RaceCafe..#1...Tipsters Thread.... Share Your Fancies For Fun...Lets See Who The Best Tipsters Here Are.
john legend

HRNZ vision Statement

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The vision statement for HRNZ READS AS FOLLOWS....HARNESSING EXCITEMENT SERVICE INTEGRITY AND PROSPERITY FOR OUR STAKEHOLDERS AND CUSTOMERS.... would all Board Members have the guts to front up to those trainers in the central districts and explain how they are honouring their own vision statement. ? Dozens of these trainers from wellington to hunterville and up to New Plymouth have established facilities for harness racing at large personal cost to enable them to provide horses for racing centred on Manawatu Raceway. To give 70 licences to ak and Cambridge and nil to Manawatu or any racetrack in  the area is in stark contrast to the vision statement and could be open to legal challenge if not corrected . We all accept there is pain and suffering but lets not reward areas and close others down. It simply is a disgrace and maybe national awareness through publicity is the only remedy. 

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7 trainers listed in wellington area... including Dennis Kessell at Mangaroa who had 3 wins this season, helped by Bill Marwick. There are approx. 30 active trainers in the wider area including Doug Gale,Scott Dickson,Bryan norman,Phil and Willie Fleming,Steven Doody,Wendy Devenport,Fred Mitchell,Allan Pyers, Murray Gibbs Fred Mitchell, There are another 100 approx. people working in various stables as well as a host of owners.The actual numbers of horses varies but the bigger stables eg. Scott Dickson had 149 starts this season,Doug Gale 94,Bryan Norman,85 Phil Fleming 58 Steven Doody,82Fred Mitchell 72,Wendy devenport 29.  The Raceway did get regular support from trainers from Marlborough region and Cambridge .

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The most important question to ask, is could these 5 trainers in Wellington plus their counterparts in the Manawatu put on a race meeting of 10 races with no less than 10 horses per race without relying on people to bring horses in from Canterbury, Cambridge or Auckland

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That is a stupid argument.It doesn't cost HRNZ or the TAB anything if trainers and owners from outside the district decide to race at Manawatu.How do you think they are going to be able to hold a meeting in Nelson.Will the NZ cup only be eligible to Canterbury horses.Do you want to kill off all owners,trainers etc in the smaller districts just to keep the major areas happy with less traveling.How long will harness racing last if this is allowed to happen.

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High Eljay, thanks for comment The borders move somewhat with infohprse. Otaki often included also w airarapa. Bryan Taylor is in the process of retiring and has horses for sale. a pity as a fine trainer and person.(Masterton) Many of these trainers were booted out when hutt Park was not saved by HRNZ and now face similar fate. No wonder they find the "so what " comments  from smart asses on this site hard to take. yes Micktap great analysis . even Auckland needs trainers from Cambridge to bolster their numerically weak fields . 

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It's not a stupid argument at all. It is increasigly more difficult to find people to race horses. The main reason for this is the shear cost of racing, the travel costs, the accomodation costs for trainers and drivers and the high cost of training fees. If people can race horses at their local meeting, for good stakes  then more owners will be happy to continue to race a horse

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I'm an owner and as far as travel costs go, they are miniscule compared to breeding and training. Racing in Taranaki was almost always a day trip unless it was a two day meeting. If you have a very good horse, then even Aussie is on the cards (had successful campaigns with 2 trotters). However, we've always looked at the bottom line and with the high nomination fees the Met charges, in recent years it simply wasn't cost effective to send a horse down for the North Island for the Rowe Cup unless certain of getting in the first three. Also have to think of horse welfare with the long trip  - we've had horses injured and dehydrated, so below par performances

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Show me an example of me using a caustic reference to others as virtually collateral damage. What I am saying is that the decision has been made and we will now have to live with it

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Stables.Stupid decisions can be changed or do you think they are good decisions because in the short term you may better off.Think of the long term life of harness racing.Keep chipping away at the foundations and eventually the top will fall over.

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3 hours ago, john legend said:

 . even Auckland needs trainers from Cambridge to bolster their numerically weak fields . 

and John (believe it or not) Cambridge need horses from the Auckland region for exactly the same reason.

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7 hours ago, Stables said:

The most important question to ask, is could these 5 trainers in Wellington plus their counterparts in the Manawatu put on a race meeting of 10 races with no less than 10 horses per race without relying on people to bring horses in from Canterbury, Cambridge or Auckland

What  does it really matter  of how many horses trained in the area  worry so many.If I want to go somehere that I think will be a bit easier

to get a bit of money I will go ,be it Manawatu or Forbury .It's my expense to get them there. No cost at all to HRNZ or TAB ,just me A lot  of the horses

goin round  not up to racing Addington .If not careful  will end up only have four or five big stables racing against each other , and won't that be interesting .

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I'm sure that with good programming we will be able to cater for all levels of ability and ensure that fields are made up with horses of similar ability. Racing will never get down to the 4 or 5 big stables you are talking about

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36 minutes ago, Stables said:

I'm sure that with good programming we will be able to cater for all levels of ability and ensure that fields are made up with horses of similar ability. Racing will never get down to the 4 or 5 big stables you are talking about

Normally I have about a hundred starters a year  ,but that is all about to change with the current set up ,and not just me ,plenty of others like me.

With the likelihood of much reduced stakes , trainers won't be able to charge the same ,with the reduced returns.Battlers will go,owners will go and only the elite will

remain .

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1 hour ago, Wobbler said:

What  does it really matter  of how many horses trained in the area  worry so many.If I want to go somehere that I think will be a bit easier

to get a bit of money I will go ,be it Manawatu or Forbury .It's my expense to get them there. No cost at all to HRNZ or TAB ,just me A lot  of the horses

goin round  not up to racing Addington .If not careful  will end up only have four or five big stables racing against each other , and won't that be interesting .

Feedback from folk in ownership in recent years has suggested that the cost was become a discouragement which didn't look good for the future.

Stakes have been stagnant for a while ,yet costs rise annually and despite optimism from TAB and the ATC building plans , the gap was only likely to decrease especially with Harness betting dropping off significantly.Once sports get a better return for their betting ,Harness in more trouble.

So transport seen as a cost to the industry , so HRNZ looking to have more races closer to the horse population.

Re betting on  NZ Harness....in the July 2019 year Harness on course betting was down 13% , while off course down 13 % too while FO up slightly.

Total domestic T/O down 8% , exported T/O down 22%.

Trainers may be prepared to travel long distances to get easier opposition.....I'd suggest with the increase in racing at Addington especially there will be more like for like ,and I'dassume in North as well.

Obviously the TAB has tired of travelling the length and breadth of NZ as well......many claim on here that racing on over 60 tracks doesn't cost the TAB or racing any money.

I beg to differ......the payout of Stakes to Funding is usually between 60 - 80 % but is below 60% at some tracks .....Ive only seen the Gallops numbers for 2019 but assume trots similar.

This means a decent dollop of TAB funding goes into admin and raceday expenses.

There is also the odd bit of funding given out for track maintenance and safety reasons.

The insolvency of the TAB and the halt to racing and betting which basically crippled the Industry has sped up changes which have been well overdue.

If I was an enthusiastic member of a club stunned by closure ,Id be dipping into Club nest egg to run a couple of meetings ,to maybe resuscitate local membership ,interest and enthusiasm to prove a tracks fitness to survive and flourish well into the future !

Create , don't cry !

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Only just under a week to first harness meeting (at Addington).    They need patrons on course with smiley ladies behind the betting counters.      Not a word about this from the pooh bahs.    Tomorrow "she" will announce loosening on gathering numbers (cafes, bars, church services, funerals etc.) but not a word on racing meetings or trials you can guarantee.      Most of those groups who  will get relief are those who have been making a "noise" over the last 1 or 2 weeks.      Silence from racing.     People at the races keeping  whatever separations are required are no different from people 1 metre apart in cafe & bars.       But it is typical of an industry who have big fat asses and are very good at sitting on them.

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