Peter Harrop

Maybe the problem with Legarto was less to do with the track and more to do with Desert Lightning being too good for her on the day. Desert Lightning ran the fastest 1600 metre time in New Zealand for 10 years, and the eighth fastest in the last 30 years. Surely if the track was dodgy they wouldn't be running those sort of times.

Except getting Cool n Fast @ 21s to watch it drop to 5s and Faraglioni @ 14s also dropping to 5s later is not 'average' punting. It's excellent punting.

BGP did a great job with the punting IMO. There were a number of close calls that would have resulted in a profit on the day. If you're a serious punter, the number one objective is to secure overs by getting a price above what it should be paying. BGP, through some early bets, certainly did that. From there it's a matter of luck in the running and the race pattern. Sometimes it's just not your day, through no fault of your own. And it's made even more difficult through a small card of races. They've lost last 2 years, but from memory I think they've had great years before that. I look forward to seeing the selections of those complaining, pre-meeting not post-meeting, next year. Lol.

Quite incredible that this happened for one of our premier races, or for any race at all for that matter. Did one of the jockeys not realise and mention it to the starter, or one of the attendants?

Remarks on twitter prompted me to look at this further. I hand timed all the Telegraph's from 2017 onward from the 600m mark to the finish. 2022 Total time : 1:06.18 Last 600 hand timed : 32.36 2021 Total time : 1:07.95 Last 600 hand timed : 32.38 2020 Total time : 1:07.04 Last 600 hand timed : 33.01 2019 Total time : 1:06.95 Last 600 hand timed : 35.15 2018 Total time : 1:08.30 Last 600 hand timed : 35.40 2017 Total time : 1:07.71 Last 600 hand timed : 35.16 From these figures, we find that Levante's time of 1:06.18 totally checks out. The anomaly lies in the 2021 race, where they must have run the first 400 metres very slowly. Conclusion When comparing Levante's time from marker points along the chute to the finish against the 2021 race won by Avantage, Levante's time looks suspect. But when comparing with a wider sample of races from the 600m mark (hand timed off the screen), Levante's time of 1:06.18 looks legit. Levante ran a NZ Record, albeit officially hand timed.

Total time posted : Telegraph 2021 : 1:07.95 Telegraph 2022 : 1:06.18 Time from barrier opening to the red marker on the inside fence (800m?). 2021 : 23.42 secs 2022 : 21.84 secs Time from red marker to finish line. 2021 : 44.53 secs 2022 : 44.34 secs I also did similar analysis with other early marking points down the chute. To the end of the chute where the inside rail ends. 2021 : 38.69 2022 : 36.70 Time from this point to finish line. 2021 : 29.26 secs 2022 : 29.48 secs Therefore, I think there are 2 possibilities arising out of Levante's time. 1) The 1200 metre chute was extremely fast. 2) The barriers were positioned slightly forward of the 1200m mark.

Do you know if the barriers were in the right place?

I must admit to having a certain amount of scepticism about the time posted for the Telegraph, considering other times on the day, and another horse a nose away. I have hand timed it off the screen and it seems correct, so the issue could be the distance, if there is an issue.

How better can they promote NZ Racing internationally compared to what cant be done currrently by the NZ TAB? Specifically, what will enable them to promote NZ Racing better? Wouldn't the major part of the value for them be having a monopoly of just about all NZ gambling in their stable?

Tell me, what would be the value to an overseas corporate in running the gambling arm of NZ Racing and Sports if its not to take a profit from it?

Will punters bet with the same enthusiasm if they perceive much of the profits as going overseas? And as time goes on, there's a risk an overseas corporate will try and impose increasing control. After all, they'll have a monopoly on virtually all NZ gambling with only profits as their concern. How long before they decide they cant afford NZ TV presenters? Or before increasing the takeout? Or encouraging us to start our cards at 10 am? These are questions that concern me with outsourcing. There surely isnt another country in the world that has its gambling sovereignty in the hands of a single overseas corporate? Just doesn't seem right. I think it will give extra fuel to those who disapprove of gambling. I don't know. That's what I think anyway.

That's a shame because I was thinking of nominating you for the RITA board if you knew. You would have been just what the doctor ordered.

Assuming they define it by annual turnover, how does someone falling into that bracket firstly get into liking a punt on the horses and secondly become transformed into an elite?

Maybe I'm out of touch. What is it that gets people into enjoying a punt on the horses (not sports) these days? Also, are you suggesting elite punters go straight into 4 figure bets off the bat?

The problem is that elite punters were once small time punters who maybe got into it through channel surfing the radio dial or reading form in the herald or tuning into Action TV on free to view ...

Possibly planet reality. Why do you think those electronic books have never taken off? Its because, for many, it's far more relaxing turning pages in a book and writing notes all over the paper with a Biro.

Yes, you can print the racebook from the internet, but it costs a fortune in ink, it's a lot less convenient, and it doesn't have the same presence in the community as a book displayed on a service station or dairy shelf.

Agree.

I've always been one to think that racing's problems have been overblown, but the measures they are undertaking now seem dire.

The question with track closures is whether the long term cost savings are greater than the long term loss of profits from reducing exposure in regional communities.

You're totally underestimating today's science. And also, your plan would see the health system completely overwhelmed.

If everyone becomes immune by vaccine or getting it, then it wont last forever.

No they're not. They are influenza viruses with much less serious illness.

Very good point. Punting will also become more of a lottery for the same reason and they need to consider whether this will affect turnover.

How was the New Plymouth crowd today? Enough to compensate for the loss of the Stratford attendances of years gone by?