Chief Stipe

Difference in climate between Pakenham and Riccarton.

I find that hard to believe when every article I have read online says the opposite or rather says that water content of the polyfill is important in maintaining a consistent racing surface. A "consistent racing surface" is THE goal is it not? I've been trying to get my head around the science of the polyfill and have tried comparing it to my horticulture and turf culture university education. The polyfill is a type of soil - soil is made up of four components - minerals, organic matter, water and air. Water and air percentage composition is largely influenced by the first two components minerals and organic matter. Minerals are made up of sands, clays and silts. Organic matter is decaying vegetation, worm and insects crap etc. About 50% of a soil is made of solid material - 45% minerals and 5% organic matter so 50% of your average soil is made up of voids that are filled with water and air. The % of water and air varies with one replacing the other depending on rainfall/irrigation and evaporation. The mix of the minerals largely determines the water holding capacity of soil. If the soil has a high sand component then its ability to retain water is limited as it drains well. At the other end of the spectrum are clay soils which retain water well but don't drain well - contrary to what one may intuitively think clay soils don't have a lot of water available for use - it gets tied up in the clay. The outcome of that is a clay soil can go from being very fluid when extremely wet (muddy) to very hard when dry - a bit like unset cement vs set cement. Just as it is very hard to grow grass on 100% sand it is hard to grow grass on 100% clay. Fortunately there are enough soils in between that allow agriculture and horticulture to exist. As cultivators of the land we can affect the base structure by changing the mineral composition and/or adding organic matter. This occurs naturally e.g. the succession of plants on sand dunes - tough plants get a foothold and go through life cycles adding organic matter to the sand allowing larger plants to follow adding more organic matter and so on. The mix of the different minerals plus the organic matter is referred to as soil structure and this structure determines the water/air characteristics of a soil. I better pull up here......back to the topic..... Now if we look at the Polytrack fill we can compare its characteristics with a soil. It has the same base characteristics of soil - minerals, organic material, water and air. With two differences the organic material is replaced by synthetic material and a petroleum based wax is added. Its mineral composition is predominantly silica sand. So without the addition of any other material it has a very low water retention i.e. it drains well. Mixed into this sand are synthetic fibres (bits of recycled rubber/carpet - akin to adding organic matter to a clay soil) which add structure to the sand i.e. create air and water voids. They are the source of the "cushion" for the horses to gallop safely on. They provide a better cushion than straight sand. The science of soils suggests that this addition of "structure" and the creation of voids will increase the capacity of the sand to retain water as there are more voids. You can't have the cushion without creating the voids - the weather or irrigation will influence the ratio of water to air in those voids. Now this is where the addition of the petroleum based wax comes in. Science suggests that this wax does two things it helps to aggregate the solids (increases structure) and alters the water retention characteristics by changing the polarity of the aggregate surfaces and repels water. Just like when your spray silicon over your fishing reels. This will improve drainage. So the theory behind not needing irrigation is that field capacity/water holding potential of polytrack fill is a very narrow range - if it rains or is dry then there isn't a big difference in the amount water/air ratio. That's the theory! BUT it doesn't seem to work like that in practice. For example look at the issues at Pakenham in Victoria. Pakenham has a similar climate profile to Riccarton but not the same. Observe what has also happened at other Polytrack venues and you will see similar issues. Now each Polytrack will have a different composition of Polyfill relative to climatic conditions e.g. Riccarton will have a different ratio of sand, fibre and wax when compared to Cambridge, Awapuni and Pakenham. Why? Well the science suggests that temperature and rainfall influence the amount of/and type of wax and fibre that you add to the sand. The manipulation of these ratio's will be to optimise the track conditions to a narrow range relative to the weather experienced. I'm guessing in a very dry climate you will use a wax that has a greater aggregating and water retention factor to limit the potential of the fill from blowing away. In a high temperature environment you might use a wax that has a higher melting point. In a wet environment you might use a wax that has a higher water repelling factor. Now this is where I see a case for irrigation. If you have an environment where there is a large seasonal variation (that variation could be daily, weekly, monthly or seasonal) how do you optimise the polyfill composition? You would have to compromise with the polyfill and accept lots of variation during the year. Or use artificial means to keep it within the optimal range e.g. irrigation and mechanical grooming. Why does the Polyfill need replenishment and eventually replacement? That's because the mechanics of horse's galloping on the surface, the regular mechanical grooming and the variations in climate cause the components of the polyfill to break down. Even the sand gets finer! The wax decays and the bits of carpet and tyres breakdown into microplastics. I've run out of puff......

I just don't understand why the secret squirrel's. We wouldn't even be discussing this if decades of over priced management hadn't made so many poor decisions and squandered resources. We forget that history at our peril.

All the speculation and doubts could easily be eliminated if RITA/NZTR/CJC published the PGF application and supporting analysis. In my opinion there is zero commercial sensitivity. It seems stakeholders are expected to follow the line - "Trust Us, we know what we are doing"! Unfortunately history is littered with their stuff ups. If they want the investment to be successful then trainers, owners and punters need transparency to encourage them to invest and plan. Otherwise -

So where will the training be done while the track is being built? Most of those surfaces that you mention don't require a lot of maintenance and I gather there isn't a lot done when it should be. Now if what you are saying is correct then the maintenance costs of the AWT will be greater than most and will shorten the life if the polyfill. With the tracks mentioned above how many are completely groomed twice a day? Will the AWT be sectioned off and only parts of the 16m width groomed each day?

Probably is the rejected one BUT it was rejected by the bureaucrats prior to Winnie and Jonesie doing deals. I would imagine that the details didn't change a lot.

I see in the Awapuni proposal Kamada Park gets new stables. Riccarton is going to double the number of horse's trained on course and double the number of race meetings. Still don't understand why there is commercial sensitivity around this proposal. Unless it hides numbers that can be challenged and/or discloses who has fingers in the pie!

Maybe we can get a copy of the attached document WITHOUT the "commercially sensitive" redactions! The CJC's logo is on this PGF Application so I'm sure Tim has some idea about what's in it. synthetic-racing-tracks-combined-updated-application.pdf

I don't see inflation climbing anytime soon however that wouldn't cover the extra costs with maintaining the polytrack. Did you ask Stephen Gray what he thought of the Polytrack in Singapore?

Did you have a horse in your frequent flyer carry-on baggage? What's the track like in Bali?

Yeah na. Thomarse will still be fretting about them not twittering!

Is the new management structure in place and have changes been made?

Are the RIU suddenly short of things to do? Or is there a new testing regime? Increased frequency?

Yeah I hear you. I've been following Aussie racing a lot more since Covid-19 kicked in. Was the only play in town for a while! I've mentioned before how I like looking up where these obscure tracks are in OZ on Google Maps. Towns of 1,600 people in the outback with turf tracks and what seems the whole town in attendance! But country racing aside I've also starting noticing the distances that City trainers travel to race their horses - aware that many do have satellite stables which lessens the distance. Snowden and Waller travel nearly weekly between Sydney and Newcastle to race horse. The same distance as from Christchurch to Timaru.

Rule Number(s): 869(3)(b)Following the running of Race 5, an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr P Williams, against Open Driver, Ms S Ottley, alleging that “On the first bend you shifted inwards when not sufficiently clear of ENDLESS DREAMS which was checked and broke.” Ms Ottley confirmed that she understood the ... (Feed generated with FetchRSS)View the full article

Rule Number(s): 870(3) and Breaking Horse RegulationsFollowing the running of race 2, an Information instigating a protest was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr P Williams, against DOWN TO THE BONE (J Dunn), placed 4th by the judge, on the grounds that it “galloped in excess of 50 metres in the final 200 metres”. Section B of the Breaking Horses Regulations ... (Feed generated with FetchRSS)View the full article

One thing that really worries me is what strategic analysis has been done that assesses all the factors. For example - environmental considerations. Imagine what will happen when the Greenies cotton onto the "synthetic" aspects of the polyfill. Sure its composition includes recycled waste but it is waste that wears and has to be dumped at some stage. Micro-plastics/fibres, petroleum based waxes and other "contaminants" are all used. The industry is opening itself up to all sorts of scrutiny. Compare that to a Strathayr or even a well maintained traditional turf track and we are talking a natural surface. The only thing synthetic about a Strathayr is the artificial mesh that is used to provide structure to the soil profile. It is recyclable. Although the polyfill is a lovely colour: A horse won't get a spec of sand in its eye but a piece of carpet!

Racing IS A BUSINESS however protecting the gambling arm from market forces doesn't work. History of Phumelela: Phumelela Gaming and Leisure Limited is a JSE-listed, level 4 B-BBEE business, which is licensed to operate horseracing and totalisator betting in seven of South Africa’s nine provinces. Horseracing in Gauteng was corporatised and totally restructured in 1997. Phumelela was formed that year and later listed on the JSE in June 2002 in order to facilitate the “corporatisation” of horseracing in Gauteng. “Corporatisation” came about at the behest of the Gauteng Provincial Government in order for the sport to remain competitive within a burgeoning gambling market that was about to legalise casinos and a national lottery in South Africa.A critical element of the restructuring was a commitment to rationalise the horseracing infrastructure in order to, inter alia, “facilitate transformation, transparency, accountability and create a sustainable business model”.The three racing clubs that had run racing in the region until then transferred their assets to the new company, Phumelela, which took over the management of the sport in the province.Phumelela’s main shareholder, the Thoroughbred Horseracing Trust (26.72% shareholder), is a not-for-profit entity which was formed at the insistence of the Gauteng Provincial Government.The principal objective of the Trust is to “promote the interest of all persons interested in, and affected by, the sport of thoroughbred horseracing in South Africa with a view to the long-term viability of the sport”.Additional objectives relate to the promotion of B-BBEE initiatives and affirmative action schemes with the intention of facilitating transformation within horseracing.Horseracing in the Northern Cape, the Free State and Eastern Cape, subsequently joined the corporatisation process under the Phumelela umbrella. The tote business in North West Province was acquired by Phumelela shortly thereafter.The racing clubs in KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape joined in the corporatisation process by rationalising their operations under the banner of Gold Circle in 2000. They demerged in 2013 and since then Phumelela has managed horseracing and tote betting in the Western Cape on behalf of Kenilworth Racing with Gold Circle continuing in KwaZulu-Natal.The corporatisation process was a financial and competitive imperative given the significant challenges that faced the sport at the time, in particular the cycle of decline in betting turnovers, owners, horses, trainers, jockeys, prize money and financial reserves, all exacerbated by high betting taxes and the imminent legalisation of other forms of gambling, notably casinos and a national lottery.It is important to record that it was a political imperative imposed by government with a goal to transform the sport to a “transparent, accountable, professionally managed, governed and profit-driven enterprise with appropriate black economic empowerment credentials”.The Racing Association, with a membership comprising owners and former racing club members, was established to represent the interests of owners.The Racing Association is run by a board of directors elected from the ranks of its members. The directors appoint five of the seven trustees to the Thoroughbred Horseracing Trust, which holds racing’s 26.72% share in Phumelela. Two trustees are appointed by SASCOC.

He must be getting close to that record.

MEETING NEWS Jason Waddell Not Riding at Hawke’s Bay Jason Waddell has been stood down by the RIU until further notice and will not be riding at Hawke’s Bay on Saturday 19 September. Replacement riders as follows: R7 #1 Vigor Winner - Troy Harris R10 #13 Jennifer Eccles - Matthew Cameron

SBC News Betfred bid for bankrupt Phumelela refused Ted Menmuir 2 weeks ago Betfred is reported to have been rejected in its last-minute attempt to acquire bankrupt South African heritage wagering and racetrack operator Phumelela Gaming & Leisure. South African racing news sources reported that Phumelela’s bankruptcy auditor refused to review Betfred’s ZAR 900 million (€45m) counteroffer submitted at the end of August as Phumelela closed its window for rescue proposals. Stating its intent to acquire Phumelela outright, Betfred tabled a rescue package at double the value of Phumelela’s only alternative a ZAR 500 million (€26m) deal offered by ‘Mary Oppenheimer Daughters’ (MOD) – the private investment fund of Mary Oppenheimer-Slack and her daughter Jessica Jell, members of South Africa’s richest mining family. Betfred’s significantly larger proposal underlined that the UK bookmaker would pay off Phumelela’s ZAR 677 million debtors instantly, whilst maintaining all of the firm’s staff for an intended overhaul of the South African operator’s racetrack properties which would be upgraded to its Tote wagering systems. On Tuesday, Phumelela’s auditor closed its hearings, declaring MOD as the firm’s preferred rescue plan and postponing all options to investigate further investment opportunities. The auditor defended MOD’s original proposal, stating that its offer had previously secured an outright backing by Phumelela creditors and that Betfred had merely stated its intentions to acquire Phumelela but had not submitted a legally binding proposal. Oppenheimer’s MOD fund had been registered as one of Phumelela’s creditors having issued the company a ZAR 100 million loan at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Under MOD’s rescue plan, the Oppenheimer family will pay ZAR 480 million to acquire Phumelela’s racetrack and broadcast properties, separating the assets from the firm’s leisure and property holdings. MOD will also launch a ‘post-conflict-fund’ of ZAR 550 million, guaranteeing a payment plan for the company’s existing creditors which currently total a combined ZAR 1.17 billion (€55m). Categories: Featured News, Horseracing, Latest News, Retail, UK Tags: Betfred, Mary Oppenheimer Daughters, Oppenheimer Family, phumelela, Phumelela Gaming & Leisure, South Africa SBC News Back to top

CalvinAyre.com Phumelela gets cash lifeline after filing for bankruptcy protection Steven Stradbrooke 4 months ago South African race and sports betting operator Phumelela Gaming & Leisure has filed for a form of bankruptcy protection as the pandemic pushed the already teetering company over a financial cliff. Last Friday, Phumelela’s board of directors alerted investors that it had suspended trading in its shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and viewed “the best option to ensure the long-term survival of the company and the sport of horseracing is to implement a business rescue plan.” Business rescue allows struggling firms temporary relief from their creditors in order to give a company time to restructure its operations. Phumelela said it has appointed a Mr. John Evans as its “business rescue practitioner.” Phumelela is coming off the “worst year” in its 22-year history following regulatory changes in Gauteng province that eliminated the company’s share of the mandatory 6% levy imposed on racing bettors’ winnings. This was compounded by the recent suspension of all South African racing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which led Phumelela to warn last month that it couldn’t carry on much longer under current conditions. However, Phumelela’s business review announcement indicated that it was conducting “ongoing negotiations with a third party regarding the provision of loan finance,” and had “received a signed proposal” from the unidentified third party. South African media subsequently reported that Phumelela’s white knight was Mary Oppenheimer Daughters, a company run by the nation’s richest family. The group has reportedly agreed to provide a R100m (US$5.4m) lifeline that should give Phumelela “safe space for about six months or so,” according to Mary Oppenheimer Daughters board member Wehann Smith. Smith said the R100m lifeline was “not an attempt to save Phumelela as a company or to invest in Phumelela,” but was intended to ensure “the sustainability of the [racing] industry as a whole.” The Oppenheimer family has a longstanding connection with South Africa’s racing sector, having bred and owned multiple top-performing horses. Mary Oppenheimer Daughters previously donated R1b to South Africa’s Solidarity Fund to aid the country’s campaign to battle COVID-19. Categories: Business Tags: Phumelela, South Africa CalvinAyre.com Back to top

https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/fairview-horses-latest-what-social-media-posts-get-arrested-why/amp/

https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/fairview-horses-killed-protesting-workers-uif-why/

https://romanaatech.com/e-gist/fairview-racecourse-workers-kill-one-horse-injure-several/