gubellini

Dissident you are probably right. Small field sizes may have resulted in that first Gold Coast Quaddie being canned.

Quaddie was listed on Races 1-4 on the TAB sheet. Only 8 races at the Gold Coast. Yes I would have got the quaddie. Took a treble on races 2-4 and got that instead. Puzzling that they listed a quaddie and didn’t allow betting on it. Has anyone else experienced this?

New experience at my local TAB today. Tried to get a quaddie bet on Races 1-4 at the Gold Coast meeting. Kept coming up pool closed an hour before Race 1 was run. Helpful staff ran Helpline. They didn’t know why the bet wasn’t being accepted and said they would ring back. Predictably they didn’t. Seems like the TAB didn’t want my modest investment. Odd that the TAB want to increase turnover but wouldn’t accept this bet.

The return of Trackside Radio should be a priority for RITA. Bernard Saundry has quoted that it cost $2 million annually to run. More redundancies of senior staff and paring back overseas soirées to the bone could easily fund the reinstatement. In the meantime you can access the audio of TV Trackside by downloading the Rova or Simple Radio Apps.

Ron Ladd bred and raced Irish Flirt who raced 51 times for 7 wins including the 1991 Star Way Stakes at Te Aroha. Mike Moroney trained her. Her first foal McFlirt won 7 races in Australia including the VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes G1. He later became a successful sire in West Australia.

Other handy horses Russell trained were Old Parr, Tom Jones and Red Day all of whom won six races each.

Leo because you are not a current licence holder I would suggest that the RIU are acting beyond their powers. If this goes ahead it will create a dangerous precedent. Owners, punters etc who criticise any RIU staffers may be next in the firing line.

Russell Campbell started training in Rotorua before moving to Matamata. His first winner was Miss Hiawatha at Te Aroha on the 25/11/50. He also trained the very good mare Bellota who won the 1973 Ladies’ Mile, the 1974 South Auckland Breeders’ Plate and Rotorua Travelodge Stakes and the 1975 Foxbridge Plate and Avondale Cup. He also trained Neat who won five races at three and ran second to Young Ida in the 1972 Great Northern Oaks.

Chris Wood Cyril Beechey trained Analight to win the 1975 Caulfield Cup. Russell and his co owner Reg Durrant sent her to Cyril in August of that year to train her for the big events.

No problems at Te Rapa last Saturday for pre race drinks for owners. You received a slip of paper with the race number of your horse(s) written on it. It was clear you had to present that voucher before the race and not after. I had shares in two starters and received four vouchers. Happy owners before each race.

The South Waikato Racing Club own their own training track and facilities just out of Tokoroa. They race at Matamata once a year on a Wednesday in March. Will the rapacious NZTR seize their assets as well? Odd on that any proceeds from winding up Clubs will not go back into stakes or track maintenance but into further empire building and job creep.

dbtab I think that establishment has changed hands a number of times in recent years. For about 15 years my Dad and myself were regular visitors. Ian Morgan and later Alvin Clark were the owners in those days- real racing people. Sounds as though the present operators have no interest in racing. Shame.

David I counted 325 nominations for the 12 race card at Te Rapa on Saturday. Things won’t get any better next month either. There will be a massive log jam and some horses won’t get a run until the new season. I am lucky that two I have shares in will both get a start but feel sorry for all those owners whose horses will miss out. Surely NZTR can organise extra meetings in the north for July to cater for the numbers they have badly underestimated.

Got a share in Expressive winner of Race 6. Didn’t have a cracker on her! Hard to pick a winner today.

Hi Leggy. Re surveys I think they should be centred around what sort of information punters and racegoers want. I can access any information I like on line so I will leave specific possible survey questions to others. I really miss the Informant and Race Form. I prefer the written form of race information. You can’t mark your selections prior to raceday on line. My local TAB produced a booklet with all race information on the Pukekohe meeting last Saturday. It was great and they only charged one dollar for it. This is a good interim measure but I would like a Race Form type publication to be available sooner rather than later.