Leggy

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.

I think you were told wrong then. The issue has always been reported as matting in the root zone. PW said on Weigh In that the remedy is "to remove 100% of that matting that's causing us the issue which is just the grass rooting right in the joining of the profile sand surface." They would not be solid coring to 190mms to remedy thatch on the surface. Nerula seems unable to understand that.111111111

Where did he say that?

I make that about 1750 cubic metres which on say 60,000 sqm is about 35mls over time isn't it?

They have put on 90. Plan to add 90 more after the last meeting but 3000 tons total presumably over the winter or next year.

Yes. If it needed another 3000 tons of sand, why wasn't that in the mix when, they built it? Has me flummoxed.

I can't find him to get his current opinion on rooting. Seems to have gone AWOL through all this. Any idea where he might be?

??? what was that?

Exactly. More kick back? Wouldn't that suggest that the turf is holding together less well than before?

New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing [NZTR] and Auckland Thoroughbred Racing [ATR] would like to provide an update on the 'Return to Racing' for Ellerslie Racecourse. Following the Club's abandonment on Wednesday 10 April, all work that was prescribed has now been completed. A set of eight trials were held successfully at Ellerslie Racecourse today [Monday 15 April] giving the Club clearance to return to racing. A number of industry personnel and senior jockeys were in attendance at the trials today to monitor the surface including representatives from; Strathayr, the Racing Integrity Board, NZTR and ATR. The overarching feedback NZTR and ATR received following the trials was positive, with the following comments provided by senior jockeys on the state of the track: "The track felt a lot better – they [ATR] obviously had done a lot of work on it since Wednesday. The horses are getting a good bit of traction and there’s actually a bit of kick back now, which highlights the more traction the horses are getting." - Senior Jockey Warren Kennedy "I noticeably felt more traction and more give in the track. The machinery work and the spreading of sand since last Thursday has certainly seen an improvement.” - Senior Jockey Craig Grylls The first race meeting set to be held back at Ellerslie will be Saturday 20 April 2024. We extend our gratitude to Chris Hay from Elwick Racecourse for his assistance and advice post-abandonment. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact either NZTR or ATR below. Darin Balcombe Chief Operating Officer Darin.Balcombe@nztr.co.nz Craig Baker Executive General Manager-Racing and Operations craigb@ellerslie.co.nz

Not much I don't think. The issues were when the track was rain affected as well, including on the rail, and 50 horses galloping round the corner near the rail, on the bridle, on a non-rain affected surface, is not much help to me in assessing its safety

https://www.thoroughbreddailynews.com/racing-families-devastated-by-bondi-mall-attack/

Nominated horses must have been trained by a person holding a NZ licence for the season under review and must have been stabled in NZ for more than half of the season

That's a ripper!

I thought the matting was in the shallow root zone, not the surface?

The meeting scheduled for Hawke’s Bay on Saturday 27 April will now be a Wanganui JC meeting at Wanganui as the track at Hawke’s Bay requires more time after its recent renovation.

40mms of rain forecast today. Considering that, how they think they can now fix in 4 days to be safe for trials, what they have failed to fix since Millions night, is not really comprehensible to me. It seems they have only just now ordered the coring machinery necessary to remedy the problem? "ATR has ordered a corer machine to help ensure the ongoing track surface will continue to improve ...

Be interesting to see who is willing to trial their horses on it on Monday. I certainly wouldn't.

Isn't that for Strathayr sport fields?

You could say that but none that have undergone a seeding process with all others being turfed, and none that have ever had a weather related abandonment.

I've been offering solutions for 20 years but the powers that be have shown no inclination to implement any of them.. In a sentence, fix the tracks, fix the handicapping system, fix the programming and aim to make thoroughbred racing self-sustainable again as it was then.

It has failed at this point hasn't it, whether anyone wanted to see that or not, which I doubt?

So why are they putting horses and riders at risk on a track that requires "heavy renovation""?