the day, Max feared the worse. But mercifully her horse had 'clipped heels' and she was dislodged (or so we're told). Yes, the rain was steady/relentless and sometimes heavy, but on the 'old surface' the last two races would have likely proceeded (on a Heavy whatever). To see the 'spin' here about a proactive response is sickening - though entirely predictable. Max's sympathy is with all the connections of horses entered in Race 7 and 8.

Brilliant day to end a super comp….thanks to John for his magic scoring…… Great effort from the team today especially Peter and Jack…well done fellas. Top total. Mrs given all clear at the Hospital too so a big relief for us there….

I went to Karaka for the first time in 2017 and my pick of the sale of the horses I saw was Avantage. I went again in 2019 and my pick of the sale was Just Ben. It seems I have an eye for a good horse, but also an eye for a not-so-good horse. Unfortunately I don't know which eye is which.

Pak Star, your comments are appreciated. I think the problem is that in 2024 statements are vetted by public relations consultants. When they are trying to explain intricate details the public relations people get tied up in their own bullshit which most people use them to peddle. An organization"s credibility is inversely proportional to their spend on public relations.

Don't agree Insider. They need to follow through with renaming Government and other agencies in the normal language for most New Zealanders, ditch thousands of public service bludgers who were cynically positioned in "work" by the Ardern/Hipkins cabal late last year and marginalise Swarbrick and her coterie of queers. I'm picking most thinking NZers are delighted that the evil bitch Adern is gone and are even applauding the wonderfully lucid Shane Jones as he lines up the parasitic Waitangi Tribunal. It's tough to produce financial largesse for everybody when the incompetent previous lot have emptied the pot with their Marxist behaviour.

What an exciting final between Bonecrusher and Veandercross . It could have fallen either way right up until the last race and a 3-2 final score does t really project just how close the struggle was. It has been great being a member of Team Bonecrusher for nearly 3 months! 'Thanks again to Scooby and John for putting on the competition. It always amazes me how quickly the results are churned out so John must be a very clever guy to construct such an efficient spreadsheet.

Both presenters down playing it. I think Innes mentioned bad luck.... If I wanted bad luck in the mix I would have taken my 55mill to the Casino.

If this was happening consistently at a small country club, NZTR would take their license away from them.

Sheesh Paul Wilcox was discredited multiple times on pages 18 & 19, but then also had his quote used in an effort to make a point. Who knows what to believe Without wanting to wade too far into the ____ measuring contest of who can fit their schlong into the full depths of a 190mm cored Ellerslie surface hole to check how deep the matted roots are... Is ATR suggesting that the problem last week is the same problem they had on Karaka Million night? Pete quoted this piece from NZTR on Feb 2nd: Ellerslie Racecourse Immediately after Saturday’s race meeting at Ellerslie where some Jockeys experienced movement after 3mms of rain fell during the race meeting, Auckland Thoroughbred Racing (ATR) undertook a review which included Frank Casimaty from Strathayr. From that review, it was identified that a thick layer of roots had caused the issues experienced, it was agreed that Jason Fulford, Track Manager for ATR, would use appropriate machinery this week to break down that thick layer of roots just below the surface to ensure the horses get a better purchase on the track. Following the completion of this machinery work, jumpouts will be held at Ellerslie for Auckland based horses. The jumpouts are scheduled for Monday, 12 February. Mix the above with this here video showing how deep the root structure really is - in some instances 230mm (at this point I am definitely out of aforementioned contest) and one could be mistaken for thinking the problem quite deep below the surface - Update on the StrathAyr track project - Part 5 | Auckland Thoroughbred Racing (aucklandracing.co.nz) The strathyr video from Ohoka would appear to back up the theory that the matting would run quite deep into the cross section. But hang on, last week Wilcox was quoted as saying: “From what we can ascertain, it is the same issue where the grass is matted and joins the sand profile, which is causing the slipperiness. We thought we had that under control and we obviously didn’t,” Wilcox said. From what we can gather based on the ATR coring video AND the strathyr video, the grass meets the sand profile very close to the surface. So who knows what the hell to believe. Seems the reports change every time one is released... And they prey on industry participants like us knowing slightly less than what they seem to know (or not know) themselves. And they use terminology that confuses the issue even more. If they REALLY wanted to be transparent as they say they do, best thing they could do at this point is another one of their coring videos, and visually show us a cross section with the matting. To give us peace of mind that they actually know what the hell they are dealing with, and how to fix it.

Mark Cookson minutes out "well the excitement is now at fever pitch" for who sorry? The self indulgent bullshit forcing us to care about Waitak somehow managed to beat the I Wish I Win bullocks, its like they're making a school production to present to each other at lunch time.

Alf Riston Credit Bet Mick will probably get the leading Racing Media award this season for being the chief apologist for the ARC/NZTR.

Is it a matted root structure? Or a rooted mat structure?

Conducting interviews from the kneeling positions. Yes men and women, the lot of em.

I thought the track was fantastic considering the rain that they have had , ran 1.09.68 , that is a great time . Hopefully it holds up for the whole day .

Thanks John . best of Luck to your team in the Grand Final. Here's some Roughies Habits for a crack at the B Final. The 'dust' will be flying lol. Best of luck to Jack and his Team . Go 'Roughie' ya good thing lol . 1. Ellerslie R6/ 2 - 12 2. Ellerslie R7/ 7 - 10 3. Randwick R2/ 3 - 10 4. Randwick R3/ 3 - 12 5. Randwick R4/ 3 - 4 6. Randwick R5/ 2 - 3 7. Randwick R6/ 6 - 12 BB 8. Randwick R7/ 2 - 7 9. Randwick R8/ 9 - 12 BB it's a great day in Southport today 10. Mornington R6/ 8 - 10 11. Mornington R8/ 8 - 10 12. Mornington R9/ 2 - 5

Would love to see him crack it for a win one day.

Am sure trainers and owners pissed off that when they win a race Trackside instead of giving them a moment of glory switch over some hick dog meeting in Aussie.. enough is enough .Rise up owners and give these money money pricks the message.

Spelt and spelled are two different spellings of the past tense of the verb “spell.” The spelling tends to vary based on the version of English you're using: In US English, “spelled” is standard. In UK English, both “spelled” and “spelt” are acceptable. It's a shame Imperatriz was retired and not just spelt

^tries

Paul Wilcox or 100% as we call him as whenever anyone asks him a question he says ....100% hahaha .....he said it 12 times one day on Weigh In ....and he never ever looks confident like a man in his position should. He might be a good bloke (I have never met him but Mick seems to like him) but as far as running a race track goes he would be better off on the end of a shovel at the Manurewa council ......100%. The 55 million Goat Track will settle down in time but obviously wasn't ready to race on in adverse weather .....100%. And just when we thought the NZ thoroughbred industry was going forward our best and most prestigious track is a debacle......100%. FF.

Cheers FF, I appreciate your thoughts but I'm not into entry fees and prize pools (for those who pay an entry fee). That just creates an extra layer of scrutiny I guess and while I try to be as transparent and clear up front with rules, etc, I would prefer to avoid any controversy where entrants have put their own money on the line. I believe most of our entrants don't play for the prize money - more for the enjoyment and bragging rights. Prizes from Leigh and the odd donation are fine, and we don't have too many issues. Easier to tell someone with a beef (with rules or scoring) that we'll refund their entry fee, when they haven't paid an entry fee

Thats the problem in this country. The @#$%#,s from NZTR would have exterminated a smaller club and usurped their assets for the benefit of some one else to mis-spend.

Yeah it really was close. So much so that I decided to look back to see what difference the promotion of Kintyre would have made in the end. Idolmite finished up with $259 and I ended up with $226. Take away the $33 Idolmite got extra for that win and he ends up on... you guessed it.. $226.. So it could have ended up 2.5 points each so you cant get any closer than that. And Stoyd got an extra $66 (a BB). Take that away and he ends up on $246 so only $4 more than SNM on $242. But that's racing and congratulations again to Team Bonecrusher...

Bonecrusher was an extremely-cheap unfashionably-bred racehorse that nobody else wanted to buy. He did okay Team Bonecrusher were a bunch of ragtag tipsters nobody else wanted to team up with. Thrown together by SNM, they did okay too

Grand Final - Mornington R9 - Final race # Name Jockey/Driver/Trainer Win Place 10 Maharba Michael McNab 3.40 1.90 8 Nicolini Vito Daniel Stackhouse 3.00 3 The Inferno Jake Noonan 2.10 Bet Type Runners Dividend Quinella 8,10 18.80 After 11 weeks of pool play and three weeks of play-offs we have our Fabulous Fours winners. and what an incredibly close finish - Nicolini Vito flashed home but came up just short for Pondy. A low scoring match but couldn't have been closer. Congratulations to team Bonecrusher (Foxmerts, Pete, Idolmite and Stoyd) - minor premiers and carried that form into the play-offs and finished as deserved champions. and congratulation also to our plate winners Imperatriz (Jack, Ohokaman, Peter RS and #48) who were comfortable winners today, lead by Peter RS but with all four team members making healthy contributions Thanks to everyone who took part - great turnout each week, played in great spirit and with a healthy bit of banter (mostly from the lippy Ockers). Hope to see you all next Saturday for the Losers Get Laid comp.

Does not a " matted root structure " suggest that the roots could not go down because of hard compaction, and they went horizontally instead, a bit like the roots in a potted plant from the nursery?

The problem is from experts who have just walked it...in their opinion... the thatch on the surface is not allowing the water to get through..the thatch is soaked but under the thatch is dry so no water penetrates...rushing to race on it for KM night seems to have caused a ton of issues now...and that is a fact....lets see what happens now and what the spin doctors throw out to cover their arses...

Fingers crossed for good news on your loved one....Family is the most important thing.

Paul Wilcox should leave his ivory tower for a few hours and stroll to the nearest bowling and golf clubs and get FREE advice on how to grow and maintain grass. He would learn more from them than the so called "experts" on racecourse turf management.

Haha , they talk shite , on weigh in this morning Guerin quoted PW as saying that they would definitely , DEFINITELY , be racing at Ellerslie on the 25th , as they needed to know what they were doing was working , almost emphatic that they would be racing there . Barely 6hrs later the backflip . Seriously who's writing their scripts because the audience is bored with the stale bullshit .

Next she will be pointing out you have spelt fuck wrong.

What a lovely change to watch the segment on Ripple Creek this morning on Facebook Ripple Creek have a very up to date website and offers a great ownership opportunities… Well done to Unhinged for supporting these enthusiastic young people and a nice change up seeing new trainers….

I get your point, but you say all business needs income and I fully agree, but that's the problem. This industry doesn't and never has generated income, it's continually relied on someone or something to dig them out of the crap and buy them some more time to do nothing about it. Why ? .. because your biggest resource being quality people has never emerged, momentum is non existent and when the money runs out and it will, well before the 5 years we will be in a bigger hole. Unless you get some quality people across the Country. Just look at Ellerslie as one example.

KHAFEEF, who was fourth in the steeplechase, was bred by Shadwell up here and I'm sure they had bigger ambitions than running round northern New Zealand over fences. He raced in France in 2019 and won a 2400m race at Le Touquet but that was his only win in four starts. If you want to revitalise NZ jump racing come to the UK and Ireland and spread the word - at Stratford (the home of Mr Shakespeare) this afternoon the Class 4 handicap chase nets the winning owner less than £4k (or $8000) yet you have jumps races for £15k. Without being unkind, I'm sure there are plenty of NH horses up here who could compete with your chasers and hurdlers - I mean, if Willie Mullins sent over a plane load of his third-raters, he'd probably clean up. Why not create a satellite yard for British and Irish jumpers in NZ - again, it's an alternative to our summer jumping for the fast ground types. Plenty of logistical issues but where there's a will there's usually a dead person (sorry). Have a look at the French racing model - in France they have meetings with trotting, flat turf, ordinary jumps and cross country jumps races in the provinces. Imagine a venue where all four exist and you could stage any kind of meeting you like. I have to say the French trotting races (both Monte and Attele which mean ridden and attached so one is where there's a jockey and the other where there's a driver) seem well attended for all some of the tracks look to be in grotty industrial estates. Just a few thoughts from a long way away but I enjoy jump racing and there's a place for it. I don't know how many of you watched the Grand National last weekend - it's not the race it was (that's another debate) but it's still visually spectacular. Run the Great Northern or the National for $2,000,000 and invite foreign runners - make it the jump equivalent of the Melbourne Cup. Final thought - the grass roots - pony club racing, point to points - both have to be nourished and developed to keep a flow of jockeys and horses. Import two or three jumping stallions from up here.

Not a bad trip for finishing where he did 200K more than he got just about for winning the Railway...I would go too if I had one good enough...good on them for having a go.

Congratulations to all of the winners. Prize winners listed below. As always all prizes in the form of a tote bet on one horse (win and/or place) with half of any collect going to the winner and half recycled for future comps. Please post your bets on this thread and please give Leigh plenty of advance notice to give time to get the bets on. $50 each - Foxmerts, Pete, Idolmite, Stoyd $20 each - Kloppite, RFT, Pondy, SNM, Jack, Ohokaman, Peter RS, PMD (via Phil) $10 each - Chestnut, VC, Basil Brush, Pure Steel Based on my performance yesterday (New Energy/Jmac ), I'll cut out the TAB and recycle my $20 straight back into the prize pool.

Well done guys was really hoping you could get home...well done to the Champs in both comps great comp all round thanks John for thinking this up...now back to finding losers LOL.

Congratulations Team IMPERATRIZ, but particularly Peter RS. My private message of "all the best" to Peter last night, certainly worked

Wow. So close, my Veandercross stablemates ! A fitting nail-biting finish to what has been such a highly entertaining and highly enjoyable comp these past many, many weeks. Pondy launched late . . . John, too. . . and almost brought us home ! Very well done Pete, Foxmerts, Idolmite and Stoyd - very worthy champions the team Bonecrusher. You were a benchmark team right through, and held your nerve when it mattered most when under heavy attack. I was thrilled to be in a team with John, Pondy and Kloppite. Great stablemates. We can be proud of finishing a close 2nd. Most of all, thanks John and Scooby for this marvellous competition. John, your skill at running these comps is simply breathtaking. Many, many thanks, my friend.

6 million at Avondale and we are talking Turkey. People involved in these processes like being paid huge sums and many are clipping the ticket, you can't beat Country Clubs and people with a passion 2024....everyone wants the Bling .

What an absolute joke Ellerslie and ARC are. They dictate terms of our racing calendar and now serve up this crap after being gifted $55M. They've almost single handedly destroyed our industry and are oblivious to being accountable. Wilcox needs to man up and hand in his resignation. Will be 55,000,000 - 1 of that happening though.

Silence is golden ah Chris???

I see Mick G seems to suggest Merlin is Barry Purdons first millionaire horse. He seems to have forgotten about Holmes DG or Chokin. Also there seems to be some confusion as to whether HRNZ put any money into the slot races. Greg O Connor says they didn’t but I thought I remember them putting some amount in so as to get the stake to $1m

Miss Jools in drag .

I would suggest that most in management are self interest welfare advocates first .

Scooby and Nerula, remember a few weeks ago I had to ban myself for 7 days from communicating with Leggy, otherwise I could have gone crazy. Guys, the same idea is probably worth considering

Not sure that comment helps your case Neil but it sounds like you have finally grasped that the issue is NOT surface thatch and that no-one has ever suggested that.

zelda dug up a kero tin this morning and was shouting " Jimmyisastar (nz), book the Brisvegas tickets Boris, i feel a win on saturday then its Jetstar first class to the farm n0? "" we just need willo to ride it quiet like mr brightside, .........................well not quite that quiet .

So Wilcox was saying on Weigh in they put 3000 tonnes of sand on the track...can anyone tell me what good that will do and how that will solve the rooting problem the grass has...when I was growing up we never grew grass in sand...do farmers or pasture experts grow grass in sand???......sounds like everything is getting rooted in this industry...including the track and that is not being done correctly...oh but geez I need to shut up and stop being negative...sorry but for 55M it should be perfect from day one.!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Te Awamutu which is purely a trials track at the moment and has been having a "renovation", isn't ready to hold the designated trials next week , pushed back one week , and a set of trials at the Cambridge Synthetic have been put in their place . They are a bit slow , they haven't worked out yet that the majority don't want to trial on the synthetic , especially their babies , so now owners have to wait another week to trial and hopefully get to the races and hopefully before they strike a heavy track . And what is the problem with Te Awamutu that one more week will resolve ? At least tell us , it's all Chinese whispers and it's getting f@#ken boring . I'm so over this crap , I have 3 horses at the moment but have made the decision they are my last here , things like the this and Ellerslie just reaffirm my decision .