We're Doomed

Poor old Scooby is trying to figure out how this became his most popular thread ever.

That has been the problem for a long time now. You could probably get away with one incredibly competent CEO who had no knowledge of or interest in Racing, but was a highly intelligent and skilled manager, if the people below him were all incredibly passionate about Racing and all very skilled in their own aspects of the industry. We cannot sustain a situation where the entire management team have no interest in Racing. In all of the discussions on here over the years I can't recall even once someone saying something like "such and such is the only person with any real knowledge of Racing and any passion for it, and he/she is the one you need to talk to if you expect a reasoned response". Imagine that, not one person in the whole place who is regarded as the brains behind the whole operation.

Quite an interesting article about Southland racing. https://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/112089338/thoroughbred-racing-fights-for-its-survival-in-the-south

Still down as trained by Nyhan in the form-guide. Certainly hasn't got much to beat. Barry Ward's well breed horse obviously the main one to beat.

Geez, don't say they went to school with your cousin or slept with your sister? You've been spending too much time with "Stopper".

And where the commentators say "lets bring it on" and "early doors" rather than something like "gates open" or "they're underway".

Impressive winner in the first jumps race of the season, looked the winner a long way out. Who is the chap Hutton who seems to have a lot of jumpers but they don't seem to do much. I see he got a few wins back in 2012/13, so obviously had a good horse then, can anyone recall what it was?

If you click on the pdf form everything is there, just don't take too much notice of the "expert" comments under each horse.

I just thought you were really trying to get your point across.

I'm sure you could have picked a better example than that. In 1987 Ellerslie's Easter saturday turnover was $1,059,171 on course and $2,793,769 off. Riverton did $329,697 on and $396,875 off. Why so low off course you may ask. Perhaps it was the TAB computer's fault again, but more likely because Rotorua, Feilding and Trentham also raced on that day; and that was only the galloping clubs. Incidentally the feature race at Ellerslie was the TVNZ stakes at $200,000, and Riverton's feature was the Cup at $14,000. So Riverton must get credit for increasing stakes as well. The Easter handicap was held the previous Saturday for $150,000. So the Easter has dropped $50,000 or 33% in 32 years while the Riverton Cup has gone up $46,000, or 330%

Endless Drama was far and away the class horse of the field and was bolting the whole trip. Incredible money. Good to see the top weight winning a big race; takes me back to the days of Grey Way. If it wasn't for Endless Drama winning it, the race would probably be on a warning to hold its group 2 status.

Sadly the time honoured Easter is no longer a group one, it is on its way down while the Riverton Cup is on the way up. It is interesting to reflect that at this time when the desire is to close down the Rivertons of this world and pour all of the resources into the Ellerslies, Riverton with a population of approx 1,600 gets a bigger on course attendance than Ellerslie in a city of 1.6 million.

Not exactly sure what the subject was in this instance. I am always amazed Riverton isn't used more often, it always looks like the best track in Southland. Just be nice if they had the camera somewhere near the finishing line.

I'm getting rather worrying S&M connotations there. I'm not sure who would enjoy the flogging the most.

I am finding your logic a bit bewildering. I assume Puna's horses don't only race at his home track, therefore he is providing product for all of the tracks around him, some of which may not host any trainers at all. Hopefully the tracks that rely on his horses to make up their fields make a contribution towards the costs associated with providing horses for their meetings.