Chief Stipe

Braedoon springs to mind as one of the good ones. A good even crop of 3 yr olds in 1983. Nostradamus, Borana, Lyndon Robert, Mighty Me, Dunhill, Double Smooth and more.

I remember Bluey from my younger days when my father's horses were trained at Richmond and raced often on the West Coast/Nelson/Marlborough circuits. Bluey had some useful pacers over the years. 90 is a good age to reach but always a loss to family.

You lot can you get back on topic. As for you JJ Flash you can take your shit stirring elsewhere.

Peter HOPE Obituary HOPE, Peter Noel (Bluey): On November 13, 2020, peacefully with his loving wife Mary (of 62 years) by his side, in his 90th year. Dearly loved and respected father and father-in-law of Virginia Hope and Phillip Pratt; Bernadette Viberg, Greg and Nina Hope, Mary-Louise Hope and Dane Runow. Special Grandad and Blu to Fraser, Cameron and Alana; Magnus, Gunnar; Ben and Tom; Isabella and Lily. Great-Grandad of Flynn, Katie-Mary and Thomas. A loved brother, uncle and friend to many. R.I.P. Messages to Apartment 21, 130 Middle Renwick Road, Blenheim 7201 or www.cloudybayfunerals.co.nz In lieu of flowers, a donation to St Vincent de Paul, 63 High Street, Blenheim, would be appreciated or may be made at the service. A Requiem Mass will be celebrated at St Mary's Catholic Church, Maxwell Road, Blenheim, on Tuesday, November 17, at 11.00am, followed by private cremation. Published in The Press on Nov. 14, 2020

Peter HOPE Obituary HOPE, Peter Noel (Bluey): On November 13, 2020, peacefully with his loving wife Mary (of 62 years) by his side, in his 90th year. Dearly loved and respected father and father-in-law of Virginia Hope and Phillip Pratt; Bernadette Viberg, Greg and Nina Hope, Mary-Louise Hope and Dane Runow. Special Grandad and Blu to Fraser, Cameron and Alana; Magnus, Gunnar; Ben and Tom; Isabella and Lily. Great-Grandad of Flynn, Katie-Mary and Thomas. A loved brother, uncle and friend to many. R.I.P.

I'm locking this thread. Not a good time for the Hope family at the moment with Peter "Bluey" Hope passing away two days ago. I'm surprised JJ Flash you being the harness expert would know that and show some sensitivity.

You have no beef with them yet insult them by saying they have no class.

Yep. Wasn't the only one.

Were you on course or watching on TV? The reason why I ask is because Trackside tends to gravitate towards Te Akau. Which is not surprising when you consider that she trained most of the presenters, David Ellis resurrected Weigh In and Karen does a lot of the syndicate admin and looking after people. Plus 5 winners and you tend to get a bit of airtime. You'll probably find she had shares in some of them so I'd be prancing around as well.

As I said above I don't agree with Molloy's antics. Personally I've been on the receiving end of his vile abuse even when I helped him out. There are a lot of people in that category. I don't agree with the way he goes about things and I certainly don't agree with what he has done with regard to the contempt of court case. BUT he did go into bat for David Walker AND he did go into bat for those who have been on the raw end of the misguided (illegal?) INCA investigations. I wouldn't have him on my team but full credit for his support of those who have been mistreated. Shoot if he makes a few dollars out of hosting the BGP on Melbourne Cup Day and takes the piss in doing so well I don't have a problem with it. Is there some element of hypocrisy from the Racing Authorities? Yes there probably is - for one they are not hiding in hedges in the Viaduct! But that isn't Molloy's fault - point the finger at where it should be pointed. Those who hid in hedges to catch David Walker riding trackwork on a private property and who hid in hedges to raid harness training properties to catch nothing.

Then file a complaint. However the point is where do you draw the line on who can or cannot use it? Plus you don't know if permission was asked for and granted to the company that owns the bar in question. Now if you are gunning for a scrap why don't you get on the case for when the said establishment starts their Karaka Millions or Auckland Cup events. The person that you seem to have a gripe with is not allowed on a race course or to own a racehorse. There is nothing in the rules saying that person can't hold a party that promotes themselves AND the event.

I wouldn't worry about her being a "free sweater". My best was. I remember the day of her Group win we had to scrape her down twice before we got to the birdcage! Physiologically it is a plus because they cool quicker than those that don't. I'd be a bit more worried of a horse that didn't sweat up on a day like yesterday because it may indicate dehydration. If they are sweating but not excited - all good. I was listening to Jayne Ivil's comments pre start at Newcastle yesterday and she mentioned that some breeds do it more than others e.g. the Galileo's.

Yes many jockey's adjusted their tactics and positioned themselves before the top of the straight. However in my opinion the track was only "off" where it was worn. There were still horses making ground 3 horse widths out from the fence as the day progressed and winning. As I said in an earlier post I don't know why they didn't have the rail out 3m the whole circuit. LOL I guess then you'd have people complaining that the inside was a fast lane!

Ease up the Joe. There are issues with the Gold Coast track hence the signalled upgrades. Aren't they putting in a synthetic track on the inner during the first stage so they can continue to earn income and then they will work on the main track? Dated March 2019 - Plans on the table include an equine tunnel, new synthetic training track and overhaul of the B Grass training track, plus Racing Queensland’s desire to install lights at the venue. There is an allocation of $28 million locked in for the Coast. A reconstruction of the course proper is part of the overall works, but Cook said the club would happily put that on the backburner if it meant the other projects could be started earlier.

That's drawing a long bow and why pick on one business. There is hardly a bar in NZ or OZ that doesn't promote Melbourne Cup Day. If you have a beef with Molloy then that's OK but keep to specifics otherwise you look like you have a personal ax to grind.

Probably both but also a soil structure that doesn't facilitate even water take up. The verti-draining done after October 3 was to assist impeded distribution due to soil structure. However the problem (if there actually was a problem) on Saturday wasn't caused by irrigation. As for there being a bias the inside track was worn and no doubt compacted from the previous two race days in a week. You can't blame the irrigation. Now the "apparent bias" became assumed "fact" because of the swoopers winning in the first three races. Yet that trend didn't continue. Or are the complainers suggesting there were multiple "fast lanes"? Thinking about it a bit more, if we believe the penetrometer readings during the week, then the scene was set by the God given 48 mm and the 8mm did nothing. You wouldn't have got much more improvement in the track rating anyway.

Or after 28 races by the time it got to the Welcome Stakes it was worn. If your theory about irrigation was correct then explain the first day that showed no apparent bias yet had far more irrigation? Also 48mm was applied by God and 8mm by the Track Manager. I suggest Reefton you go to confession after Mass this morning and ask why the man upstairs decided to disadvantage your horse.

Hard to say. Slow race early and a bit of a sprint home.

Not such a good day for the south today. 2 or 3? Five to Te Akau.

That track you refer to was a G2 and extremely hard. It was a mess as evident by the clouds of dust. There was near universal condemnation of that track.

Never over head irrigate any plant when it is hot and sunny. The plants don't like it. The other reason may have been to leave it as late as possible to assess what was happening. Also if the "rule book" was being followed then he can't irrigate on the Friday.

But it's always the same thing and what suits Pitty.

Farming 101 - never irrigate in the heat of the day.

29 races on the track to this point this week. You'd expect it to be a bit worn.

Galah and Nomates has Pitty been on the phone to you both?