Chief Stipe

Common sense really. But I'm just a negative bastard. I'm not really!

Back up there Forbury. That was 16 years ago. Purdon was hardly the key player in that affair. Do you actually know what "Blue Magic" is?

I assume you are referring to Whanganui? What is the detail? This is all the RIU have posted.

If you carry on posting this crap then I suggest you go elsewhere. Feel free to critique the All Stars/Purdon if you wish. However be specific and provide evidence. Personal unfounded attacks will not be tolerated.

Isn't it a bit like the guy who wins Lotto? $10m suddenly in the bank account. What does he do? Buys some "assets." A brand new $2m boat and mooring. A brand new V8 motorcar. $3m house. $1m "bach". A few racehorses. Leaves the $60k a year job. The first two years after purchase are all fun. No repairs on the boat - didn't even need any maintenance. Paid for all fuel, rates, house maintenance and horse fees out of the capital that he has left. Easy peasy - didn't really take much notice. The boat needs taking out of the water for its bi-annual maintenance - anti-fouling, prop-speed. A few items need replacing - the parties were a bit hard on wear and tear. He finds out that every item on the boat has a minimum cost of $5k to repair or replace. Works out that you need to budget about 5-10% of the capital cost each year to keep it well maintained. He finds a few things wrong with the house and so needs to do some repairs. The rates have gone up on the bach because land values have gone through the roof (some with the family home). The racehorse bills are starting to flood in now that they are being educated and trained. Still hasn't made it to the races with any of them. His capital is diminishing rapidly and he starts to notice how much it costs to fill the boat with fuel and how many miles to gallon he gets out of the V8. Does a quick on the back of an envelope what his "operating costs" are per year and works out that he needs $250k a year in revenue to keep things going. The "assets" aren't actually assets but liabilities now. Isn't the best definition of an asset the one where it makes a return on capital invested? The house and bach have increased in value by about the same amount as the boat, car and horses have depreciated. He starts borrowing on the house and bach to keep his lifestyle going. Now an All Weather Track..... An AWT doesn't actually improve the value of the land it sits on so it isn't like the house and bach. I mean who wants to buy a used AWT? It is only an asset if it returns enough profit to keep up the operational costs, maintenance and return on capital. Surely someone has done those numbers? That $10m "gift" is a bit like winning Lotto isn't it?

Which means bigger fields and more of them. Less sub-optimal fields for betting i.e. those below 8 in number. How long will this last? Hard to say. In Thoroughbred and Harness racing there was a log-jam of horses ready to go racing. It would be expected that numbers will fall eventually. What this means....in simpler english..... is that before lockdown some punters only bet on NZ racing but during the lockdown they understandably bet on the International racing that was on offer through the NZ TAB. Seems after lockdown they have continued betting on overseas races but are spending the same as they did before on NZ races i.e. they are spending more. This is good news for Sports organisations but doesn't help racing. The term "days active" is the key in this statement. It means the number of days during the month that customers had a punt on. I'm picking that lockdown restrictions on other entertainment had an impact on this. Is it sustainable? Anyone's guess - I imagine though that it is a "soft" improvement and will be difficult to lock in. Who knows maybe the promotions from the new system are working. Basically like most Pokie venues the TAB would have taken a big hit. I imagine like many pubs they will be reviewing ongoing viability of Pokie venues e.g. can the floor space be better used for more sitting space for eating and drinking. Any Net Profit in these difficult economic times is good. So well done. However what we do know that based on the last annual report that we saw and the fact that NZRB/RITA was insolvent requiring the Government to bail them out that $12.8m isn't enough. This impacts the funding of the RIU. Can't afford anymore lockdowns. The $2.6m below last year is interesting but we don't know what it composes. We do know that they would have made operational savings during lockdown and still are with a reduction in customers services in retail and on course. Hence the difference in actual vs budget is probably due to Covid-19 rather than major structural changes. The increase in turnover is in lower yield products hence the % increase in turnover not equating to a similar increase in revenue (14.9% vs 10.1% Gross). The Gross Betting Revenue result suggests that they were budgeting for less than last year! I guess the pandemic was a silver lining! As for the Turnover figures by race - note how the races listed coincide with when Australian racing comes on screen? As for the Sports betting turnover by event - this is interesting but no more than that. We don't know what the yield was on each of those turnovers and what net profit that occurred is not destined for racing. Overall Grade - a C-. Needs to do more given the position that they are starting from i.e. insolvency.

No maybe's. Purcell continued the custom of publishing turnover figures and KPI's such as field sizes etc on a weekly basis. Do you think that now that we have less transparency we will see MORE positive action?

What is really positive about them? In terms of transparency we have no way of determining how far in the hole we were (no annual report) and no idea on the budget they are supposedly reporting against. But according to you JJ it is "none of our business" to know those things.

That's a bit harsh Freda. We used to get regular reports on turnover from the NZRB from NZTR. In far more detail than this report. We used to get the turnovers weekly by race meeting vs the previous year and performance against KPI's.

Huey said it was good to see some figures. He didn't say they were GOOD figures. JJ can you explain for us how they are GOOD figures?

There is some spin in those figures so be wary of tinting the specs the colour rose. Also they may well argue - "see getting rid of Trackside Radio didn't make a difference!" But it's a good question. Some NZRB functions have been devolved to the Codes. Where does Trackside Radio lie now? Is it a punting service, a broadcasting service or a marketing service? Under the new structure and devolution of functions I see the rich getting richer. The Harness and Greyhound codes are really going to be squeezed especially if they have weak or compliant leadership. For example what does it have to do with Saundry when it comes to retaining or selling Forbury Park?

Although good to finally see some figures there is a bit of creativity in their presentation. That aside I'm not sure what value there is on giving top 10 turnover figures especially with FOB on sport. Revenue Yield is the important metric. The full yearly report for 2019-2020 for RITA and NZTR must be due now that we have new efficient administration structures.

TAB New Zealand update on trading performance - August 2020 29 September 2020 Monthly Trading Performance Update TAB New Zealand (TAB NZ) today provides a trading update for August, the first month of the 2020/21 financial year. Moving forward, TAB NZ will provide regular updates on wagering performance and key operational highlights. Wagering Performance Summary Despite the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on its business and the wider industry, TAB NZ’s key results for the month were ahead of budget and last year. Starter and field size numbers were particularly good for both equine codes contributing to positive year-on-year domestic racing turnover growth. Encouragingly, total racing turnover continues to be strong, with year-on-year growth (+10.1%) with no significant growth in the volume of racing being broadcast. Analysis of customer behaviour shows that many bet on domestic racing only prior to lockdown have maintained their overseas racing activity while their domestic racing activity has returned back to prior levels. Sports turnover was strong (+36%), benefiting from the condensed nature of the sports calendar at the moment, with a number of sports seasons overlapping where they traditionally would not, eg. NBA taking place in August. This is helping to drive customer engagement levels. Customer numbers responded positively with 94,000 customers for the month, with days active comparable to the peak November period (Melbourne Cup and NZ Cup Week and major World Cups in the past). Retail operations and customers have also been shown to be resilient, notwithstanding the recent Greater Auckland Level 3 lockdown. Retail turnover in Auckland returned, almost immediately, to pre-lockdown levels. The Board recognises the significance of a Level 3 or 4 lockdown on our gaming business is considerable given the absence of being able to provide a comparable online offering. This presents risk to the funding of racing integrity, racing enhancement and community sport which Class 4 Gaming currently enables. Extra vigilance of gaming performance is therefore required to manage the ongoing risk of COVID-19. The Board is encouraged by the trading performance for the month however it remains cautious at this early stage of the season on the ability to meet full year projections. This is given the ongoing uncertainty presented by COVID-19 and the potential for further disruption to domestic and international product supply. August Operational Performance Highlights Net Profit for the month was $12.8m, which was $1.7m above Budget and $1.4m above Last Year. This is made up of; Betting Profit $11.9m (+$2.2m v Budget), Gaming Profit of $1.4m (-$0.5m vs Budget) and Racing Integrity RIU (RIU) of -$0.5m (in-line vs Budget). The result was primarily driven by a strong trading month from turnover due to increased product supply with margin and continued cost management being in-line with Budget. Total Gaming Revenue is $0.6m below Budget and $0.7m (-26.3%) below Last Year due to Auckland sites being closed for 19 days during Covid-19 lockdown. All other stores overall were in line with Budget. Operating Expenses are $0.2m below Budget and $2.6m (+21.1%) below Last Year. August Distributions Actual distributions of $11.5m for August were paid to the Racing Codes vs $10.7m budgeted. This consists of TAB NZ Betting Profit, Betting Duty relief and offshore bookmaker commission fees (Betting Information User Charge (BIUC) in the table below), based on actual turnover. August Wagering Performance Highlights Account bettor customers were slightly up (+1,200) on July’s numbers, with both racing and sport bettor numbers increasing: Racing customers were up 4% in July and sport customers were in line with July. Turnover of $208.2m is $21.8m above Budget and $27.1m (+14.9%) above Last Year impacted by strong performance in International Racing and Sport. Domestic racing accounted for $54m in turnover, with overseas racing product made up $82.2m of the month’s total turnover and sport delivering $71.7m in turnover. Gross Betting Revenue of $32.1m is $3.1m above Budget and $1.6m above last year due to higher turnover. August Events Top 10 Racing Events by turnover 22-Aug Randwick R7 Winx Stakes (G1) $434K 15-Aug Riccarton R8 Winning Edge Presentations 123rd Winter Cup (G3) $425K 15-Aug Riccarton R10 Racecourse Hotel & Motor Lodge Handicap $388K 8-Aug Te Rapa R10 See You @ Valachi Downs Foxbridge Plate Day 1400 $324K 1-Aug Matamata R7 Well Done Jamie Richards & Team 100 Winners $323K 22-Aug Matamata R11 Happy 60th Russell Wright Handicap 2000 $287K 1-Aug Ashburton R9 Brand & Gunn Want The Return of Trackside Radio $285K 22-Aug Matamata R9 Cunningham Decorating Services Handicap 1200 $281K 1-Aug Matamata R5 Price Racing 1400 $268K 1-Aug Ashburton R10 Barnswood Farm Stakes Day 18th October $259K Top 10 sport events by turnover 9-Aug Super Rugby Crusaders v Highlanders $645K 1-Aug Super Rugby Chiefs v Crusaders $608K 7-Aug NRL Manly Sea Eagles v NZ Warriors $599K 14-Aug NRL NZ Warriors v Penrith Panthers $575K 20-Aug NRL Parramatta Eels v Melbourne Storm $552K 30-Aug NRL Canberra Raiders v Canterbury Bulldogs $542K 27-Aug NRL Parramatta Eels v South Sydney Rabbitohs $519K 8-Aug Super Rugby Hurricanes v Chiefs $519K 13-Aug NRL Sydney Roosters v Melbourne Storm $518K 29-Aug NRL NZ Warriors v Newcastle Knights $518K

Rule Number(s): 870(5)Following the running of Race 5, the Rural Connectivity Group Trot, an Information instigating a protest was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr P Williams, against CALL THIS FUN, driven by Mr J Ford, placed 2nd by the Judge, in that CALL THIS FUN, broke in the final stages and was lapped on by 3rd placed ... (Feed generated with FetchRSS)View the full article

From what I can see Pakenham relies heavily on large training numbers to stay in the black.

Yep it's got much worse. Geez Allen and Purcell were highly polished glass compared the new mob!

I have no idea but that might make sense. What happens to a trainer that goes bankrupt does that wipe out the arrears? Interesting the increase from $1m to $1.7m. I can't think of any transaction that is of a quantum that could explain the increase.

On the 12 meetings that are Polytrack? Doesn't seem much. Are you sure you are counting the right figures? They "earnt" $9m in wagering and gaming revenue TOTAL across both the turf and polytrack. What happens when they get the irrigation wrong in the other months? The fact is the soil structure of the main track is stuffed. When is it going to be fixed? "Oh we are not going to race on it during the winter that'll fix it" approach just doesn't cut it.

It all comes back to revenue which determines the stakes levels - easy to get $150k minimum for a young horse that has been educated and trialled well. Doesn't take complicated maths to work out how many races you would have to win to clear that amount. Been like it for at least 20 years. Got worse when they screwed the handicapping system and made a top heavy tier system of stakes. Champagne top-end stakes on a beer income. NOTHING I've seen to date is going to improve the NET revenue situation. What's more what we are seeing now is not only a redistribution of costs (from NZRB to the codes administration) but an increase in costs with extra boards and high maintenance All Weather Tracks.

In Saundry's last published report for the year to July 2019 there were debtor current assets - Trade and sundry debtors from exchange transactions $1,711,725 up from $1,033,143 the previous year. These figures are posted in the annual accounts LESS any doubtful debts. We haven't seen a Annual Report for 2019-2020 - probably due about now! Also the 5 year Strategic Plan is overdue an update. As I've said before we seem to have a dark shroud falling over industry transparency.

It was Cambridge Jockey Club that NZTR underwrote. I imagine that they will be doing the same for Awapuni and Canterbury. With Awapuni they are already in the "swamp" hole for quite a bit so throwing a bit more at it will probably be on the cards. In the last publish NZTR Annual Report 2018-2019 there was a payment under "Infrastructure" to Cambridge Jockey Club of $407k for "Synthetic Track Costs." There was another sum under "Special Projects" - Cambridge synthetic track (offset by Enhancement Funds) $414,480. Not sure if that is the same as above. I've always said if the costs/revenue benefits hold up from a financial case perspective then Cambridge Jockey Club should have been able to do it all on their own. So in my opinion you must conclude that the financials are dodgy. NZTR should not be acting as a bank - history is littered with poor decisions! Then there was this in the annual report:

I'm sure I posted the detail somewhere here. I just can't remember which track it was for. I'll do some searching.....

Haven't they "underwritten" some of the extra costs? Didn't they do this for Cambridge?

Punters DON'T like punting on them in our largest market - Australia. Hence the cost/revenue ratio is not worth the effort of installing more! At the end of the day (eventually) the AWT will be a training asset nothing more. Which raises the question - WHY build it so big? If punters, trainers and owners want more consistent racing/results what is going to be done to fix the Riccarton Turf track? You are dreaming if you are going to get enough EXTRA revenue from the AWT to fund development on the course proper. But I guess the genius strategists are relying on the acquisition of other tracks capital assets to fix that. Good luck with that! Why is it so secret squirrel? Hardly any commercial sensitivity is there? Or don't they want others with racing assets how much is going to be plundered from elsewhere? WHAT ABOUT THE MAIN TURF TRACK RENOVATION? Or is that going too? Pitty you have bought hook line and sinker the BS that getting rid of "the plough, sand, cinders, grass pace work and galloping tracks" will cover the AWT maintenance. Are you saying that ALL WORK will be done on the AWT? Good luck with keeping your horses sound - or are you going to work them more at home? FFS go back and have a look at Godsen's training regimes at Newmarket. This is news. Post the plans? The financials. Show some transparency. Give assurance to investors to invest. Centres overseas have done it when undertaking big developments why can't Riccarton? Pitty as an industry leader, key trainer in Canterbury and an outspoken supporter of the new development YOU need to get across the detail and make sure it is published! Finally I'll ask again - WHAT IS GOING TO BE DONE TO REMEDIATE THE MAIN TURF TRACK? You know the one that is too hard when it's hot and fine and too muddy when it is wet? DON'T roll out the BS that the new AWT will give it a "rest" to recover because from what I can see given the increase in racedays it will still need to be used for the same amount of time. Also "giving it a rest" isn't going to work as God won't fix it.