Jazz

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the latest Insider Access article "The Invisible Board of Seat Warmers" as it seems to echo the sentiments and frustrations of many who post on here. That and the prior article Death by a thousand cuts are worth a read, offering balanced criticisms and potential solutions to bring about change, at the least offering an interesting perspective from someone very knowledgeable. John Curtain certainly doesn't pull many punches. Personally I think it's very refreshing to see someone who presumably derives his primary source of income from the industry, unafraid to speak out against the status quo and those in administrative positions of power. Most who have voiced an opinion appear to have been muzzled or are accused of being in the negative & whinging minority. You would struggle to find many multimillion dollar businesses/industries where boards of directors are not held fully accountable for results and for safeguarding the business/industry going forward. Operational transparency and strategic direction are not 'nice to haves', but fundamental requirements. Harness racing should be no different.

The stakes disparity between group races for trotters and pacers is unbelievable. I don't care how HRNZ justify it (quarter of the starters receive quarter of the stakes) - it's hardly a perception that our top trotters are poor cousins... Sadly it's a reality. There are few words to describe the CEO report in the June Harnessed. The difference in stakes was "less than assumed" and "hopefully there will continue to be strong growth" ..... Really .... WTF!? It doesn't inspire confidence that anything is in the pipeline to promote or encourage growth in our trotting product. Yes there are potential opportunities with the European and U.S. markets - but what a poor look when comparing our top races, it makes our horses appear second rate. Given their dominance, If Take a Moment, I Can Doosit, Stent etc were racing for comparable stakes to pacers they would easily be amongst the top money earners NZ has produced. Even the mighty Lyell Creek had to race in the northern hemisphere to earn the big dollars.

Trainer has indicated he will stand full time in US and his first season at stud in Europe was 2012? http://www.svanstedtstable.com/sebastian-k-has-made-his-last-start/ The Ready Cash progeny are doing very well so far in France, be interesting to see how the Sebastian K's go.

Real shame Sebastian K has been forced into retirement. Hopefully he becomes available as a sire down under.

If the owner wants to sell and the trainer does the donkey work finding a buyer etc don't see an issue with them getting a cut. In most cases they have more contacts at their disposal to be able to move the horse on. If the owner is approached or organises a sale directly then maybe more reason to question it? At the end of the day the owner doesn't have to sell if they're not happy with the arrangement.

From Twitter feed looks like he has recently gotten engaged MR

Rangi you should consider writing for the Woman's Day.... Seriously

BWD I'm no open driver and I certainly can't walk the talk .... So yep am comfortable using gentle euphemisms regarding the performance of one of our most successful reinsmen. I'm not backward about coming forward but generally wouldn't bag someone that blatantly unless I thought I could do better myself. Does this mean you're back to play in the sandpit again?

The Orange Agents run wasn't markedly different to High Gaits in the baby trot. Both settled back of the bunch, got a drag forward wide & had to launch. Obviously Natalie's not getting criticism for her drive because it won. High Gait is lengths ahead of the other 2yo trotters and it still took her the length of the straight to catch Messendei & Arannaleah. Is The Orange Agent the best 3yo filly going round... Yes. Is she lengths ahead of Fight For Glory & Democrat Party - IMO no. Nat stealing the break on Fight For Glory was the winning of the race, she handled the track better than the rest & even though she was coming to the end of her run there was enough distance to see her home - did more work & won comfortably. I think there are more factors at play than the drive that undid The Orange Agent on Friday, draw and track played a big part. Natalie's drive was excellent, MM's might not have been his best work but to make statements like it was the worst drive on a favourite in a group 1 is a bit of a stretch.

Bit of a catch 22 if foal percentages are the sole driver for calculating the split. There is very little incentive to breed more trotting mares under the status quo which in theory would be needed to drive the ratio up and hence get a bigger bite of the stakes. While stakes for average horses are on par with pacers (not saying they're necessarily good), generally trotters take more time so the overall spend by the owner will be higher before there is any hope of a return. If you're lucky enough to breed or purchase a nice horse (having spent at least as much to get to that point as with a pacer) you know that you'll ultimately be racing for less and if a commercial breeder your yearlings are worth less. Wondering if this is on the radar for HRNZ, not even under consideration or another item in the too hard basket?

Has the proportion of trotting mares being bred vs pacers increased (realise overall numbers are declining)? Or more pacers with ability exported and average horses turned over due to limited opportunities - giving the illusion there are more trotters going around? I think it's great that more races are being carded for trotters and most clubs now have stakes for the lower grades at least on par with equivalent graded pacers. If only the same consideration would be given to the higher grades as well. Disgraceful that there's at 50k gap between trotters and pacers at the Jewels and our two elite races for trotters are worth so little comparatively. Doesn't send a particularly good message to existing or perspective breeders and owners of trotters regarding the value of their product.

Maybe not - The article on Trevor Casey on Harnesslink says they gelded him.... But still listed as a colt?

Super field - who wins? Stent has been outstanding, possibly the shorter distances more his strength. Sheemon, so far the bridesmaid over 3200 - could certainly do it on last weeks run. Master Lavros, definitely his go & looking more like the champ he can be. The newcomer Mums Pride.... The rest have a bunch of group 1s between them, all are capable if luck goes their way. Should be a cracker.

Any news on Lochaburn & Saveapatrol? Both have been off the scene for quite some time now so hopefully rehab has gone well (and yes Counter Punch had forgotten about both of them tho think both are very smart horses). Hopefully we see them back sans issues next season.

This season we've been fortunate to have witnessed some incredible highs with the feats of our brightest stars and being able to consistently beat the Aussies at group one level is very satisfying. Over the past couple of months however the OC ranks have been depleted with the untimely injury of Adore Me, stud duties for Terror, Gold Ace & Elusive Chick and retirement of the great old boy Benny. We can still lay claim to the number one pacer & trotter in Australasia, but all of a sudden the ranks are a bit light. Absolute superstars don't appear every season but looking at the up and comers and age group champs who from the next generation is ready to step up and at least be competitive with Christen Me, Ohoka Punter, Stent etc. For me; Have Faith in Me, Isaiah and Venus are there, and possibly Tiger Tara. Too soon for an opinion on Dalton Bromac though others rate him so highly. Trotters not sure. Interested to hear other people's opinions on who might have the goods.

Unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you look at it - public perception plays an enormous role in animal welfare and can influence the rule and decision makers accordingly, irrespective of whether the perception is accurate or way off the mark. I never saw the race or horse in question; but as others have mentioned find it odd that nobody (stewards included) highlighted that the horse was presented in an unfit condition earlier in the day/prelim. Have to respect the decision of the vet to act in the best interest of the horse (and possibly err on the side of caution) but the overall process sounds a bit Mickey Mouse so can understand why people are nervous.

He'd been roaming around the city for quite some time with his menagerie. The horse got loose numerous times, often on busy roads and it was probably sheer luck that it didn't come to grief sooner. Obviously an animal lover and a very sad end for the horse but a city is no place to keep animals (of no fixed abode) IMO. Irresponsible and an accident waiting to happen. I think the charge was possibly to deter him from accumulating more animals as he was allegedly under the influence often so not in a position to keep them under effective control. I don't think this case necessarily sets a precedent unless there are repeated instances of animals straying, out of control etc.

Both tiring horses stopped dead on the turn and held up half the field so ruined a number of horses chances with that mid race burn. I think maybe Dexter expected to get the lead easily but leading driver isn't obliged to hand up to was bad luck he wasn't able to slot in or take a sit. Stewards report claimed Sage was racing keenly after but hard to tell if it was pulling hard when Dexter leans so far back in the cart.

Don't get me wrong, agree JackSprat. Both offer interesting perspectives on a wide range of topics and obviously have a great deal of knowledge and passion for harness racing which was a positive for this forum. Personalities aside I enjoyed reading the majority of posts as I'm sure did many others. Just a shame the war of words, dummy spitting and thread hijacking got a bit over the top. BWD is in self imposed exile. I hope it's temporary and both are back in some way, shape or form in future, sans the kindergarten shit.

BWD and Johnevans gone in one weekend.... Who would have thought the circus would come to such an abrupt end. And just when it seemed like it was the G1 horses dropping like flies

Looking back over the HRNZ age group awards very few of the leading 2yos go on to dominate at 3 & 4 years vs those that become more prominent at 3 - those that have are arguably superstar juveniles. As a 2yo I thought Follow the Stars looked like he had the goods - maybe the best is still to come with him but Have Faith in Me has really stepped it up. Since it was a slow night on tv - age group winners at 2, 3 & 4 over last 30 years for a bit of useless trivia. Colts/geldings - Jenner, Chokin, Il Vicolo, Courage Under Fire, Paramount Geegee Fillies/mares - Hilarious Guest, Tigerish, Under Cover Lover, Tupelo Rose, Escapee and likely Venus Serena

Not exactly, not so much gaining an advantage as allowing the horse to perform to its full potential. A wind operation improves breathing but doesn't necessarily correlate with increased total lung capacity, gas exchange or pulmonary circulation. In theory performance should improve post op vs not having the procedure done but doesn't guarantee they will grow another leg.

All good Duncan. I was merely curious - you'd stressed the point regarding the manner of the win a few times and I thought you might have had some inside info. It wasn't meant to be an inflammatory comment but re-reading I can see how it could be perceived that way. The mare did go a huge race. I wouldn't be surprised if her next run is fairly ordinary though - mixing form seems to be one of the few constants so far. Her previous win was a bit out of the blue based on prior form

BWD what exactly are you implying.... with raised eyebrows? For someone that deals in facts you obviously know something the rest of us don't?

There are a number of articles claiming they are as effective at reducing bleeding as treating horses with Lasix. Given they're not that expensive and pre race treatment for EIPH isn't allowed I'm surprised they're not more popular.