Chief Stipe

The best approach is the mixed basket approach based on volume. Or even more relevant is to monitor that which is represents the source of NZ's fuel. In that respect following oil barrel prices doesn't matter much because under this crazy government we will be importing petrol, diesel, asphalt, jet fuel, avgas, tar, and so on and so on. Oh and don't forget the dirty coal from Indonesia.

Depends on what Spot price you follow.

Well with Tommy focussing on OZ it was inevitable. I see Te Akau have already sent their two top horses there - Entriviere and Sword of State.

Group One winning trainer bows out By NZ Racing Desk - August 19, 2021 Share Andrew Campbell (right) pictured with Tommy Heptinstall. Photo: Trish Dunell Andrew Campbell has become the second high-profile trainer in the past week to announce his retirement. Last week Stephen McKee, famous as the co-trainer of champion racemare Sunline, went public on his intention to pull stumps at his South Auckland operation, and it can now be confirmed that Campbell is following suit. The Cambridge-based horseman, likewise a Group One trainer per the outstanding sprinter-miler Tavistock, recently sold the property that he bought in 2017 after training from Masterton’s Opaki racecourse for more than 20 years. Campbell worked as a plumber in Wellington before opting for life in the Wairarapa developing and trading horses. His focus changed some 15 years ago when he met Wellington real estate guru Tommy Heptinstall, who encouraged him to raise the bar in partnership with a syndicate of investors. That’s how he became the trainer and part-owner of Tavistock, purchased as a Karaka yearling for $85,000, champion sprinter-miler of his year with earnings around $600,000 and retired to stud with a value of more than $3 million. As a sire, Tavistock was the source of Campbell’s Gr.3 New Zealand Cup (3200m) winner Gobstopper and his brother Werther, a dual Derby placegetter in Australia before his sale to Hong Kong, where he became Horse of the Year. At age 54, Campbell departs his profession with mixed feelings yet convinced that life as a trainer has lost its allure. Rising costs versus returns, sourcing staff and other challenges have become a burden, but a recent run-in with racing’s judiciary has fast-tracked his decision. Earlier this month Campbell pleaded guilty to presenting a horse at a Cambridge trial meeting in May with a banned substance in its system, incurring a fine of $2,500. The unnamed two-year-old did not compete after dropping his rider and being late scratched, but ironically it had been randomly selected for a pre-trial swab which was to reveal traces of the anti-inflammatory corticosteroid dexamethasone. At the subsequent Racing Integrity Board hearing on August 9, Campbell stated that the horse had a slight puffy eye, and he was given an ointment by his vet to treat it. He applied a fingertip amount to the eye on the afternoon before the horse trialled the next day. He was not aware that Dexamethasone was a prohibited substance. Despite an acceptance that the amount could not have influenced the horse’s performance, and that the only intention in applying the ointment was for the horse’s welfare, Campbell was found culpable on a presentation charge. The horse concerned has since been named Riverplate and won a subsequent trial before finishing second on debut to talented filly Mustang Valley at Te Rapa in June. He is scheduled to be flown this week to Melbourne, where he will continue his career. “I had already made up my mind to finish in November, but when they came at me like that, I decided I’d had enough, that was the final nail in the coffin,” Campbell said. “I’ve never been big on vets and I’m definitely no cheat, so it’s been tough having to deal with what is my first supposed breach of the rules. It’s not a good feeling. “Life as a trainer is a big enough battle without having to deal with that sort of stuff. Staffing and costs that just keep going up are making it impossible. “My family and I have to work every Sunday because the cost of employing people is simply too much, so now I’m actually looking forward to packing up and heading back to the Wairarapa to enjoy life.” Heptinstall, who now lives in Melbourne and has gradually migrated the bulk of his racing team to the likes of Victoria-based expats Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young and South Australian Michael Hickmott, supports Campbell fully in his decision to relinquish his licence. “I don’t blame Andrew at all,” he said. “As if trying to get by as a trainer in New Zealand isn’t tough enough, to get treated like that for something so insignificant is just too tough on such a genuine guy. “Talk about using a brick to kill a fly, it’s pathetic.” Campbell harbours no regrets at the path his profession has taken him, most of all for the people he has been associated with and the horses that have been integral to that. “Racing has been a wonderful game,” he said. “I’ve had plenty of good times with some fantastic people who have become lifetime friends. “It’s just a bloody shame it has to end like this.” He had intended for Tannahill to be his final raceday starter at Cambridge on Wednesday, but with the abandonment of the meeting due to COVID lockdown, the final curtain will now be at Saturday’s rescheduled meeting. “I’ve entered him for Saturday and hopefully he’ll be a starter,” Campbell said. “That will be it though, end of story.”

Toy Show favourite under injury cloud Trainer Jamie Richards has Entriviere in Australia. Picture: AAP By Mitch Cohen 12:38pm • 19 August 2021 3 Comments Emerging Kiwi star Entriviere will need to pass a veterinarian check to take her place in Saturday’s Group 3 Toy Show Quality at Randwick after the race favourite was found to be mildly lame on Thursday morning. Trainer Jamie Richards has informed Racing NSW stewards that his visiting raider was mildly lame in the off-fore leg after working at Randwick. The talented daughter of Tavistock has been treated by a stable vet and had poultice applied to the area of concern but now is in doubt for her first-up assignment on Australian shores. She will be inspected by Racing NSW General Manager of Veterinary Services Dr Tob Koenig before the $160,000 feature to ascertain if she is able to take her place in the field. Richards, who remains in New Zealand, was hopeful Entriviere would still be able to take her place. “It’s hard to know when you can’t be there but there is still a chance we will get her there provided she passes all the right protocols and processes,” he said. “I am presuming the stewards will look at her and if we are happy with her we will go there 100 per cent. “If she can’t there is certainly something down the line for her, whether that be the Sheraco Stakes (September 11) or something else.” Entriviere has been a drifting favourite from $3.10 to $3.50 with TAB fixed odds for the Toy Show after drawing the extreme outside in barrier 19 for her first-up run. Richards will instruct James McDonald to ride Entriviere with cover from the horror draw if she runs in the race. The five-year-old is Te Akau Racing’s top seed to earn a berth in the $2m The Invitation later this spring where she is currently rated a $9 third elect. Entriviere made the trip to Sydney alongside Golden Rose contender Sword Of State, who will line up in a 850m barrier trial at Randwick on Friday. The trial will also feature Golden Slipper winner Stay Inside and The Everest hope Lost And Running.

Winx Stakes: Final field and barrier draw Verry Elleegant (red/blue) is favourite for the Winx Stakes. Photo: Mark Evans/Getty Images By Mitch Cohen 12:42pm • 18 August 2021 4 Comments Superstar mare Verry Elleegant is drawn to get every chance of defending her Winx Stakes crown as she leads a five-pronged Chris Waller assault of the first Group 1 of the season at Randwick. Leading jockey James McDonald will be in the hot seat on the early favourite from barrier five as Verry Elleegant looks to get her spring campaign off to winning start in consecutive years. Verry Elleegant highlighted her versatility when hanging tough to outpoint Star Of The Seas in the same race 12 months ago. A field of 14 has accepted for the $500,000 weight for age event over 1400m in 2021. Star Of The Seas (barrier nine) will line up in the Group 1 again alongside fellow Waller-trained spring contenders Kolding (10), Imaging (six) and Hungry Heart (3) – her first run since her Australian Oaks win. Waller has won the five of the past six editions of the Winx Stakes, named in honour of his former star mare which won three times from 2016 to 2018. Godolphin only elected to accept with Doncaster Mile winner Cascadian, which will jump from barrier seven, with stablemate Colette set to line up next week in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes. Mo'unga will make his return. Photo: Mark Evans/Getty Images Tommy Berry will be forced to navigate from gate 12 when he pilots the talented Mo’unga in his highly-anticipated spring return while the younger brother of Fierce Impact, Keiai Nautique (4), will make his Australian debut. George Ryder Stakes winner Think It Over (2) shed his undergo tag in a sensational autumn and should be ready to fire from a handy draw in his first up assignment. A pair of Cups nominated imports will lead Hawkes Racing’s hunt for more major glory with the classy Master Of Wine (8) joined by Mount Popa (1). The chances of veteran galloper Dreamforce took a hit after the John Thompson galloper drew barrier 11 with the John Sargent-trained Brandenburg (13) and Bjorn Baker’s She’s Ideel (14) also drawing wide. The Winx Stakes has a sensational support card with Group 2 Silver Shadow Stakes, Group 3 Show Country Quality and Group 3 Toy Show Quality all drawing strong fields. Racing is expected to take place on a good track with Randwick rated a Good (4) at acceptance time and clear weather forecast until the weekend. Kolding will make his return. Photo: Mark Evans/Getty Images WINX STAKES FIELD – (Number – Horse – Trainer – Jockey – Barrier – Weight) 1 KOLDING (NZ) Chris Waller Tim Clark (10) 59kg 2 THINK IT OVER Kerry Parker Brenton Avdulla (2) 59kg 3 CASCADIAN (GB) James Cummings Hugh Bowman (7) 59kg 4 DREAMFORCE John Thompson Nash Rawiller (11) 59kg 5 IMAGING (GB) Chris Waller Ms Kathy O‘Hara (6) 59kg 6 STAR OF THE SEAS (NZ) Chris Waller Jay Ford (9) 59kg 7 KEIAI NAUTIQUE (JPN) Matthew Smith Glen Boss (4) 59kg 8 MASTER OF WINE (GER) Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes (8) 59kg 9 BRANDENBURG (NZ) John Sargent Ms Rachel King (13) 59kg 10 MOUNT POPA (IRE) Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes (1) 59kg 11 MO’UNGA (NZ) Annabel Neasham Tommy Berry (12) 58.5kg 12 VERRY ELLEEGANT (NZ) Chris Waller James McDonald (5) 57kg 13 SHE’S IDEEL Bjorn Baker Jason Collett (14) 57kg 14 HUNGRY HEART Chris Waller Kerrin McEvoy (3) 56.5kg Recent winners: 2020 – Verry Elleegant 2019 – Samadoubt 2018 – Winx 2017 – Winx 2016 – Winx

Covid-19 vaccines for children: hypothetical benefits to adults do not outweigh risks to children July 13, 2021 As the majority of adults in multiple rich western countries have now received at least one dose of a covid-19 vaccine, the focus is turning to children. While there is wide recognition that children’s risk of severe covid-19 is low, many believe that mass vaccination of children may not just protect children from severe covid-19, but also prevent onward transmission, indirectly protecting vulnerable adults and helping end the pandemic. However, there are multiple assumptions that need to be examined when judging calls to vaccinate children against covid-19. First, the disease in children is commonly mild, and serious sequelae remain rare. Despite “long covid” recently garnering increased attention, two large studies in children show that prolonged symptoms are uncommon and overall similar or milder in children testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 compared to those with symptoms from other respiratory viruses. The US Centre for Disease Control (CDC) estimates put the infection fatality rate from covid-19 among children 0 to 17 years old at 20 per 1,000,000. Hospitalization rates are also very low, and have likely been overestimated. Furthermore, a large proportion of children have already been infected with SARS-CoV-2. The CDC estimates 42% of US children aged 5 to 17 years have been infected by March 2021. Given that SARS-CoV-2 infection induces a robust immune response in the majority of individuals, the implication is that the risks covid-19 poses to the pediatric population may be even lower than generally appreciated. In the clinical trial underlying the authorization of Pfizer-BioNTech’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 12 to 15, of the close to 1000 children who received placebo, 16 tested positive for covid-19, compared to none in the fully vaccinated group. Given this low incidence, the fact that covid-19 is generally asymptomatic or mild in children, and the high rate of adverse events in those vaccinated (e.g. in Pfizer’s trial of 12-15 year olds, 3 in 4 kids had fatigue and headaches, around half had chills and muscle pain, and around 1 in 4 to 5 had a fever and joint pain), a comparison of quality-adjusted life-years in the trial would very much favour the placebo group. Potential benefits from the vaccine, including protection of children against severe covid-19 or long covid, or covid-19 months in the future, could affect this balance, but such benefits were not shown in the trial and remain hypothetical. Even if one assumes protection against severe covid-19, given its very low incidence in children, an extremely high number would need to be vaccinated in order to prevent one severe case. Meanwhile, a large number of children with very low risk for severe disease would be exposed to vaccine risks, known and unknown. Thus far, Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine has been judged by Israel’s government as likely linked to symptomatic myocarditis, with an estimated incidence between 1 in 3000 to 1 in 6000 in men ages 16 to 24. Furthermore, the long term effects of gene-based vaccines, which involve novel vaccine platforms, remain essentially unknown. In terms of the risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from children to adults, this is also low and decreasing, though not negligible. School teachers are more likely to get SARS-CoV-2 from other adults than they are from their students. The contribution of schools to community transmission has been consistently low across jurisdictions. In addition, considering estimates that 42% of those aged 5 to 17 years in the US are now post-covid, this should only lower the risk of transmission from children. Add to this the fact that most adults in rich western countries have received at least one dose of covid-19 vaccine—around 80% of UK adults now have SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, whether from past infection or from vaccination—and it seems the opportunities for children to be vectors of transmission to adults are dwindling. Given all these considerations, the assertion that vaccinating children against SARS-CoV-2 will protect adults remains hypothetical. Even if we were to assume this protection does exist, the number of children that would need to be vaccinated to protect just one adult from a bout of severe covid-19—considering the low transmission rates, the high proportion of children already being post-covid, and most adults being vaccinated or post-covid—would be extraordinarily high. Moreover, this number would likely compare unfavourably to the number of children that would be harmed, including for rare serious events. A separate, but crucial question is one of ethics. Should society be considering vaccinating children, subjecting them to any risk, not for the purpose of benefiting them but in order to protect adults? We believe the onus is on adults to protect themselves. In multiple jurisdictions around the world, the vast majority of adults, including those that are at high risk, have not been fully vaccinated against covid-19. If the goal is to protect adults, shouldn’t efforts be focused on ensuring adults are fully vaccinated rather than targeting children? Further, it is highly inequitable to be vaccinating very low risk children in wealthy countries while many vulnerable adults in low-income countries have not had any doses. There is no need to rush to vaccinate children against covid-19—the vast majority stands little to benefit, and it is ethically dubious to pursue a hypothetical protection of adults while exposing children to harms, known and unknown. The risk/benefit consideration may be different in children at relatively higher risk of severe disease, such as those who are obese or immunocompromised. Otherwise, the focus should be on ensuring safe and effective vaccines are available for the adult populations which stand the most to benefit, especially those at high risk. In the meantime, there should be ongoing active evaluation of risks to youth, including research into risk factors for severe covid-19 and the impact of new variants, as well as ongoing evaluation of vaccine efficacy and safety. There should also be ongoing evaluation of the protection afforded by infection-induced immunity relative to vaccine-induced immunity, especially in youth. See also: Should we delay covid-19 vaccination in children? Elia Abi-Jaoude, Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, ON, Canada Peter Doshi, Department of Pharmaceutical Health Services Research, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore Claudina Michal-Teitelbaum, Preventive Medicine, Independent Researcher, Lyon, France Competing interests: PD has received travel funds from the European Respiratory Society (2012) and Uppsala Monitoring Center (2018); grants from the FDA (through University of Maryland M-CERSI; 2020), Laura and John Arnold Foundation (2017-22), American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (2015), Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (2014-16), Cochrane Methods Innovations Fund (2016-18), and UK National Institute for Health Research (2011-14); was an unpaid IMEDS steering committee member at the Reagan-Udall Foundation for the FDA (2016-20), and is an editor at The BMJ. EAJ and CMT have no relevant financial conflicts of interest to declare. The views and opinions expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect official policy or position of the University of Maryland or the University of Toronto. Acknowledgment: The authors wish to thank Jennie Lavine for her comments on this article. Not commissioned, peer reviewed.

I'd be very surprised to see TAB NZ agree to that but I guess we live in hope.

It's OK hell if our 1965 Hercules C-130 can make it to Afghanistan and back then we can do anything! Just be kind.

I'm ready for civil unrest. Hell our airforce has been sent to Afghanistan there won't be much resistance!

Mmmmmm New Zealand Racing closed down for 1 case. Will Royal Randwick proceed with 400+ cases per day?

Look on the brightside at least you won't be viewing Fixed Odds skewed in the TAB's favour by providing odds on balloted out horses. Although I note that there are less and less balloted out horses now than when the Cambridge AWT started.

So you have to have "inside information" now to know what was once public information able to be seen by all stakeholders? How do we know it is accurate? I didn't make the assertions or post assumptions on BOAY that others had. I queried how did they knew when the data had not been published. As far as I'm concerned if it hasn't been publicly published like it has in years gone by then I doubt its veracity. Has the administration of TAB NZ and the Racing Codes fallen to the level of secret squirrels, not what you know but who you know, smoke and mirrors, BS and arse covering? If Harness Stakeholders don't have access to the key information such as how many NZ Harness races were exported (were ALL NZ Harness races exported?) AND what the turnover was on those exported races how can our administrators be held accountable let alone supported? You believe it is correct but how do you know? In the past EVERYONE who wanted to know could find the information. Now some of us are reliant on trusting the likes of you and @JJ Flash who have inside information and who trust what they have been told. I assure you it isn't just to appease me - any stakeholder in the industry should have a desire to know whether their administrators and code is performing and getting a fair deal. I shouldn't have to ring him. He should have published the information that supposedly he has at his fingertips instead of getting a PR consultant to write nonsensical press releases. It used to happen before McKenzie and Co started to dominate things why has it stopped?

They might be in the queues at the Supermarket. Or... They are expecting the Transpower prediction of a power emergency tonight to come true.

The fact is there has been no comprehensive breakdown of performance from either NZRB/RITA/TAB NZ or the three codes since November 2019 for the year ending 31 July 2019. For example that was the last time there was any publication of the breakdown of exported/imported races by code. Correct me if I'm wrong and point me in the right direction OR post the data. Most of us are guessing unless we are privy to inside information. Since McKenzie and Saundry took over detailed performance information has dried up completely. SO it is IMPOSSIBLE for stakeholders to assess the performance or lack thereof of any of the administrators. Where are the respective organisations Strategic Plans and Business Plans? Woodham is looking to find an "overseas partner" to improve "awareness of the NZ Harness product with Australians". What does that mean? How much are they spending on marketing this coming season now that they are responsible for that and not TAB NZ? Can we really be confident that the promises of bucket loads of money are going to be forthcoming this coming season? There is ZERO money in the TAB NZ coffers so each of the codes are going to have to deliver on revenue (product) targets but based on what plan? FFS Harness is still working out their race programme for the coming year!!!!! Are they doing that with their "overseas partner"?

Therefore @JJ Flash cannot argue one way or another that Woodham negotiated well or badly because to quote you it was decided "a a percentage of overseas betting on their own code". Which HRNZ have no direct control over!!!!! Who decides what races are broadcast when and on what channel? Who decides what days to race on and what time to start those meetings? What is developing an "overseas partner" mean and what will whatever it entails actually do? These are questions YOU ALL should be asking.

So from that statement you deduce the following: FFS!! WHAT IS THE SIMPLE MATHS? What's more what is the formula going forward? Or is it a case of who argues best each year?

SO WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE THAT HRNZ GOT MORE OR LESS OF WHAT THEY WERE ENTITLED TO?

Really? What you have posted doesn't support your argument and is very light on detail. It also doesn't answer any of the question I posed to you regarding the pro-rata share and whether or not it was under or over what HRNZ was entitled to. The underlined statement is bollocks. What does it mean? What will an "offshore partner" do to increase exposure in Australia? Is this "offshore partner" Harness Racing Australia or a Bookie? Or TAB AUS? Is the lower take from export betting (we presume it is lower because detailed figures are not available) influenced by TAB NZ's Trackside programming and broadcasting? Should HRNZ find an "offshore partner" in OZ to broadcast NZ races? Or is that Trackside's role? But you haven't posted any answers or evidence to support the statements you have made. Keep up your fake news narrative @JJ Flash. You are only consistent in one thing and that is belittling BOAY and its posters. I guess you do that to bolster you own superiority. You avoid answering questions because you don't have the answers but your repeatedly post the glib party line propaganda from the administrators that most of us on BOAY have grown extremely tired of. If it sounds like BS, looks like BS and walks like BS then it is BS!

How do you know what the baseline figure was? Where is it published? What was the formula that was used? Did it include contributions from imported races? If so how did they compensate for the bias towards Thoroughbreds and Dogs?

ELEVEN of the top 18 nominations are from Te Akau! Although that may drop off - I see Entriviere is nominated for Royal Randwick this weekend. In my opinion she is capable of picking up a decent Grp race in OZ and why race against the rest of the Te Akau team at home.

Compared to the Tarzino:

Reinswoman Kate Gath and horse Tornado Valley. Picture: Stuart McCormick By Adam Hamilton 05:49pm • 15 August 2021 1 Comments Just like Jamie Kah, harness racing star Kate Gath had a breakthrough last season winning her first metropolitan driving title. And just like Jamie Kah, Kate Gath has gone right on with the job since. Gath set a personal best with five winners at a metropolitan meeting when she dominated Saturday night’s Ballarat program, which had been transferred from Tabcorp Park Melton because of this week’s harness racing Covid-19 scare. She won five of the first six races. Even with more than four months of the harness season remaining, Gath holds an almost unassailable lead in the metro title again. Her 46 wins giving her a 26-win lead over nearest rival, former Tasmanian young gun Jack Laugher. “I tend to want to fly under the radar a bit, but I’m really grateful with everything I’ve been able to do in the last couple of years. You are only as good as the horses you drive, it really helps. I’ve been pretty lucky,” Gath told Trots Vision. Gath’s Ballarat dominance was extra special with four of the wins coming for her own stable, which she runs with husband, Andy. They also lead the metropolitan trainers’ premiership with 33 wins, five ahead of the powerhouse Emma Stewart and Clayton Tonkin stable. Kate Gath is in the unique situation of driving for both leading stables. Her headline win at Ballarat came from their recent Kiwi import Tango Tara in the Group 2 Melton Pace final. “He just went terrific. He’s just getting better all the time. We’re sort of working him harder all the time and he’s thriving on it – that win tonight was pretty damn good,” Gath said. Champion driver Chris Alford also notched a milestone at Ballarat with his 7500th career win coming aboard Robbie Royale in the Group 3 Coulter Crown Trot. Alford, 53, has driven more winners than any other driver in Australasia. “I still love driving winners, whether it’s for big stables or little stables. I’m enjoying it as much as ever,” he said.

Race 1 - WINX STAKES [GROUP 1] (1400 METRES) Of $500,000.1st $287,000, 2nd $94,000, 3rd $49,500, 4th $22,250, 5th $12,250, 6th $5,000, 7th $5,000, 8th $5,000, 9th $5,000, 10th $5,000, Equine Welfare Fund $5,000, Jockey Welfare Fund $5,000. GROUP 1 Standard Weight for Age, Three-Years-Old and Upwards, Apprentices cannot claim. Track Name: Randwick Track Type: Turf Field Limit: 16 + 4 EM Last 10 Horse Bonus Trainer Ballot Wgt(kg) True Wgt(kg) Penalty(kg) B'mark 1 4117x3112x VERRY ELLEEGANT (NZ) Chris Waller 1 57 122 2 10x22501x5 KOLDING (NZ) Chris Waller 2 59 116 3 5103x1214x THINK IT OVER Kerry Parker 3= 59 114 4 561x12454x COLETTE James Cummings 3= 57 114 5 0825x3413x CASCADIAN (GB) James Cummings 5 59 112 6 0x017x528x DREAMFORCE John Thompson 6 59 111 7 4303x2007x IMAGING (GB) Chris Waller 7= 59 107 8 095x41690x STAR OF THE SEAS (NZ) Chris Waller 7= 59 107 9 117x32107x MO’UNGA (NZ) Annabel Neasham 7= 58.5 107 10 227x78111x HUNGRY HEART Chris Waller 10 56.5 106 11 04654x300x KEIAI NAUTIQUE (JPN) Matthew Smith 11= 59 105 12 04508x663x MASTER OF WINE (GER) Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes 11= 59 105 13 876x00134x BRANDENBURG (NZ) John Sargent 13 59 104 14 13x41x211x MOUNT POPA (IRE) Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes 14 59 103 15 325x32324x SHE’S IDEEL Bjorn Baker 15 57 102

So you do have contacts at TAB NZ?