nomates

You can add the extra funding to the GN steeples and the Opunaki and Taumaranui cup . Every little bit helps right .

Heretic !!!

Trainers are going to say SFA , they are riding this pigs back all the way . There are 20 trainers in the top 36 with stake earnings over 1mil , unheard of numbers . Previous seasons have been , 11 last season , 11 the one before and 7 the one before that , so in 3 seasons the number of trainers earning over 1mil has tripled . The cash river is flowing at peak , so why would any trainer say anything that rocks the boat . Jockeys enjoying it as well , the number of jockeys with stake earnings over 1mil has tripled over the last 4 seasons . I wonder how many owners have race earnings over 1mil ? Now if one organization should be standing up and yelling it's loudes it is the owners federation . If only they could find their teeth , there still in the jar soaking in the polident .

The problem is that plenty are far too comfortable , look at how long some have been ensconced in their particular chairs . Jayne Ivil coming back has only put into perspective how poor a lot of the presenting is . I know they are bringing through some younger people but it's time for a sea change for some of the longer termed presenters , or they up their game .

I love your passion for the place , when I was still living down there I hardly missed a meeting , but the reality they hardly ever draw a decent crowd , better on the cup day . I am just going on what I was used to .

Not knocking it , for some reason I haven't got a grip on the form . Stick by what I say about the home turn , just seems very flat and to my eye some horses seem to lose momentum .

The last line is the saddest part of what Trentham has become , it was the punters that made the place .

In racing Trentham is my first love , grew up there through my formative years , and have so many fond memories from attending races there and seeing so many great horses and races . It's fantastic that it has stood up to the hammering it has taken through carrying CD racing , sure luck has been involved with weather , but good on them . Sadly for me what it brings into focus is how badly the CD tracks are performing , and reflects on those running our industry . A huge dose of luck has got them out of a hole .

I used to love betting at the old Ellerslie , just can't get a read on this one , I hate the home turn , the making of a horse or the death .

Interestingly I was just looking to see if noms were up for next Wednesday and what My horse might be facing , not up but , they now have separate mdn races showing , only open noms for rating 65 and above . A bit odd with them only running R65s and R75s with the odd R60 thrown in occasionally . Seems odd that they have waited till the last minute to change things , or maybe there were queries . Just a quick edit , I have had another look and they are now calling everything above mdns "Open handicaps" , were open entry , Awapuni next week still open entry . So why the change , maybe hoping to get higher rated horses perhaps . The whole landscape just seems a big jigsaw puzzle the way things are chopped and changed , with little or no input from participants , nor any transparency as to why these things are done .

I said in another thread that between Trentham and Hawera that the numbers were great . Trentham in the winter was actually more interesting in many ways , the 3 days in July was a must for the true racing enthusiast , some brilliant memories . I know things change and move on but geez the gap from what we had to what we have is galaxy's apart . I'm just an old fart reminiscing .

Yet again the small guys get shafted , why does the money always have to be thrown at stakes that are already good ? I just don't understand the rationale .

I have to say the whole NZTR SI management regime looks like a Rubik's cube , unsolvable to most looking in .

Another question that came up in discussion last night was , because they have failed to produce the report whether trainers and owners are going to be reluctant to trust that the tracks are going to be safe and reliable . The lack of entries for the trials surprised me as you would think there would be many wanting to expose their horses to the new surface before racing on it . With very good noms for Trentham and Hawera in particular this weekend , is there going to be a dearth of horses for the first AWT meeting next week ?

Yes , that is a serious question , even if there is nothing sinister in the report it's not a good look , and give the impression that something is being kept quiet . We have both Cambridge and Awapuni having their season opening meetings next week , it's going to be interesting to see how both fare with the new open nominations scenario . Obviously the mdns are an easy one but those horses with a win or more is going to be interesting . A 1 win horse racing against a 4/5 win horse isn't going to make the 1 win horses connections happy , but the 4/5 win carrying a huge impost is creating the same unhappiness . I have one running so will be watching with interest .