Chief Stipe

She has far enough to go but it f#@k's with their brains. The good ones get keyed up to race and know the routine. It's a bit like having a hot date and she misses the bus!

Groundhog day. Travelled the same road the same time last year. Pity any fillies aiming for the 1000 Guineas as they had an extra week last year. The third time Captured By Love has travelled to a meeting and not raced!!

Well @curious misses a few others including his own at times. @curious is becoming as sad as you slouching there in your cynical PJ's in the Lazy Boy playing races back and forth five times counting whip strikes.

So how did you miss that one? Or are you just selective? The taps were light anyway and I have no idea why it is a crime to tap a horse on the shoulder. Best way to keep them straight. But I guess your crusade to destroy racing as we know it doesn't take into consideration horsemanship or practicalities. Anyway it highlights were the US rules are way more down the rabbit hole than ours.

LOL can you tell your Pre-cambrian lifeform the @Comic Dog that as far as non-de-plumes go he has a shyte load of imposters over there with more than one alias!!! LOL. As for your crusade @curious I know a few people who think you have lost the plot counting whip strikes. I see your mate is too lazy to do it himself. Seriously you had to look really hard for your recent examples of supposed rule breaches. Someone should hide the remote on you.

I see neither @curious or @Comic Dog called out Erin Leighton today. I can understand that with @Comic Dog as he wouldn't know how to take a snapshot of the TV. Anyway you can't expect anything less on NZ's Anti-Racing Site.

It's not abuse unless you define it as such and you can tell your mercernary buddy @Comic Dog I don't live in the past I live in the now!! If he wants to sit on the couch with you and slow mo Jockey's doing the job he wasn't particularly good at and call them out them perhaps he should move his arse and get down to the birdcage and call them out directly. The criticism of Jockeys is a bit rich coming from Leigh McKenzie aka @Comic Dog from what I've heard he could barely hold a whip let alone get it past the saddle cloth! Tell him there is a Tiddly Winks game in the mail and some soft toys that he can post on his lost and found Facebook page.

@Comic Dog I'm not upset. Just pointing out the inconsistency. But I guess you would sell your soul for traffic!!

So what motivated you to take a screen shot of a random whip strike and add it to the Anti-Racing Forum's purile WANTED lineup?

Much to @Pitman 's angst. However they did alright at Ellerslie as well.

A happy horse, happy owners and trainers. But an unhappy @curious.

@curious if you are going to be the self appointed conscious of the racing industry can you step up and be more consistent as an amateur bunker steward. Thanks in anticipation.

Well it is eligible for the Karaka Million AND the Kiwi B. She has proven she can handle Ellerslie.

Surely you'd negotiate for the sale to occur in 14 days time. She's ready for the 1000 Guineas and obviously the money is coming from Australia. So what target would you have in the next three weeks in OZ?

Last year Captured By Love won the NZ 1000 Guineas with a pedigree stacked with sprinting blood. By Written Tycoon out of a Snitzel mare. Impressive winner last week Well Written, the current short priced favourite for this year's 1000 Guineas is also by Written Tycoon. Any doubts about being by a sprinting sire can be ameliorated by the fact that she is out of a Sebring mare. Sebring has left multiple Guineas, Oaks and Derby winners.

You were right @Gammalite.

I must be missing something. According to today's Trackside - Mail Run the Ellerslie track is a beautiful surface and gives every horse a fair chance. Says: Mark Stafford Craig Baker George Simon Matt Cameron Not once but repeatedly. Although Matt Cameron did say it was fair if you knew when to improve your position between the 800m and 600m.

Isn't it the only deal?

Racing ahead with repairs at Hastings racecourse www.nzherald.co.nz Multimedia Journalist·Hawkes Bay Today· 24 Oct, 2025 11:03 AM3 mins to read https://bitofayarn.com Upgrading of the racecourse track in Hastings started earlier this month and was well under way this week. Photo / Michaela Gower. The rebuilding of the Hastings racecourse’s troublesome Southland Rd end bend is expected to be finished by the end of the year. But it will still be several months before any equine action will be seen on the track as Hawke’s Bay Racing (HBR) and New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) work towards having it ready for the three-day Spring Racing Carnival in September-October next year. https://bitofayarn.com Racing ended abruptly because of safety concerns after a horse slipped entering the bend just past the finishing post at the end of the first (and ultimately only) race on September 28 last year, the second day of the 2024 carnival. NZTR Central Districts general manager of special projects and former HBR CEO Darin Balcombe said the work on about two furlongs of the course is being done in four stages of about 100 metres each, from just past the winning post to the 1400m shute at the entrance to the back straight. Starting with the vicinity of the shute, the turf is being excavated and re-turfed up to 18 metres out. https://bitofayarn.com The work is being carried out by TW Group under the management of Australian racetrack and sports grounds specialists Evergreen Turf. Balcombe said that once the replacement turf is laid, a turf settlement process before horses can be worked on the bend and jump-outs can be held to test the condition of the track before racing can restart. It will enable racing for approximately three seasons until a new racing facility is established on a new site on the southern fringes of Flaxmere. The major Spring Carnival races have, since the sudden cancellation last year, been run at other tracks, including $550,000 Group 1 feature the 2025 Livamol Classic, which was run at Ellerslie, in Auckland, last Saturday. Problems for racing in the Central Districts and Hawke’s Bay-Gisborne, including the shutting down of racing at Waipukurau, Wairoa and Gisborne five years ago, have been exacerbated by the troubled reopening of premier Palmerston North track Awapuni. It’s recommissioning after a closure of 19 months for reconstruction lasted just one race and one slip of a horse in April. Meanwhile, racing will return to Hawke’s Bay on November 16 with the first of three cup meetings on the Waipukurau track, which has not seen the gallops since the track’s licence to race was cancelled in 2020. It has continued being used for training and jumpouts, but the licence is being reinstated as a temporary measure for the upcoming $35,000 Waipukurau Cup meeting, the Wairoa Cup meeting on February 15, and the Hawke’s Bay Cup meeting on April 26. Doug Laing has been a newspaper reporter for more than 50 years, most if it in Hawke’s Bay covering most aspects of news, sports, and, occasionally racing.

Whats the "nonsense" and what do I "believe". Cynicism doesn't c9ne with much detail does it @Huey ?

Well the discussion came about because a friend had just got back from the Caulfield Cup. He backed the winner and then asked where was Janie Kah?!!! He then asked what was the breeding of the winner and we uncovered the NZ connection. The same guy was the proud owner of an Auckland Cup winner ridden by an apprentice.

Spot on. Google eh?

Close but not entirely accurate.

What are the NZ connections the favourite for the Melbourne Cup has?

Comment: Vet checked – Spring disclosure puts spotlight on Morrison, with the likelihood of more to come – The Straight thestraight.com.au Racing Victoria chief executive Aaron Morrison is facing a reputational crisis at the time of the year where the industry is looking to put on its best face. But, as Bren O’Brien writes, the timing of the publication of bullying allegations by chief vet Dr Grace Forbes should be no surprise, and may be just the start of the fallout. By Bren O'Brien ● Racing Industry ● October 22, 2025 Racing Victoria CEO Aaron Morrison was named in a bullying complaint by Dr Grace Forbes. (Photo by Jay Town/Racing Photos via Getty Images) When a sensational bullying and harassment complaint from Racing Victoria’s general manager of veterinary services Dr Grace Forbes was detailed in the Herald Sun just days out from the Cox Plate, hearts sank at 400 Epsom Rd, the home of the state’s thoroughbred racing regulator. An “upset” Racing Victoria chief executive Aaron Morrison described the appearance of the story to The Straight as “timed to generate maximum damage and mischief”. The complaint, which took the form of an “application for an order to stop bullying” with the Fair Work Commission, was filed in August. The whereabouts of Dr Forbes, a public figure in the RV vet team for over a decade, had been the source of mounting speculation for months. It was clear to most that she was unlikely to return to her post. The Straight inquired about her employment status in early September, and was told she was on personal leave and was still on the books at RV. This is still believed to be the case. Contacted in early October, Dr Forbes replied to The Straight that “given her situation, it was inappropriate for me to comment at this time”. How her detailed application to the Fair Work Commission came to be published in the Herald Sun is not certain, and Dr Forbes has maintained her silence, despite the mounting public interest. Such documents are usually made discoverable later in the legal process, once mediation has failed, and the hearing is set. The possibility that such documents may become public is often used as leverage by a complainant’s legal team in achieving any settlement ahead of a costly trial. In this instance, it is unusual for such a submission to find its way into the public domain at this stage. But if it was ever going to happen, it would be at this time of year. An escalated HR issue between Racing Victoria and a senior member of staff might warrant a mention in the mainstream press in summer, autumn or winter, but it certainly wouldn’t get anywhere near the front page. This was a storm that RV could have easily predicted. It was an issue which had been bubbling along for some time, and while RV weren’t in a position to provide ongoing commentary, the absence of Dr Forbes during a time of year where her job is most public, was always going to raise questions. This was only heightened by the decision to rule favourite Sir Delius out of the Melbourne Cup, via the vet protocols, that until June, Dr Forbes had been responsible for enforcing and had been the public face of for several years, including her position on billboards around the state. Morrison described the timing of Dr Forbes’ complaint becoming public days after the Sir Delius decision as a “strange irony”. Forbes’ submission makes a number of serious claims, but what rankled most with RV was the suggestion that the RV executive and board had encouraged her to be less strict with her application of the protocols brought in in 2020 to reduce deaths and injuries in Melbourne feature races. “The repeated request of me to be flexible suggests that I should be unethical, which is at odds with my commitment to advocate for the horse,” Dr Forbes said in her statement. “I raised concerns that permitting high risk horses to race could result in serious and or fatal injuries to international horses. The meeting was ended.” That meeting, which also included RV integrity manager Jamie Stier, took place in April this year, but Morrison denies that any pressure was placed on Dr Forbes to be more flexible. “There’s never, ever been any compromise of standards,” Morrison told The Straight. He also denied that third parties, such as prominent owner Nick Williams or leading global trainer Aidan O’Brien, had sought to influence Racing Victoria’s welfare stance. Dr Grace Forbes’ detailed application to the Fair Work Commission was published in the Herald Sun (Pat Scala/Racing Photos via Getty Images) Forbes complaints extend back to a June 2024 board meeting. “I have been publicly humiliated, misrepresented, unsupported, bullied, undermined and professionally isolated by my immediate supervisor Mr Jamie Stier and the chief executive officer, Mr Aaron Morrison,” her submission reads. The decision to utilise international vets Dr David Sykes and Amanda Piggott to co-ordinate the scanning and inspections of spring contenders in Europe this year looks to have been the final straw. RV maintains that decision was not related to Dr Forbes’ capability to fulfill the veterinary aspects of her role. It was done to better manage communications and transparency with the overseas trainers and owners. It sees the ongoing implementation of the protocols as the responsibility of the entire team, not just the GM of Veterinary Services. Forbes also said she felt her card had been marked for exit for some time and that when Morrison took over in August 2024, rumours were rife that she was set to depart. The Straight has been told that the future of her position was discussed by industry participants around this time. This is likely how it was incorrectly reported in other sections of the media that she had left her role. There is still a great deal more to play out in this situation. RV may have faced a fire this week, but the danger of reputational damage, especially to Morrison, has far from passed. It may be that all of Dr Forbes’ cards have been put on the table with her submission being published in the media, but there may also be more disclosures coming. In a situation where her complaint is heard before the Fair Work Commission, Morrison and Stier would almost certainly be compelled to take the stand. The prospect of being cross examined by a senior barrister is not something any executive would look forward to. The potential for significant reputational damage, plus the costs of progressing to the Commission, are why so many Fair Work cases are settled early in the process. The Straight is not suggesting this will definitely happen, but this eventuality remains a possibility should the situation end up in the Commission. In addition to her current Fair Work action, which is likely to be heard by the end of the year, there is also a possibility that Forbes could pursue other legal avenues which could see the matter come before court. In that case, Dr Forbes’ legal team could seek discovery of communications between Racing Victoria’s directors and executives and others in the racing industry as to Dr Forbes’ position. These discovery documents could be made public, while other related parties could also be subpoenaed.