Chief Stipe

Yep. She certainly had that look of superiority on her face when she went past them. Not easy to win first up at Royal Randwick.

There's your answer @nomates - picks up AUD$61,000 winning a Benchmark 88 at Royal Randwick.

I did back Mo'unga. I thought he looked in great order and at 10's was at overs. The F4 was $32k!!!! If Verry Elleegant wins the Melbourne Cup (only needed a better draw last year and would have won!) then you would have to say that she would rank up there with the absolute very best winning Grp 1's over so many distances.

The second horse Great News didn't like getting beaten by Fituese and soon after the winning post reached out jaw wide open to bite the other mare. I haven't seen that since Empire Rose!!!

I thought the RIU had caught everyone that would return a positive test?

Location:

Alice Springs. 33 Race Meetings a year. 4 races today - average stakes $18,000. Population of Alice Springs 25,000. Alice Springs Racing With 33 race meetings per year, the Alice Springs Turf Club have always got something exciting happening for families, party fanatics and of course, the racing enthusiast! The Turf Club's major event is the annual 5 day Ladbrokes Alice Springs Cup Carnival held during April and culminating with Cup Day on the first Sunday in May. Showcasing the best that #RedCentreRacing has to offer, the 2022 Ladbrokes Alice Springs Cup Carnival is a must-see for locals and visitors to Central Australia. If you’ve thought about coming to the Alice for Cup Carnival but haven’t made it yet, then this is your time! With four action-packed weeks of racing, there is something for everyone: fashions, fun, luncheons, and an all-round amazing time at the 2022 Ladbrokes Alice Springs Cup Carnival. Staring on April 9 and culminating on Sunday May 1 with the $110,000 Ladbrokes Alice Springs Cup

Hopple.

He can't be sick! Wasn't his lack of form due to not being trained in Rolleston?

Quite frankly we have been suckered by the suits in head office most of whom have never dunged a stable out in their life. You don't need flash facilities to attract crowds to the races. Clean toilets, good food and cheap drinks. I'm not sure the toilets were upgraded at Hokitika in 30 years but they were a damn sight cleaner than many a fancy night club I've been to. The community race meeting was an event which operated at low cost and introduced most of us to racing. That's gone now. Who in their right mind finds anything aesthetically pleasing about watching 12 horses galloping on artificial dirt barely within view from a fancy seat amongst a whole lot of wannabe tossers?

Geez 545m! You could race Greyhounds on that! I remember Victoria Park which I think was a smidge under 800m and that was tight enough! The turn out of the straight had a kink in it which caught many a newbie out either going onto one wheel or getting tipped out!

Which centralisation effort in Thoroughbred Racing has turned out OK? I have a theory that is a modified version of Einsteins maxim which was "the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different result" - my version is "if something isn't working then try the complete opposite". So wouldn't it have been better for NZTR to support those small clubs than subsidise the big clubs? Wouldn't it have been better for the small clubs to have got the true return from their endeavours than it being used to prop up the big clubs? Instead we've closed down more and more interfaces with the community. We see the same thing happening now with the AWT's - moving from a low cost operating model to a high cost model in the face of declining revenue. The classic example of this is Foxton - why close it down? Why not allow race meetings to occur there? It doesn't cost NZTR anymore to race there than it does on an AWT.

What was one of the oldest Harness Racing Clubs in NZ? However you may be missing the point - if Victoria Park Raceway couldn't survive (Mafia Mawhera Corporation aside) why would you expect a centralised Galloping venue would survive?

No option really. The next two months isn't going to be too good for North Island Harness Racing.

Well you can imagine as a young chap watching a Champion race around the nearest trotting track to home on a track which which would be the equivalent of the Echuca Trotting Club in Victoria. Typical West Coast night though - raining like hell!!!

My Dad talked incessantly about the beauty of the "three-legged" pacer. I got to see one win the NZ Trotting Cup in 1974 - Robalan. I then realised Dad was actually saying FREE legged i.e. NO hobbles!

1973 NZ TROTTING CUP Doubts that Arapaho would see out a solidly run 3200 metres against such talented opposition were completely dispelled when he raced away with the $40,000 NZ Cup. Not only did Arapaho win the Cup, but he did so by five lengths in the brilliant time of 4:08.6 for the 3200 metres, which compares favourably with False Step's 4:09 recorded in winning his third NZ Cup in 1960 when the distance was two miles. The fastest time recorded in the Cup over two miles was Johnny Globe's 4:07.6 in 1954. This was a world record which stood until 1969 when Dainty's Daughter recorded 4:07 in Western Australia. Arapaho, who at the start of the season was under option to an American buyer for $100,000 but remained in New Zealand when the sale fell through, proved by far the best stayer in the field. Dunsandel owner Mr Laurie Forde has now won 23 races both here and in Australia with Arapaho who took his stake earnings to $90,270 with the $24,000 first prize. Arapaho was given a dream run by trainer-driver Jack Smolenski. Sixth early he had a turn in front at the 2100 metre mark as the early lead changed frequently, and was then three back on the rails when first Vanadium then Rauka Lad took the lead. Rauka Lad made the pace from the 1800 metres when Young Quinn was shot into a handy lead by Bob Cameron. Vanadium and Arapaho moved to be second and third on the home turn, but Arapaho proved too strong for Young Quinn and went on to win by five lengths. Last year's Cup winner Globe Bay went another good race for second. He improved along the rails to be in fifth place on the turn and finished determinedly to edge Young Quinn out of second by half a neck. Young Quinn, the youngest horse in the race at four, made a game attempt to beat his older rivals. He was one of several to have a turn in front early when he led briefly at the 2600 metre mark, but at the 1600 he was well placed in the fourth line on the outside of Fab. Cameron sent him passed the tiring Rauka Lad at the 600 metre mark and he turned for home with a handy advantage. He could not maintain it, but his third in such a fast-run race was a good effort for a young horse. Robalan third in the race last year, gained another placing when he battled on for fourth though four lengths back. He drifted to the rear after 800 metres and then had to go very wide when improving from the 700 metre mark. He was sixth, but very wide out turning for home. Royal Ascot did best of the three horse bracket which include Manaroa and Manawaru. He finished fifth, but never looked like paying a dividend. He had only Manaroa and Robalan behind him at the 800 metre mark and then had to go three, then four wide round Noble Lord at the 400 metres. He was a length back fifth at the line. Vanadium, who trailed Rauka Lad from the 1800 metres, wilted to sixth a length back and a nose in front of Lightsey who ran on well after breaking at the start. Scottish Charm just battled away in the middle of the field two lengths back with a gap of five lengths back to Noble Lord who made a brief forward move at the 800 metres, but was struggling at the 400 metre mark. Manawaru, who was under pressure to maintain his position at the 800 metres, was a further four lengths back ahead of Bomber Bill, Fab, Manaroa, who broke badly at the start, and Rauka Lad. Rauka Lad stopped badly after going up fast to lead at the 1800 metre mark.

ARPAHO A winner over two miles in 4.19 as a 3-year-old, Arapaho brought himself into light harness racing prominence as a 4-year-old when he won the New Brighton Stars Travel Mile at the Addington track. Starting from a second row barrier and running against the elite of NZ pacers, Arapaho ran the distance in 1:59 in conditions that were anything but favourable. Arapaho defeated the Australian Bay Foyle, who ran second and also had to contend with a second row barrier draw, Robalan and Radiant Globe. Arapaho became the first of his sire, Bachelor Hanover's progeny to enter the two-minute list. Arapaho won 10 races, was second twice and third twice as a 4-year-old for prizemoney, $31,740 to be the leading NZ stakewinner in 1971-2. Arapaho was subsequently voted the NZ Harness Horse-of-the-Year in 1972. In February, 1973, Arapaho set a world record in winning the Dunedin Festival Cup. He ran the 11 furlongs from a standing start in 2:48 3/5, a mile rate of 2:02 3/5. This clipped 1 3/5 off the world record set by Johnny Globe, in 1955. Following his success in the Dunedin Festival Cup, Arapaho raced in Sydney in the 1973 Inter-Dominion Championship series. He was defeated into second placing by the championship winner, Hondo Grattan, in the first heat he contested but won the next heat. He qualified for the final, but ran unplaced from the 12 yard mark. During the 1973-4 season Arapaho was again the leading stake-earner in NZ with earnings of $69,375 for the season. This followed wins in the prestigious NZ Cup and the Auckland Cup in 1973. He won a NZ Cup @Gammalite so must qualify as a Champion!!!

Arapaho - (Bachelor Hanover - Dusky Bay) 69 starts, 28 wins, 16 seconds, 10 thirds. $124,000 in stakes (today's money that equates to $1.5m). As a young fella I saw him race at Greymouth's Victoria Park Raceway - 25 mile up the road from where I lived in Hokitika. A mini Addington - even had lights for night racing. Watched Arapaho win there with Jack Smolenski in the sulky 2 March 1974. The picture below is of him at Addington. The stake for the FFA was $3,500. In today's money that is $36,500!!!!

Yep Victoria Park Raceway. A mini Addington - even had lights for night racing. Watched Arapaho win there with Jack Smolenski in the sulky 2 March 1974. The picture below is of him at Addington. The stake for the FFA was $3,500. In today's money that is $36,500!!!!

All good Freda. My latent anger at the screwing over of the small viable clubs came to the surface. My apologies. But that aside has anyone stopped to think that this 20 year experiment with "Centralisation" is not actually working?

By comparison if we go back to 2019 the last full year of racing and ironically the last year that any worthwhile information/data was published NZ had 2,582 races. A drop of 606 from 10 years earlier - in 2009 there were 3,088 races. Yep GO CENTRALISATION!!!! Actually it would be interesting to draw a graph and show the correlation between the closure of racecourses and the decline in on-course attendance and number of races held.

Thoroughbred Tracks in Australia by State: QLD 141 NSW 136 VIC 79 WA 45 SA 33 NT 11 TAS 9 454 Over 19,000 Thoroughbred Races a year in Australia. Yep centralisation is working out really well for NZ!!!

Victoria Park was pretty good in its day. Even had lights for night trots!! Anyway why does it need to be "state of the art" (whatever that is), "brand new" - well we only have two of those in NZ and only one being raced on, "modern" - what does that mean? Freshly painted fences in nice pastel colours? NO - it would have to be LBGT Rainbow colours to be modern wouldn't it? Hell we have a perfectly good turf racing surface with a brand new stand and facilities, refurbished stabling, broadband internet connectivity which is going to be mothballed at best but more likely sold to fund the AWT floating on a swamp at Awapuni. Come in @curious and Foxton.

When you dissed Omoto in your post above. We have been "centralising racing" in New Zealand for the last 20 years at least - hasn't turned the trend yet has it? Did you know that there are over 400 registered Thoroughbred racecourses in Australia? TRACK INFORMATION Track Name Code Area Adaminaby ADBY NSW Adelaide River AD R NT Albany ABNY WA Albury ALB NSW Alexandra ALEX VIC Almaden ALMA QLD Alpha ALPH QLD Beaudesert BDST QLD Gold Coast GCST QLD Aramac ARMC QLD Ararat ARAT VIC Ardlethan ARDL NSW Armidale ARMD NSW Arrilalah ARLH QLD Ascot ASCT WA Ashburton ONLW WA Atherton ATHN QLD Augathella AUGA QLD Avoca AVOC VIC Balaklava BKVA SA Ballina BLNA NSW Balnarring BALN VIC Balranald BALR NSW Baradine BDNE NSW Barcaldine BARC QLD Barraba BRBA NSW Barrow Creek B CK NT Bathurst BATH NSW Beaumont Newcastle BEAU NSW Bedgerabong BEDG NSW Bedourie BDRE QLD Bell BELL QLD Belmont BLMT WA Benalla BLLA VIC Bendigo BDGO VIC Berri BERI SA Berrigan BERR NSW Betoota BETO QLD Beverley BEV WA Bingara BGRA NSW Binnaway BINN NSW Birdsville BIRD QLD Blackall BKLL QLD Bluff BLUF QLD Bombala BOMB NSW Bong Bong BONG NSW Boorowa BRWA NSW Bordertown BORD SA Boulia BOUL QLD Bourke BRKE NSW Bowen BOWN QLD Bowen River BOWR QLD Bowraville BVLE NSW Braidwood 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