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We're Doomed

Bit of a rant

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Bit of a rant about a pet subject of mine, of no interest to many I know.

I find it a pity that on the weekend before "Cup Week" the Canterbury meeting has largely $10,000 races. It's a bit like Victoria racing at Ararat the weekend before Melbourne Cup week, rather than Moonee Valley. I have no problem with a meeting at Banks Pen, but some slightly better stakes would be nice.  It tends to indicate to me that there is too big a gap between the $25,000 lower grade races one week and $10,000 races the next week. Some middle ground might be nice.

It is also interesting to see 37 noms for the maiden 1,400m and 28 for the rating 65 1,400m. I wonder if they will split those two to form five races, bearing in mind that they only start 12 horses from all start points. It does make one wonder why Riccarton only programmed eight races last week with no maiden. I feel this obsession with eight race programmes is ruining our racing and forcing horses to be continually racing outside of their favoured class and distance. A maiden 1,400m at Riccarton would only have cost $10,000 and produced the biggest field of the day. Bit of a no-brainer I would have thought.

I do feel this sort of thing is symptomatic of the lack of real racing knowledge among those charged with running this industry. Great at big picture stuff (well perhaps not) but quite useless at getting the basics right. I don't really think this aspect was covered in that recent report either.

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Yep....but from recollection the noms at Riccarton weren't over-flash.

That may reflect the reservations some have for the compacted nature of the Riccarton track and their preference to race elsewhere.

As for the stakes - that is merely the absurd notion of 'tiering' racing....as we well know there little genuine 'tiered' racing,  only tiered stakes...and heaven forbid,  that a one-day -a-year-soon-to-be-obsolete club and track should run a well-staked ' introduction' into Cup week.

 

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2 hours ago, We're Doomed said:

Bit of a rant about a pet subject of mine, of no interest to many I know.

I find it a pity that on the weekend before "Cup Week" the Canterbury meeting has largely $10,000 races. It's a bit like Victoria racing at Ararat the weekend before Melbourne Cup week, rather than Moonee Valley. I have no problem with a meeting at Banks Pen, but some slightly better stakes would be nice.  It tends to indicate to me that there is too big a gap between the $25,000 lower grade races one week and $10,000 races the next week. Some middle ground might be nice.

It is also interesting to see 37 noms for the maiden 1,400m and 28 for the rating 65 1,400m. I wonder if they will split those two to form five races, bearing in mind that they only start 12 horses from all start points. It does make one wonder why Riccarton only programmed eight races last week with no maiden. I feel this obsession with eight race programmes is ruining our racing and forcing horses to be continually racing outside of their favoured class and distance. A maiden 1,400m at Riccarton would only have cost $10,000 and produced the biggest field of the day. Bit of a no-brainer I would have thought.

I do feel this sort of thing is symptomatic of the lack of real racing knowledge among those charged with running this industry. Great at big picture stuff (well perhaps not) but quite useless at getting the basics right. I don't really think this aspect was covered in that recent report either.

Its is just another area that needs to be looked at and has needed a great deal of attention for some time and is steadily getting worse, just listen to trainers who can't find races for their horses an absurd scenario, the programming seems like it is set up with cost reduction in mind instead of revenue generation which it should be.

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1 hour ago, talk said:

To add to this situation is  that horses winning a $10,000 race get the same rehandicap as they would if they won a $30,000 race. This to me seems slightly absurd.

They are the same horses in the same class of race...so of course they will get the same re-rating.

The stake is irrelevant in this scenario.

That is why 'tiered racing'  is an absolute crock in NZ.

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Idiots in charge everywhere, what do you expect?

I am sick and tired of telling you or trying to explain what is wrong. 

At least I had the brains not to be a sheep like the 1600 of you, who wasted time, putting in a submission to the Messara Report THAT WONT BE READ. 

:rcfe-gay:

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14 hours ago, Pam Robson said:

Yep....but from recollection the noms at Riccarton weren't over-flash.

That may reflect the reservations some have for the compacted nature of the Riccarton track and their preference to race elsewhere.

As for the stakes - that is merely the absurd notion of 'tiering' racing....as we well know there little genuine 'tiered' racing,  only tiered stakes...and heaven forbid,  that a one-day -a-year-soon-to-be-obsolete club and track should run a well-staked ' introduction' into Cup week.

 

...and remembering..when Motukarara used to be the very popular lead-up to the Cup meeting,  when good horses like Royal Cadenza targeted the B.P. Cup,  and three year olds also..Brown Satin [ if my memory serves me rightly ] won a highweight there - yes, a three year old filly in a highweight in the spring,  horrors - before taking out the [ then ] NZ Oaks...more recently Ultra Sound also winning there before taking on three year old fillies at Riccarton.

Then the CJC 'absorbed' the North Canterbury / Amberley clubs,  and tried to make races at Rangiora the 'lead up'  - and we know what happened then.

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2 hours ago, Pam Robson said:

...and remembering..when Motukarara used to be the very popular lead-up to the Cup meeting,  when good horses like Royal Cadenza targeted the B.P. Cup,  and three year olds also..Brown Satin [ if my memory serves me rightly ] won a highweight there - yes, a three year old filly in a highweight in the spring,  horrors - before taking out the [ then ] NZ Oaks...more recently Ultra Sound also winning there before taking on three year old fillies at Riccarton.

Then the CJC 'absorbed' the North Canterbury / Amberley clubs,  and tried to make races at Rangiora the 'lead up'  - and we know what happened then.

You have a very good memory Pam. Back in the 80s  Banks Pen had feature meeting status with higher stakes. Even the  maidens raced for $7,000, higher than at Riccarton. So the maidens at Banks Pen have moved $3,000 in about 35 years.  And yes the Banks Pen Cup used to be run for a very good stake. I did smile at Ultra Sound being "more recently". That was 1987. Incidentally she won the $15,000 3yo race at Banks Pen. Western Lea won the 3yo on the first day at Riccarton in a $7,500 race, $4,700 to the winner. Class 4 horses raced for a winning stake of $5,000 at Banks Pen, whereas they raced for a winning stake of $4,400 at Riccarton. Things have certainly changed since then. For the better? Who knows,? But it is certainly what some people are wanting to see happen even more. I am afraid the smaller clubs have all had the guts and any inspirational incentives knocked out of them long ago.

On course turnover of $211,856 at Banks Pen back in 1987. Perhaps the most interesting thing back then though: every single race at Banks Pen had a sponsor. Riccarton didn't bother with most of theirs; Graduation Maiden, Waimairi Handicap, Pioneer Handicap, Brighton Handicap: such exciting, time honoured names.

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In a similar vein why on earth did the CJC race at all last Saturday. there were 2 premier meetings up north and yet they decided to run against them. The upshot was rider issues at all venues when the obvious solution was for the CJC to run on the Sunday. Far too logical obviously.

Greg

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16 hours ago, talk said:

To add to this situation is  that horses winning a $10,000 race get the same rehandicap as they would if they won a $30,000 race. This to me seems slightly absurd.

The horses don't know what stake they are racing for , they put in the same effort no matter what the stake . What is absurd is lining up for 10k when you can line up for 25k a few days later for the same cost .

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44 minutes ago, JJ Flash said:

In a similar vein why on earth did the CJC race at all last Saturday. there were 2 premier meetings up north and yet they decided to run against them. The upshot was rider issues at all venues when the obvious solution was for the CJC to run on the Sunday. Far too logical obviously.

Greg

I wonder how much loss of turnover there would be if they did run on the Sunday.  I know in my house Saturday is my day in front of the TV watching trackside and having a bet, it becomes rocky ground at home with the family when I suggest i'm watching races and having a bet on Sunday as well.  Also when people are on track with a say a group of mates who are just casual race followers they will bet inter-track but won't give the races a look the next day. 

But yes the jockey quality does get a bit thin when there are three meeting on one day in NZ. Maybe when there are to be three meetings one of them should be a low stakes money meeting and the jockeys who would be struggling to get a full book at the feature two meetings would be better off going to the low grade meeting.

 

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Aaron - move the 3rd NZ meeting to Any other date without an NZTR meting, and turnover would go up - especially for the two remaining Saturday meetings and Moonee Valley.

A few years ago Counties came off a Sunday to race alongside Hasting's Windsor Park Stks day and Riccarton on the Saturday.  Not only did Counties turnover go down but Hastings' dropped $800,000.

Fortunately this insanity has stopped and Counties are off the Saturday.

The bigger the pie the better it is for everyone.

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19 hours ago, talk said:

To add to this situation is  that horses winning a $10,000 race get the same rehandicap as they would if they won a $30,000 race. This to me seems slightly absurd.

That's because they are racing against the same quality of horses, just more of them in the 30k race than the 10k usually. No significant difference between the winning performances. That's what is absurd.

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