Chief Stipe

Basically a sand loam to which has been added organic matter which helps with drainage, reduces the need to artificially fertilise and has increased the water holding capacity to reduce the affect of droughts BUT not at the expense of natural drainage.

Yes but they are giving an opinion on something they should be knowledgeable about. Although in my experience there is a wide variation between those you would or wouldn't listen to. Some Jockeys make good trainers but not many. They may say put blinkers on. But unless they said why they think that and you would be less inclined to take it on board.

I want to know who has the monopoly on sand? Seriously someone has a real fixation on sand fixing everything. They hastened the demise of Te Rapa with all the sand slitting. They just filled the drains! Now look at the issues with Ellerslie. Does NZ racing really want artificial sand tracks that are expensive to maintain and only provide an artificial Soft 6 or Soft 5 surface that bears no comparison to the sane rating on a non-sand track?

The number of tracks is largely irrelevant. It is about having sustainable tracks that are financially able to maintain their business. In an earlier post reference was made to the amount of money spent at Flemington each year to renovate and maintain the track(s). They can afford to do it. They have 25 race meetings a year, 30 jumpout meetings (3 a month) and 800 horses are trained on the course. Meanwhile in NZ we seem to be contemplating the sale of Levin to fund a course (Trentham) that has 12 meetings a year, no training tracks/facilities, next to zero horses trained on the track, no jumpouts or trials and a stabling/saddling area that was built just after WW2

No Hercock has now done at least 3 interviews on Trackside in recent weeks where she has given more than opinion. She has stated specifically what the Track Managers should have done. That is an area of knowledge beyond her specific realm. It isn't helpful at all nor what she is saying accurate. She repeats largely three things - water more, don't move the rail and the track managers are doing what we tell them to do. Really? Is it that simple? It then becomes a rallying call for all the armchair experts to slay Track Managers and those employed to fix the issues with limited resources. Hastings is stuffed as is Trentham. Adding more water or not shifting the rail ain't going to fix them. @Special Agent would you be happy for a Jockey to tell you how to train your horses? Or would you prefer knowledgeable feedback on how your horse performed in a race? Theres a difference.

Struggle to get race meetings scheduled in the South Island.

I don't disrespect her riding experience nor her right to comment on how the track is performing for the horses she rides in it. However I don't believe she is qualified to proffer strong opinions on what needs to be done to the tracks. She had a go at two track managers now and her solution is to water the track more.

Well they must have an agenda then. Equally your blue blood analogy could apply to them. Bryce Mildon started his track management career at Matamata. He was there for 10 years working for arguably one of the best track managers in NZ. Qualified in Sports Turf Management. 12 months at Stawell in Victoria. 3 years at Sale. Then track manager at Pakenham. Came back to NZ and then 12 months at Pukekohe. Back to Pakenham for nearly 6 years. Managing turf and AWT tracks and was General Manager. So if Pakenham didn't like him why did they employ him for a second stint? He was only at Hastings for about 3 months before the HB Guineas Day abandonment. He wasn't there for the previous abandonments that have occurred quite a few times in recent years. Is there? How can a track like Trentham be financially viable with only 10 or 12 meetings a year and no other revenue source? BTW Mildon managed to successfully run 14 race meetings on the turf track in less than 3 months. I have no problem with Hercock commenting on how her horse feels underneath her when galloping on the track. But shouldn't the line be drawn at her commenting on how to manage the tracks? Especially when her solution is essentially to pour more water on the tracks.

Different problem in my opinion. They were cutting into the ground at Awapuni. Ellerslie initially the horses couldn't get into the ground because of the root matter. They've got round that largely with mechanical means not watering. The moisture meter reading was already very high at Awapuni I don't know how you could get much more water into it!!! Hercock should stick to riding and the track condition NOT how to fix it

I see the normal online mob are ranting and raving maniacally at the "experts" and blaming all and sundry. I don't think it helps. I'm sick and tired of the BS about "it didn't happen in our day when we had farmers on the committee running things". It's pure hogwash. The fact is past generations sucked the life out of the tracks and never put anything back. We are now paying for it. You only have to look at what Flemington spends every year on track renovation to see that we haven't spent that much on more than a dozen tracks let alone ONE. In my opinion there is one mistake that the experts are making and I believe it is driven by the direction they are getting. The objective given to the experts is to provide a track that can handle all weather amd provide a very narrow range of firmness. The only way to achieve that is to use pure sand. It's a mistake in my opinion. The top layer should be a sandy loam soil mix on top of sand. A sandy loam retains moisture and nutrients so needs less irrigation and fertilisation but still provides good drainage. However like Flemington you get a wider range of track ratings e.g. from heavy to firm but the downgrades and upgrades occur faster than a clay loam based soil. Most of our tracks are clay loam and have been hammered. A sandy loam doesn't have as much kick back as pure sand either.

That's not correct. Who is saying he has been pushed from anywhere? My intel from people whose opinion I respect say he has a very good track management pedigree. He was at Pakenham a long time and I believe did two stints there. As for Pukekohe given the hammering it got covering for Ellerslie you wouldn't want to manage it anyway. Hercock put the boot into him after HB Guineas Day again saying it needed to have irrigated it more prior. I saw that track close up and she was wrong. It does need a complete renovation. You only have to look at its track record over the last seven years. At least 5 of those years there have been abandonments. it was "industry knowledge" and lack of investment in maintenance that got the industry into the position it is in. In my opinion you are very much wrong about Hastings. It isn't a quick fix i.e. using a couple of farmers and a mole plough. Tracks have a limited life. The majority of ours are well past their use by date.

I bet you no horse "slips".

I caught up with it in a later replay and it was significant. I expect to be derided for my next comment but... was it a slip or did the horse lose its footing? Hercock says the track needs more water like Ellerslie. Yet go figure Ellerslie was a S5 at 28% moisture and Awapuni was G4 at 38% moisture. Now we have Senior jockeys telling the track managers how to manage the tracks. A circus. There is a 30cm layer of sand on top at Awapuni. We now have another Ellerslie. I was always taught that the best soil profile for drainage AND turf culture WASN'T pure sand.

The get round Omoto and Reefton OK. But given the rail was out the same distance the whole way then are you suggesting that with the rail in the true position the bend is also too tight?

I don't understand how the horse slipped since they were getting into it so much. That aside not sure about these sand profile tracks. Ever seen rye grass growing on a beach?

Did it look that bad? They couldn't find any slip marks.

Uh oh here we go again.

Bit of kick back. A lot of sand in that profile.

A Good 4 race day morning and 38% moisture reading. In my opinion that would indicate a very good surface to race on. Compare that to Ellerslie which last meeting had initially a soft 5 with a moisture reading that varied over days from 24 to 33%. Shame we don't get penetrometer data like they do in Australia.

Frequent problem at Ellerslie before the tore it up.

Yes that does sound positive but where is the capital coming from? Contrary to WRC members blinkered views the Trentham track needs serious work and the stabling area is well past fit for purpose. Not even mentioning the public facilities. So if Awapuni cost nearly $6m then at least $15-20m is needed to fix Hastings AND Trentham. Selling Levin and Foxton isn't going to raise that capital. Isn't it about time the new CEO broke the mold of his predecessors and be transparent about the plans?

Perhaps it is an announcement that Hastings will be closed down. I can't see where they'll find the capital to fix both Hastings and Trentham.

Drains clog up. Doesn't matter what type of track it is they all require major renovations before 20 years is up. Ellerslie isn't the same type of StrathAyr. It is purely sand based. I don't know how they prevent sand clogging the drains.

Valley rids disease, braces for rain www.racing.com Valley track staff have worked to remove diseases that were discovered on the turf following last month's William Reid Stakes meeting, but could be dealt with a blow with an unfavorable forecast leading up to the venue's return to racing on Saturday. The Bureau of Meteorology is predicting as much as 25mm on Friday but as little as 3mm, which track foreman Tony Salisbury says at its worst would result in the meeting starting in the Heavy range. "If we get up to 7mm I'll be ok with that, but if we get north of that, it could be an issue," he admitted. "I would expect it to play well otherwise, it may still cut out, but not as much as it did (on March 22). "We've had to put water on this week, including 3.5mm last night (Tuesday), because you can't let the track dry out because it will go backwards. "So it's a balancing act with the right amount of moisture to get the percentages within the profile in terms of moisture readings so it doesn't drop off. "You don't want it to be at detriment to the track's health, but it's then got to be able to absorb that rainfall, whatever that is." Since the StrathAyr track was laid in 1995, Salisbury said the aging layout currently drains at only 10 per cent of its original rate. Salisbury's team has again applied a product to the track this week, which will assist in trying to cater for a large amount of rainfall, but he insisted it is no 'silver bullet'. Following remedial track works post the Group 1 meeting on March 22, staff applied fungicides to the track in order to kill diseases that were discovered. "We discovered a root-born disease and there were three significant diseases in the foliage," Salisbury said. "We knew the roots weren't right but upon investigation after the meeting, we got some testing conducted. "There was a lot of negativity around the meeting understandably with the track cutting out, but at least now we know why. "The improvement is definitely there but the thing to factor in is the remedial works took a week to complete, so the recovery to race time is about three weeks. "The track is healthy, there is no problem there though, the plant, the growth and growth rate and appearance is spot on." The Moonee Valley Racing Club has appointed former Rosehill Gardens racecourse manager Shaun Patterson as Marty Synan's replacement and he will begin in the top job on Monday.

Awapuni relaunch could see Group 1 bonuses next season www.nzherald.co.nz “When the track was pulled up we saw the drains on that home bend just weren’t working,” explains Taylor. “But that wasn’t the only issue and the whole track was pulled up and re-laid. “The track now has a better camber and the drainage is so much better. “It has been a long process so we are thrilled to be back.” Relaunching a newly-laid turf track can be a nervy process in this age of way too many race meeting cancellations but Taylor and his team are confident the Awapuni track is ready to go back to work. “I’d estimate we have had 500 horses gallop over the new surface,” he explains. “We have had jumpouts and trials and we have around 200 horses trained here using it for at least some of their work. “So it has had a lot of hooves go over it and the reports are all really positive. “We had 30 horses gallop here on it on Tuesday and even after a fair bit of rain their riders were saying it was no worse than a soft 6. “The main change is the drainage. We now have lateral drains that go right across the track and it has changed every thing.” The relaunch will be highlighted by the $80,000 Manawatū ITM Anzac Mile featuring Group 1 winner He’s A Doozy while there will be an after party to celebrate the return of grass track racing to the track. The new surface will have another grass track meeting next month before the turf track is rested for the winter, with the synthetic track to be used.
 But the new, improved Awapuni could be in for two huge Group 1 bonuses next season with the last two legs of the Group I Triple Crown usually held at Hastings almost certainly heading to Awapuni. With the future of the Hastings track still under a cloud the draft calendar for next season tentatively has the first of the G1 treble, the Tarzino Trophy, down to be run at Ellerslie before both the 1600m and 2000m legs being staged at Awapuni. The 1400m Group 1 being held at Ellerslie makes sense as it is closer to the elite horse population and that race can sometimes be used as a launching point for trainers wanting to head to Australia. But the latter two legs being staged at Awapuni would keep Group 1 racing in the Central Districts for spring, if in fact that draft of the calendar becomes the official version at the next New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing calendar meeting in May. While the Triple Crown of Group 1s being moved to Ellerslie and Awapuni may alarm Hawke’s Bay racing fans, the Herald understands NZTR will make an announcement in coming weeks about the future of racing at Hastings.