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Barry Lichter

Grass track circuit all but dead

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Another nail in the coffin for harness racing in the north with the news today that there will be only one grass track meeting this summer.

The latest to bite the dust is the popular holiday meeting at Te Aroha on January 11 with the track found to be too uneven and rough for harness racing.

With Te Awamutu out for track upgrading, and Tauranga and Thames ruled out for "scheduling and broadcasting logistics issues" it leaves only Rotorua on January 26 in the north.

What happened to the days when harness racing was taken to the holiday crowds and we had a circuit that, as well as the above, included Ruakaka, Avondale and even Pukekohe?

What will happen to all those horses who were religiously set for these meetings and regularly ensured record entries?

I looked forward to going to those summer picnic days but, sorry, another meeting at Cambridge just doesn't cut it.

Cambridge CEO David Branch obviously did his best - even pitching to RITA a plan to race three meetings at Thames only to be knocked back because of "broadcasting constraints."

I see Otaki has been granted one grass track day on January 6, when they always had a popular two-day meeting.

Don't the people running this declining show recognise the importance of taking racing to the people over summer? 

 

 

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I guess when check lists come in ,minimum standards ,Health and safety and Racing Integrity the modern catchword nowdays some of these historic holiday joys are now deemed inappropriate.

It's now a serious business.

Costly for the participants and geared up so punting is best done in a padded cell at home or on line while you lay on the beach and watch on your phone.

Definitely no place for family fun and entertainment.

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The under-utilised Thames track was the obvious venue for multiple meetings over summer but for those "scheduling and broadcasting logistics issues" that Trackside claimed - I've owned winners at every Northern grass track summer venue (other that Te Aroha) over the years and it's really sad to see these great family meetings going down the gurgler!

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2 hours ago, We're Doomed said:

I think the administration is getting further and further removed from the grass roots. In the SI there are more and more grass track meetings; Oamaru and Marlborough are just two who have turned to grass track racing, I'm sure there are others.

The South Island seems to still have plenty of horses willing to chase $8,000. races.

This week the South has 4 meetings ....Thurs,Fri, Sat and Sun with OK field numbers ,only the better classes a little short.This despite the fact that many of the Group horses are in Auckland either racing Friday or trialling Saturday in prep to race thru December.

The ATC announced 2x yrs ago they wanted a 'better' class of horse ,tho that aim surely has been downgraded.

Manawatu is now propped up by Mainlanders .

The bottom line is that horse numbers much higher in the South , the facts show this.

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Racing, whether harness or tbred used to be an owner/breeder orientated activity for entertainment.    People went to the local meeting purely for social & entertaining purposes and many of the local farmers had horses they trained as a hobby.    Then the big ogre arrived whose objective was simply to make money and their influence has become so intrusive as to completely stifle the codes/clubs,    Racing has become completely profit driven by a body which is only interested so long as they make money and damn anyone else.    How many can remember the on course only equalisator picnic meetings that were regularly held over the summer months?      

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The biggest head scratcher is Tauranga. My understanding is the former Bay of Plenty HRC have entitlements to race at the track effectively for free once a year but because of the glut of gallops meetings in December/January they can’t get on there anymore. Surely there is a workable solution for them to slot in somewhere?

Thames is a horror show with a crossing on the point of the turn.

Te Aroha was an abomination track-wise last year.

No one ever went to Avondale and Kumeu TC no longer have a racing license.

The Whangarei RC didn’t want the trots on their track anymore and the Northland HRC got wound up. Auckland TC should be looking to pursue a meeting there.

Pukekohe I’m not sure what happened there? But I would guess ATC just said no thanks. 

 

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It would appear that as the grand plan of closing most grass tracks and selling them to boost the chosen few has come unstuck most spectacularly the industry leaders are now in a mood to reduce,reduce until we wake up one day (maybe soon) and the previous great industry picnic days are only a pleasant memory. SHAME ON THE F B s. :rcf-demon-1:

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Toblerone I am disappointed as well that the former Bay Of Plenty Harness Racing Club have not managed to secure a date for a grass track meeting at Tauranga this season. The Club has a great history of grass track racing. Up to the early 70’s they staged a popular two day meeting over Anniversary Weekend. They catered for allcomers. For example on the 1/2/65 they staged 13 races for 182 horses! Trainers came from all over the North Island and camped out over the long weekend. Tents aplenty in the infield and stabling areas. Fishing trips were organised on the Sunday. In the late 70’s the Club drew up a plan to put down an all weather track on the inside of the galloping track. The proposed new track was surveyed and ready to go but for some reason never went ahead. Presumably a conflict arose about the rental situation between the Harness and Racing Clubs. Soon after the Bay club controversially decided to race at Cambridge. Earlier this century they decided to bring back their Anniversary Sunday date back to Tauranga. It has proved to be very popular with a huge picnic crowd enjoying grass track racing. As a former sponsor of the Club and a successful Owner- Trainer from the Tauranga grass track I hope that grass track racing will be reinstated sooner rather than later!

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Blue - to me it's a no brainer.      You would get 2 meetings instead of one even though they were the same horses.      If the first day was successful then surely the second day would be as well, and costs for the 2 days would not be double those for 1 day as a lot of the set up charges would cover the 2 days rather than just 1 day.    Officialdom can be so dumb - and regrettably this will never change, because their egos dictate they know better than the rest of us.     Sure accommodation could be a small problem but many of the trainers, owners etc. made the trip north part of their holiday adventure and camped at the beach, camp ground etc.     

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