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

CD harness racing to be thrown a lifeline

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49 minutes ago, JJ Flash said:

Start at the top . HRNZ board and senior management are amateurs trying to run a multi million dollar business with lots of competition. None of them have proven to be up the the job especially at board level. No innovation and almost a jobs for life  attitude which exists no where these days in private sector.

 

Greg

Whilst in agreement I wonder how this would pan out?

2 of the appointments are direct appointments by NZMTC and ATC, 2 are Independent Appointments that follow an election

The Clubs of New Zealand, excluding NZMTC and ATC, only get to vote on 4 nominees

If ATC's right to 1 appointment is because they run the same number of race days as NZMTC that's gone by the board now hasn't it?

Mikie

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2 hours ago, tasman man 11 said:

Sadly John the cake has been shrinking and getting smaller every year......decay and rot in some cases.

Last season betting on Harness was down around 13% , which should equate to less funding.

Something needs to be done ,but Harness folk can't agree exactly what.

The halcyon days of 1970's won't be repeated ,if they were in fact so good..........

What would you do the improve profitablity of Harness and future-proof of the sport  ?

In many ways you have the same days for racing in palmy Tuesdays and Thursday,so in reality as with Forbury  the same days as before so there is a possibility the same results may occur,so the calander needs a complete overhaul,maximising turnover is the number 1 in keeping going.Areas like C D need a clear week so they get all the focus,no reason why 2 days at palmy cant be added to 1 day in Taranaki on the way in or the way out to make it worthwhile for owners but also give good numbers,Nelson andBlenhiem have clear weeks for their January meetings so it's the number 1 meeting for those weeks,same should apply to Forbury,maybe a main meeting on friday with a lesser meeting on a sunday,same as what they are doing at present with addington now instead of just being poked in here and poked in there.Even some sports can get it right soccer have international windows where the focus is on internationals then it reverts back to club soccer ,sometimes that break from the same old same old is good if harness wants a diet of Auckland and Cambridge in the north and Addington and Invercargill in the South week after week be interesting to see if it gets rather tiresome after a while,sometimes a bit of variety is good in all things.

Well that's what I reckon anyway.

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Consultation,Compromise and Common Sence can make a better product for everyone everywhere for the betterment  of Harness racing but any other sport as well,gallops and trots need to work together and not in opposites,neither these days have the luxury of being burden with lots of cash/betting turnover so pulling in opposites will only drag it down further.

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John Grainger is the NZ Met appointment. He is from a good management background and has also worked in the Civil service. I think he would make a far better chairman. The most important thing that has to be dealt with urgently is getting rid of the 2 days a week chief executive. We need a competent person at the helm even if it is to bring back Edward Rennell. He has a wealth of knowledge and is a safe pair of hands

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36 minutes ago, Stables said:

John Grainger is the NZ Met appointment. He is from a good management background and has also worked in the Civil service. I think he would make a far better chairman. The most important thing that has to be dealt with urgently is getting rid of the 2 days a week chief executive. We need a competent person at the helm even if it is to bring back Edward Rennell. He has a wealth of knowledge and is a safe pair of hands

Is that you Stables? or has your Account been hacked?

Mikie

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T man,, have often put my sermon in writing.but for the benefit of the TAB,RITA and HRNZ.. the important aspects of a successful Business are promote promote, promote. Unfortunately recent times are dont dont dont. EG. no boxseat,no TV promos, let colourful people go,no competitions,close TABs, no form books, no newspaper racing info.nothing to make harness racing exciting,eg.big national news Ricky collapses.everyone talking about it.Ricky recovers and wins ....big tv news. not bloody likely . typical mindset almost defeatist attitude. saving a few dollars, close a few more racecourses great that will mean turnovers continue to go down. on course activities almost non existent with exception of Andre Neil but presume his budget cut to say $1.50 per meeting. if he hasnt been given the DCM !!!! ITsPROBABLY ALREADY TOO LATE but Wake up NZ HR. We have a good product lets tell people about it.

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No it's really me Mike. The problems we are having with the Management of HRNZ at both Executive and Board level stem from the system that the industry operates under. The decision makers all the way through are at Committee level from the Clubs to the Board of HRNZ. The people that have real skin in the game like Trainers, owners, drivers and breeders have no input into the management of their industry. If a committee person or a Board member make wrong or poor decisions it has no real effect on them. If it's bad enough they might have to resign their position. The people who have a considerable financial investment in the industry can't just walk away, however. Those decisions effect their livelihood. It's time that people are called to account for their poor decisions and it's time that people with large investments in the industry were given representation at Board level. The cry of the rebellious Americans in their war of independence was No taxation without representation. Why should owners , trainers and breeders pay anything to HRNZ without representation at board level. The decision making process would be considerably enhanced if it effected your livelihood

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46 minutes ago, Stables said:

No it's really me Mike. The problems we are having with the Management of HRNZ at both Executive and Board level stem from the system that the industry operates under. The decision makers all the way through are at Committee level from the Clubs to the Board of HRNZ. The people that have real skin in the game like Trainers, owners, drivers and breeders have no input into the management of their industry. If a committee person or a Board member make wrong or poor decisions it has no real effect on them. If it's bad enough they might have to resign their position. The people who have a considerable financial investment in the industry can't just walk away, however. Those decisions effect their livelihood. It's time that people are called to account for their poor decisions and it's time that people with large investments in the industry were given representation at Board level. The cry of the rebellious Americans in their war of independence was No taxation without representation. Why should owners , trainers and breeders pay anything to HRNZ without representation at board level. The decision making process would be considerably enhanced if it effected your livelihood

Cannot totally agree with you Stables

When the Clubs elected the whole Board we had people with real skin in the game

Worked because Owners and Trainers had a lot of influence at Club Committee level, or those on Committee's knew who to vote for, as you said, those with skin in the game

It has only been after the alterations to the voting system plus the love for PC governance that we have gone downhill

Mikie

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You are right to a certain degree Mike, but the fact is because of our committee structure we're now in the shit, because people with no real knowledge of the game have put the current Board in charge. This Board, with our part time chief executive are now going to have to argue Harness racings case to hold onto the funding levels we have had in the past. How do you think they will fare?

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1 hour ago, Stables said:

You are right to a certain degree Mike, but the fact is because of our committee structure we're now in the shit, because people with no real knowledge of the game have put the current Board in charge. This Board, with our part time chief executive are now going to have to argue Harness racings case to hold onto the funding levels we have had in the past. How do you think they will fare?

Again, I cannot agree. The Committee structure delivered us excellent Administrators. They just happened to be called Conference members back then. It has been the tinkering with appointments and the voting structure that had delivered us the current hotch potch (John Coolum excepted)

I I am pretty sure my posts on other threads have covered my thoughts on how they will cope negotiating their Code share, haven’t they?

Mikie

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One of the structural problems has been demonstrated by latest farcical situation where too many chiefs and it is clear the people in harness racing (ie real skin in game) including the unpaid on club committees elect part only of a board that has virtually no say in direction of the industry, (some may say "just as well")but no influence on the TAB or the Transition "experts"  which actually are in control. therefore the whole structure is not working as it should. I have written many letters in last 6 months , and with the exception of manawatu President (many thanks to him) have had no replies and I have used  suitable restrained language. Harness racing can survive and develop as in Australia/USA/Canada/Europe. but if the Accountants keep cutting costs in Nz there will be nothing left. Humans will always gamble and enjoy the thrill of winning but growing competition is getting smarter and more visible whereas we are hiding away.

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