Chief Stipe

All well and good however turnover ISN'T everything. The important metric is Net Revenue. When BGP eventually get round to winning their winnings will have been subsidised by every other punter due to the incentives and discounts BGP gets that no other punter does. Of course if they consistently lose everything everything they punt then the net revenue is a gain to the industry. Those points aside the bigger question I ask is they lose big even with all the incentives, all the special access privileges, all the expert knowledge and with all the information they have. How do you sugar coat the sows ear message - "The TAB won half a million dollars AGAIN of the BGP". Many BGP participants who have invested in the BGP betting pool are asking the question. So is the current marketing message going to lead to a sustainable industry? I don't think so.

Done alright in the last 5 years.

Apparently it is heading to Waller.

Who? Why would you spend $200k+ on a yearling and take it to the South Island?

That's the key point. His boot hit the hock of the horse in the run to the judge. Not at the start! It is akin to a bloody hard over head whip hit.

Why ask the question when you know the answer?

FFS you're taking the piss now. I was referring to the maiden stakes in NZ!! You get more than that in the OZ country.

Are you thick? Or are you in the post rest home cooked dinner fog?

@nomates it isn't fake news. What have you done recently to change the things you constantly criticise?

I've just about had enough of this bullshit. Why don't you go join @nomates and @Joe Bloggs they are more your type.

Which is the point isn't it. What's 62.5% of $18k by comparison?

Yeah and at a recent Trenthan meeting the Jockeys told the Stipes they were wrong and they didn't change the rating. The ratings are pure crap and some trainers know that.

Yeah @Thomass hasn't twigged to that yet.

Yeah from the naysayers. You should stop listening to them. $71k maidens today at Warwick Farm.

Win a maiden race at a metro track in OZ and you pay your trainers fees for over a year!

More arriving next week so I hear. Good move for their owners as well as it is getting harder to plan progammes for horses at some levels.

FFS @the galah I said do you seriously think NZ footage would be relevant in a different jurisdiction? Are you on Moran's defence team? Has he appealed?

Since you know everything I'm sure you know the answer to that question. Good move by Walker though. The setup at Cranbourne is first class and the tracks in Victoria are the best in Australasia.

Do you seroiusly think video footage from NZ would hold any weight in Australia? Moran was guilty and the penalty was per that jurisdictions rules. Let it go. End of story.

How many of those that dropped their foot hit the hocks of their horse? A bit stupid to do that with a trotter! Moran hit his horse with his foot at least once in the run to post.

‘New challenge': Walker reveals full-time move to Australia Trainer Mark Walker By Adam Dobbin 10:28am • 27 January 2025 0 Comments In a boon for Australian racing, New Zealand-based Te Akau Racing head trainer Mark Walker is making the full-time move across the Tasman from February. Walker, fresh off winning the Karaka Millions 2YO Classic in New Zealand on Saturday with La Dorado, makes the move to Australia to head up Te Akau Racing's picturesque base at Cranbourne. "I'll be located at Cranbourne full-time from the start of February," Walker said in an exclusive interview with Ladbrokes. "In this game you've always got to keep challenging yourself and the time is right for me now to make the move. "Had I stayed in New Zealand it's hard to keep doing the same thing over and over so this is a fresh, new challenge that I'm really excited about. "It was always the intention to ultimately move across (to Australia) and be based here full-time. "At Cranbourne we started with 20 boxes, then 30 before 50 and now we're at 70 which will be our number. "At 70 you can see every horse every day and give the owner's investment every opportunity to succeed. "And as for the complex, it looks fantastic. We are very proud of how it has all come together." Having served successful training stints in New Zealand and 11-years in Singapore during a career spanning three decades, Walker heads to Australian shores under no illusions as to the size of the task ahead. "I know it's not going to be a walk in the park by any stretch," Walker said. "But we're going to rip in, work hard and look to capitalise on the strong foundation that's already been laid." Te Akau Racing has enjoyed a successful upstart in Australia during its first 16 months in operation at Cranbourne. That was of course led by the remarkable exploits of champion sprinter Imperatriz which took Australian racing by storm prior to her retirement in the autumn of last year. Read all news by Adam Dobbin

They may have HAD "more skin in the game" than we realise. They are entitled to VOICE their concerns but what have they DONE about their concerns except voice them? Except slay those who are successful? YOU can see WHY they stopped bothering. WHY did they stop bothering? Did they actually try even in a small way to get their concerns addressed? In many ways they have been part of the problem. They took their share of the wealth when they had skin in the game but what did they give back? From what I've seen is the industry is full of people who moan about what they see happening but don't do anything to change things. Take the mess that is South Island programming. I'm sure @Huey, @Joe Bloggs, @nomates, @Transparency and yourself could get organised and challenge those that make the decisions to get it sorted.

@Huey you belong in the same club as @Joe Bloggs and @nomates - The Gumpy Old Men Club. You sit in your armchairs now - rarely go to race meetings and moan about everything as well as try and slay the tall poppies. The irony of which doesn't escape me when at least one of you have shares in a horse with one of those you label as "whales". Probably the source of the $12k monthly bill that is doing the social media rounds and which Wightman aka @Transparency is banging on about. Old men who wallow in the dying light of their past acheivements which occurred during the so called Golden Era of New Zealand racing. The sad part is they contributed to the current problem as much as anyone. Did the committees they were on put aside capital to invest in tracks? Now they all say "I know a good farmer who could fix the tracks. These problems didn't happen my day"! So @Huey you have all the answers - what are doing about the issues?

Where is this asset theft going to occur? We haven't seen one example since the legislation to enable asset takeover was passed.

I'm asking what YOU support. From what I can see you are in the same camp as the likes of @Joe Bloggs and @nomates - underachievers in racing who just knock everything. From what I've seen those affected the most don't seem motivated to stand up and seek change in the areas where they have the most influence.