Chief Stipe

Yes but the farmers referred to here on BOAY are invariably old timers from 30+ years ago. I'm tired of hearing how "great it was 30 to 40 years ago and we never had this problems blah blah". The fact is the industry and its administrators at many levels never invested in maintaining and renovating tracks and now for many their backs are against the wall with a rock in front of them. I've said it time and time again and I've posted official documents about what Flemington does every year to maintain their track surface. They are the exemplar.

Chazza's hypothesis may well be right but his statistics are flawed and his analysis unduly influenced by personal bias. There is of course maybe a simple reason why dog racing has an apparent high attrition rate and that is the modern greyhound breed is ill suited to racing. There is also a trainer variable. @Freda do you have figures for the attrition rates in thoroughbreds?

To be fair to New Plymouth they had a couple of monster showers mid-meeting. Also just after scratch time early in the morning they had 10mm in an hour on top of 18mm over night. Not many tracks could cop that.

But they can service more than one meeting on the same day in the North Island. So what is the key constraint in Taranaki?

Pitch up dog òwners.

No why would I?

You've bit. Why is it different for this track compared to other's?

Nothing to do with any of that. Plain and simple - irrigation. Water Budget. I'd love to manage that track. So easy as you have a standard soil system/structure and you can measure water in and out.

I don't think so. If there was a thick layer of roots why was the track "shifty"? I'll go have a look at the track tomorrow.

NZTR’s Chief Operating Officer, Darin Balcombe, and Head of Tracks and Infrastructure, Tim Lambert, would like to provide an update on the track issues experienced in the past week and the expected Return to Racing for those venues. Hastings Racecourse Following the partial abandonment on Thursday 25 January, an investigation has taken place, considering information from the Racing Integrity Board (RIB), Hawke’s Bay Racing Inc. and an independent report from NZSTI. After reviewing the reports, NZTR can confirm that the the 18 February meeting will be scheduled to be held at the venue, as programmed. Jumpouts were held on the day following races, but the identified area was coned off to alleviate any concerns. The main concern raised on the day was with the consistency of the track where old hoof holes were ‘blowing out’ during the race meeting on Thursday 25 January. These holes have been addressed post-raceday and with good growing conditions in Hawke’s Bay, the track will have enough time to bed in. Before the meeting scheduled for 18 February, horses will be required to gallop over the ‘problematic area’ that was identified 12 metres off the rail. RACE Trentham Following an investigation regarding the Trentham partial abandonment on Saturday 27 January, NZTR are working with the Club to find solutions to the area that is currently unable to be irrigated. The incident that occurred on raceday was outside the irrigation line, on a much harder surface. After 10mm of rain Saturday morning, this created a vulnerable surface out wide, which resulted in ZACKERY slipping in Race 4, near the 600-metre mark. NZTR will continue to monitor the situation at Trentham over the next couple of weeks, to ensure the best possible outcome for the industry for the March 9 raceday. As always, the ability to provide a safe racing surface will be at the forefront of any decisions that are required to be made. If appropriate solutions to this area cannot be found, NZTR will assess the pending programme and venues and may look for alternate venues, to ensure race meetings can take place safely. The inside six metres of the track has been renovated and the rail will return to the true position for Al Basti Equiworld Dubai New Zealand Oaks Raceday on Saturday 16 March which will negate the issue of the area rounding the turn. Ellerslie Racecourse Immediately after Saturday’s race meeting at Ellerslie where some Jockeys experienced movement after 3mms of rain fell during the race meeting, Auckland Thoroughbred Racing (ATR) undertook a review which included Frank Casimaty from Strathayr. From that review, it was identified that a thick layer of roots had caused the issues experienced, it was agreed that Jason Fulford, Track Manager for ATR, would use appropriate machinery this week to break down that thick layer of roots just below the surface to ensure the horses get a better purchase on the track. Following the completion of this machinery work, jumpouts will be held at Ellerslie for Auckland based horses. The jumpouts are scheduled for Monday, 12 February. If you have any questions, pleae do not hesitate to reach out to us below. Darin Balcombe Chief Operating Officer Darin.Balcombe@nztr.co.nz Tim Lambert Head of Tracks and Infrastructure Tim.Lambert@nztr.co.nz

Oliver explains 'bittersweet' return Andrew Eddy@fastisheddy12:23pm Damien Oliver has announced his retirement. Picture: Entain Damien Oliver said he was enjoying his post-racing lifestyle, but figured the chance to ride one more time against the world’s best on Saudi Cup night later this month was “too good to refuse”. After Racing.com broke the news on Friday morning that Oliver was back at the Flemington jump-outs to prepare for a one-off comeback in Saudi Arabia, the champion jockey spoke to Entain about his “bittersweet” decision to ride over a two-day international jockey’s series on February 23 and 24. “It’s kind of an offer too good to refuse, although it’s kind of bittersweet having such a great finish to my career in Perth,” Oliver said. “I wasn’t planning to do something like this but something like this does not come along too often so I thought I might as well have a crack as a one-off. “It’s just a one-off. There are no plans of a comeback. “I’m quite content the way things are going at the moment, I’ve been quite happy doing my work at Ladbrokes. I’ve been quite busy and enjoying sleeping in and eating and drinking what I like. “I’ve slipped into the new lifestyle quite well.” Related Articles Ollie set for one-off return 2 February, 2024 JOCKEYS What was Ollie's best ride? 12 December, 2023 JOCKEYS Ollie: In his own words 31 August, 2023 JOCKEYS Oliver, who rode a handful of horses at the Flemington jump-outs on Friday, said he was 58 kilograms and so on track to be fit and ready for the two-day jockey’s challenge. “Probably a little rough around the edges but I’ve got a few weeks to tighten up,” he said. Oliver said that as he had not been on a horse since Munhamek’s dramatic farewell, he needed a trackwork session or two. “It would be close to two or three months since I’ve been on one, so I thinks it’s important to have a bit of touch still so I will ride a few horses between now and then,” he said WATCH: Damien Oliver chat about his return to riding Back to NewsHubBrowse related articles

Definitely need to catch up @Walt on my southern tour.

I can fix that. What name do you want? Any Name Brodie.

Then there is the fact that Greyhounds are prone to gracillus injuries.

NZTR would like to issue a reminder to industry participants about registering attendance for its Roadshows across the Northern, Central and Southern regions. In February 2024, NZTR CEO Bruce Sharrock and COO Darin Balcombe will meet with local stakeholders provide an update on NZTR and the industry’s strategic activities. All industry participants are welcome to attend and we hope you gain some insights from the content covered after a significant period of change within our sport. NORTHERN Monday 12 February: Auckland | Byerley Park, Kingseat - 11.30am to 1.30pm Monday 12 February: Cambridge | Grassroots Trust Velodrome - Velo 1 Room - 4.30pm to 6.30pm Northern Roadshow registrations close Wednesday 7 February. SOUTHERN Wednesday 14 February: Christchurch | Riccarton Park - Gloaming Room - 11.30am to 1.30pm Thursday 15 February: Dunedin | Wingatui Racecourse - Winning Post Lounge - 12.00pm to 2.00pm Friday 16 February: Invercargill | Ascot Park Raceway - 12.00pm to 2.00pm Southern Roadshow registrations close Monday 12 February. CENTRAL Monday 19 February: Hastings | Hastings Racecourse - Cheval Room - 11.30am to 1.30pm Monday 19 February: Palmerston North | RACE Awapuni - Terrace Lounge - 4.30pm to 6.30pm Central Roadshow registrations close Wednesday 14 February. If you have any important questions or thoughts about topics you'd like to discuss, please email NZTR’s Internal Operations Manager Sam Fursdon at Sam.Fursdon@nztr.co.nz before the dates advised above. Sam will ensure that Bruce and Darin have time to consider them in advance of the 2024 Roadshows. NZTR encourages you to register your attendance by clicking the blue button below. REGISTER YOUR ATTENDANCE FOR NZTR'S ROADSHOWS HERE

That's what you've heard but I doubt the Jockeys said nothing. Anyway back to the topic - is there a written report available on the Ellerslie track KM day? In a perfect world we would have choices and choose to race horses elsewhere if things weren't up to standard.

They'll appoint Chloe and they're Doomed.

Geez HJ do you have no sense of propriety? Due what?

Seriously gale force winds predicted for tomorrow - postpone a day.

Chazza you have my sympathy with regard to your ownership experiences. I've been there and had a number of disappointments because of poorly managed and presented tracks. I'm not gaslighting you. I'm interested in a balanced debate and I have a passion for data. I commend you on your work even though it is inaccurate and doesn't include a measure of variance. I see after my prodding you have corrected the two turn vs one turn stats (or manipulated them?). If you want a rock solid case for your hypothesis then you do need to include other variables like trainers. In the thoroughbred world it is well known (yes I don't have the data) that the likes of Gai Waterhouse have a high attrition rate with young horses. Nothing to do with tracks but they way they train them.

The average and median are up. Don't forget Book 1 was bigger this year by about 40 horses.

Interesting research has been done on "plain hunches" in many areas. If you asked someone straight off why they chose a particular horse they'd say a hunch or because I liked it. But if you spent some considerable time with them and asked the right questions you'd find that their mind went through a process which added up a whole lot of positives.

So you are not interested in all the variables? Going by your answer and the tenor of your posts in general your issue is more with GRNZ than finding the root causes of your assessed injury rates.

The forecast for New Plymouth for the next 24 hours is for lots of rain. They've recently cancelled or deferred meetings for less reason. Why not postpone the meeting until Sunday? Surprisingly the track is a G4 this morning.