Hastings Abandoned

[Charlie Bukowski]

If the track manager can't get it right by now, he never will.

Full track renovation , get real , especially if they are back racing April 13th ..

[MissJools]

22 hours ago, scooby3051 said:

Great planning  before a Group 1 2400m race...they really don't have a clue

Oi, don't have a go at me.  I'm just the messenger, NZTR and the patterns committee have decided to run the race at Taupo. iT HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH ME!!!

[nomates]

16 minutes ago, MissJools said:

Oi, don't have a go at me.  I'm just the messenger, NZTR and the patterns committee have decided to run the race at Taupo. iT HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH ME!!!

Your yelling again , anger management classes not working ?

[Insider]

28 minutes ago, MissJools said:

Oi, don't have a go at me.  I'm just the messenger, NZTR and the patterns committee have decided to run the race at Taupo. iT HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH ME!!!

Two points:

1] When Scooby said: Great planning  before a Group 1 2400m race...they really don't have a clue, I don't think that he was having a go at you.

2] Did you accidentally type your last sentence the wrong way around? In other words with the Caps lock on, because you started the sentence with a small i?

Or maybe you have caught it from Pogo. n0?

[chiknsmack]

6 hours ago, Insider said:

When Scooby said: Great planning  before a Group 1 2400m race...they really don't have a clue, I don't think that he was having a go at you.

I think you've stumbled upon the truth. Miss Jools doesn't work for the TAB, she works for NZTR.

To your "full renovation" point, I take what they're doing at Awapuni (starting from scratch, adding sand to the soil to improve drainage, installing new drainage and irrigation) to be a full renovation. Washing a house doesn't count as a renovation, nor does mowing a track and cleaning up debris.

[scooby3051]

11 hours ago, MissJools said:

Oi, don't have a go at me.  I'm just the messenger, NZTR and the patterns committee have decided to run the race at Taupo. iT HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH ME!!!

Geez I think you are a bit cuckoo...please show where I had a go at you...I think you need to take your meds more regularly..they will help....

[Leggy]

On 3/1/2024 at 6:47 PM, Insider said:

Ok Leggy, educate me. What would a farmer consider a full renovation of a pasture.

P.S. I forgot about the under-sowing that we always did.

What chiknsmack said.

[Shad]

20 hours ago, scooby3051 said:

Geez I think you are a bit cuckoo...please show where I had a go at you...I think you need to take your meds more regularly..they will help....

Looks like a pending jool in the pipeline

[Insider]

Hastings update. 

This morning I had the opportunity to call into the Hastings racecourse, peep over the running rail and see what’s happening. 

Guess what Leggy and Chiksnsmack it’s exactly as I explained and expected.

Just because (as always Leggy) wants to read more into it, or change what the writer has written doesn’t make him right!

Once again the truth is that it’s a renovation of the Hastings track , not a rebuild!

Anyway, from what I could see the grass has been cut right back (hence it browned off) debris was removed, divots filled, fertiliser applied, under sewed  and is now in the process of being irrigated for maximum grass growth in time for the HB Cup meeting. 

Interestingly, the irrigation was of a moveable variety and was placed in the very centre of the track for the full circumference of the track so that both sides of the course got equal watering, subject of course to the wind. 
 

 

[Leggy]

That still sounds more like routine maintenance than a full renovation to me. Exactly what that meant was dependent on the detailed plan they said they would provide once finalised. Presumably they now have that if work is already underway, but I haven't seen it yet? Did I miss something?

NZTR and the Club have also agreed to immediately undertake a full renovation of the Hastings turf to regain confidence in the track. More information will be provided by NZTR regarding this process once a detailed plan has been finalised.

[rdytdy]

55 minutes ago, Insider said:

Hastings update. 

This morning I had the opportunity to call into the Hastings racecourse, peep over the running rail and see what’s happening. 

Guess what Leggy and Chiksnsmack it’s exactly as I explained and expected.

Just because (as always Leggy) wants to read more into it, or change what the writer has written doesn’t make him right!

Once again the truth is that it’s a renovation of the Hastings track , not a rebuild!

Anyway, from what I could see the grass has been cut right back (hence it browned off) debris was removed, divots filled, fertiliser applied, under sewed  and is now in the process of being irrigated for maximum grass growth in time for the HB Cup meeting. 

Interestingly, the irrigation was of a moveable variety and was placed in the very centre of the track for the full circumference of the track so that both sides of the course got equal watering, subject of course to the wind. 
 

 

The Hawkes Bay Cup meeting is to be run at Otaki on Saturday 13th:   

Saturday 13 April

This meeting will now be an Otaki-Maori RC Licence at Otaki (previously Hawke’s Bay). The programme advertised, including the Hawke’s Bay Cup and City of Napier Sprint, will be held on this day to avoid any disruption to both programming and the black-type pattern previously advertised. The stake for what was advertised as The Poverty Bay Cup will revert to $40,000. The Poverty Bay Cup will now be run on the Open 2100m race at the Hawke’s Bay meeting on Saturday 27 April for the previously advertised stake of $55,000.

[Insider]

31 minutes ago, Leggy said:

That still sounds more like routine maintenance than a full renovation to me. Exactly what that meant was dependent on the detailed plan they said they would provide once finalised. Presumably they now have that if work is already underway, but I haven't seen it yet? Did I miss something?

NZTR and the Club have also agreed to immediately undertake a full renovation of the Hastings turf to regain confidence in the track. More information will be provided by NZTR regarding this process once a detailed plan has been finalised.

Once again you prefer to read something the way you want to, rather than what is being said. 

Once again it’s not a “rebuild” of the Hastings track, it’s simply a renovation. 

I would call Awapuni and Ellerslie a rebuild, not a renovation. 
 

[Idolmite]

6 minutes ago, Insider said:

Once again you prefer to read something the way you want to, rather than what is being said. 

Once again it’s not a “rebuild” of the Hastings track, it’s simply a renovation. 

I would call Awapuni and Ellerslie a rebuild, not a renovation. 
 

So what will we call Trentham? How many years is it going to be closed for? "Reinvention?" "Resuscitation?"

Rebuild and/or renovation certainly won't do 

[nomates]

Part Renovation , full renovation or rebuild , whatever they are doing cutting the grass and resewing therefore replacing the removed grass with new isn't really fixing the real issue causing the issues , the structure of the soil . Doesn't matter what you have on top if the stuff underneath isn't fixed .

I don't get this part time renovation crap , haven't they learnt from the ongoing issues at Awapuni and Otaki from doing bits and pieces  , all the while never really solving the underlying problem .

Hence the complete rebuild of Awapuni .

You can't ignore the problems with tracks for decades and then suddenly try and fix a large chunk of them over a short span of time . 

Famine or feast comes to mind . 

[chiknsmack]

2 hours ago, Insider said:

Guess what Leggy and Chiknsmack it’s exactly as I explained and expected.

Unfortunately it's not as NZTR explained and I expected. And I have doubts that it's enough to fix the problems with the track. Good luck to them though.

[Leggy]

8 hours ago, nomates said:

Part Renovation , full renovation or rebuild , whatever they are doing cutting the grass and resewing therefore replacing the removed grass with new isn't really fixing the real issue causing the issues , the structure of the soil . Doesn't matter what you have on top if the stuff underneath isn't fixed .

I don't get this part time renovation crap , haven't they learnt from the ongoing issues at Awapuni and Otaki from doing bits and pieces  , all the while never really solving the underlying problem .

Hence the complete rebuild of Awapuni .

You can't ignore the problems with tracks for decades and then suddenly try and fix a large chunk of them over a short span of time . 

Famine or feast comes to mind . 

Yes, I don't see how simply resowing it can possibly remedy the recurrent issues. It is not the grass that's the problem. And even if that's all they've done, there is surely no way it will be ready for racing before next season. I await the detailed plan from NZTR with interest.

[Contentious]

How many tracks in New Zealand are mown with a proper catcher for ALL of the grass clippings every mow? ( I know the answer).

If these clippings were fully removed from the track every mow they would not be left to rot on the ground and act as a cover so that natural light, heat and rain can penetrate the soil structure more easily. This would allow dampness to penetrate deeper into the soil. The clippings would also not be there to increase slippage chances.

A full renovation in my opinion would involve a ploughing of the topsoil allowing it to aerate before resowing.

 

[Mattski]

Thanks for the update Insider.  Hopefully they can at least get the track in top shape for the spring carnival.

[rdytdy]

4 hours ago, Leggy said:

Yes, I don't see how simply resowing it can possibly remedy the recurrent issues. It is not the grass that's the problem. And even if that's all they've done, there is surely no way it will be ready for racing before next season. I await the detailed plan from NZTR with interest.

 

If you read the NZTR staement I put up for Insider a few posts ago it states they will be back for April 27th. 

[Leggy]

41 minutes ago, rdytdy said:

 

If you read the NZTR staement I put up for Insider a few posts ago it states they will be back for April 27th. 

I see that but I'm questioning whether or not that is realistic. Previous NZTR reports on the Hastings track have not been.

[Leggy]

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.

[Nerula]

On 3/15/2024 at 8:33 AM, Contentious said:

How many tracks in New Zealand are mown with a proper catcher for ALL of the grass clippings every mow? ( I know the answer).

If these clippings were fully removed from the track every mow they would not be left to rot on the ground and act as a cover so that natural light, heat and rain can penetrate the soil structure more easily. This would allow dampness to penetrate deeper into the soil. The clippings would also not be there to increase slippage chances.

A full renovation in my opinion would involve a ploughing of the topsoil allowing it to aerate before resowing.

 

Yes you have nailed it. The problem surely is thatch. The grass seed was heavily fertilised and the growth astonishing right from germination. The problem will be helped when the fertiliser load reduces and a more normal growth pattern occurs. In days gone by sheep was the answer. Get the rakes out?

[Leggy]

2 minutes ago, Nerula said:

Yes you have nailed it. The problem surely is thatch. The grass seed was heavily fertilised and the growth astonishing right from germination. The problem will be helped when the fertiliser load reduces and a more normal growth pattern occurs. In days gone by sheep was the answer. Get the rakes out?

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

[Ponderosa8]

Bit worried about the races at Woodville today.. 

I understand they don't have any irrigation there and the track is currently shown as a Good 4. But if they're now getting the rain/drizzle that has started here in the Hawkes Bay then you have to wonder whether they end up with a slippery surface and the the dreaded A word..

[eljay]

Hastings will be getting a reputation