Chief Stipe

So what are the stakeholders doing to turn it around? As for Trentham - well the members are sitting behind the glass saying it is still the Champagne Turf.

Geez you'll have @Thomass posting again talking about blinkers.

Alflaila defeats King's Gambit in the Gr.2 York Stakes (2100m) Photo: Supplied Alflaila to stand at White Robe Lodge NZ Racing Desk 24 March 2025 Quality European galloper Alflaila has been secured for stud duties by White Robe Lodge, introducing one of the world’s great sire-lines to New Zealand through his champion sire Dark Angel. Bred and raced by the famed Shadwell operation, Alflaila’s racing career is defined by resilience, consistency, and elite-level talent, as evidenced by back-to-back victories in the fiercely competitive Gr.2 York Stakes (2100m), a race that has tested some of Europe’s best middle-distance horses. A winner on debut as an early two-year-old over 1200m, Alflaila would train-on to showcase his class over the ensuing three seasons for trainer Owen Burrows. In six starts at three, Alflaila won on four occasions, commencing his Classic season with a victory at Ascot over 1400m before landing the Listed Pomfret Stakes (1600m), the Gr.3 Strensall Stakes (1750m) at York and the Gr.3 Darley Stakes (1800m) at Newmarket. On resumption at four, Alflaila swept past Group One performer My Prospero to land the York Stakes and produced a big run from last to finish fifth behind Auguste Rodin in the Gr.1 Irish Champion Stakes (2000m) in a field that featured high-class gallopers Luxembourg, Nashwa and King Of Steel. He returned as a five-year-old to defend his York Stakes title and was also a fast-finishing fourth in the Gr.1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes (2000m) at Royal Ascot. Alflaila’s peak Timeform rating of 125 placed him among the elite performers of his generation. “He repeatedly proved he belonged at the top-level,” trainer Owen Burrows said. “He was sharp enough to win over six (furlongs) first-time out as a two-year-old and he showed a briliant turn of foot that day. “As a three-year-old, he never stopped improving and as we stepped him up in trip to a mile, he was getting better. “That winter at the end of his three-year-old season he travelled out to Bahrain where he'd probably have started quite a short-price favourite for the Bahrain Trophy (Gr.2, 2000m), but unfortunately, he picked up an injury out there. “But he was very resilient and came back and won the York Stakes on resumption, a race which he won again last year in tenacious fashion. “It was a very big run in both the Irish Champion Stakes and again last year to finish fourth in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes, where he had his ground slightly taken and he was right on the heels of some proper top-class horses. “He is a very athletic horse who was tough as well. He came back from a few little setbacks that plenty wouldn’t have, but he did really want it. “I think breeders will be impressed. He is very attractive and is all in proportion, moves well and has a good athletic build on him. “I have trained a few by Dark Angel and he is quite typical in terms of build and looks. He was champion stallion in Britain and Ireland last year and he has been quite a phenomenon.” Dark Angel is one of Europe’s most sought-after stallions, with 17 individual Group One winners including the likes of Harry Angel, Battaash and Charyn. Harry Angel has taken the Southern Hemisphere by storm, with star performers like Tom Kitten, Private Harry, Angel Capital and Stretan Angel propelling him into the top tier of Australia’s general sires’ standings, an incredible achievement for a stallion with only three crops racing. Alflaila is out of the Stakes placed Oasis Dream mare Adhwaa, who in turn is a daughter of the Stakes winning Darshaan mare Hammiya, also the dam of Listed winner Shaqira. Third dam is the stakes winning Fairy King mare Albacora, herself a half-sister to Group Three winner and Gr.1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches (1600m) runner-up Pont-Aven. “Marcus Corban has been pivotal in helping us land Alflaila,” said Jack Stewart of White Robe Lodge. “He’s a great family friend but also one of the great minds of our industry and he facilitated David Redvers inspecting the horse on our behalf. “He provided a glowing review, describing Alflaila as a very attractive, classy individual with a great action and very good confirmation standing at around 16hh. “As soon as I showed my grandad (Brian ‘BJ’ Anderton) his race performance, pedigree and photos he simply said, “get it done”. “BJ stood his first stallion at 18 years old and now, just recently turned 88, will be in his 70th year of owning and standing stallions which is phenomenal and speaks volumes of where his judgement has got him over the decades. “Alflaila embodies what modern breeders seek - raw power, proven speed, an elite pedigree, and a stunning physical type. Being a debut winner as an early two-year-old was key for us in today’s market and also that he trained on to win at Group level at three, four and five across distances ranging from 1200-2100m. “Shadwell Stud have elected to retain a breeding interest in Alflaila and we are buoyed by the fact Zabeel and Per Incanto are graduates of their successful racing and breeding program who have gone on to have a huge impact at stud in New Zealand. “We couldn't be more excited to bring Alflaila to White Robe Lodge.” Alflaila will stand at an introductory fee of $7,000+GST, with a limited number of lifetime breeding rights available, presenting a unique opportunity to breeders to share in the stallion’s future success.

LOL At a Cardinal Network Christmas Party I remember standing next to this gold statue of a semi-naked woman in the main marquee (which was huge). All was good until the "gold statue" moved and handed me a glass of champagne! I had a couple more.

Pride Of Jenni set for 2025 Australian Cup before Via Sistina showdown www.racenet.com.au Superstar Pride Of Jenni is on a collision course with Australia's best racehorse — Cox Plate champion and horse of the year elect Via Sistina. A victory on Saturday in the Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington could seal the blockbuster showdown in Sydney next month. Passionate owner Tony Ottobre has confirmed ambitions for Pride Of Jenni to defend her Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) crown on April 12 at Randwick. Laurie Sainsbury - Last 28 Days • PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW! Pride Of Jenni, who must perform in the Australian Cup to book the trip north, won the Queen Elizabeth last year by a record 8.3 lengths. The comeback queen marked her return to racing in style with victory in the Group 2 Peter Young Stakes (1800m) last start at Caulfield. Ottobre retired Pride Of Jenni last spring after a bleed in the Champions Mile at Flemington but the three-time Group 1 and All-Star Mile winner thrived so much during the would-be retirement that Ottobre sent her back to trainer Ciaron Maher. Maher initially had the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf (1500m), restricted to fillies and mares, circled as an option in Sydney but Pride Of Jenni's progress warranted loftier ambitions in the Australian Cup and Queen Elizabeth. "If she performs well in the Australian Cup I can't see why we wouldn't go there (Queen Elizabeth)," Ottobre said. "It would be a great race to see, her up against Via Sistina." Pride Of Jenni has remarkably posted career peak training metrics since the comeback. "She has come back better and she is better," Ottobre said. "Her demeanour is much calmer as well, which gives her a bit extra to finish races with instead of burning up that little bit of energy. "She's furnished into a really nice horse and this is her peak now. Amazing to say, as a seven-year-old mare, she's peaking." • ‘I'll be clear, it's not good enough': Kylie Rogers' plan to future-proof Flemington Maher has a stranglehold on Australian Cup betting with Pride Of Jenni ($2.50), Middle Earth ($4.50) and Light Infantry Man ($7) the top three in the pre-nominations market. Godolphin Group 1 mare Zardozi ($7), runner-up in the Peter Young last start, and Flemington specialist Atishu ($8), trained by Chris Waller, make up the top five in early betting. "It's probably an easier race (Australian Cup) because most of the good horses are up in Sydney," Ottobre said. "A bonus for us, similar to the Peter Young, there was only one horse (Zardozi) there we needed to beat I think and she did that well. Pride Of Jenni's owner Tony Ottobre (right) and jockey Craig Newitt celebrate their Peter Young Stakes success at Caulfield earlier this month. Picture: George Sal / Racing Photos • ‘Such a bloody shame': The reason behind The Valley's pattern, deterioration on William Reid Stakes day "She was a little bit underdone going into (the Peter Young) and we did think we'll treat this as a trial as well as a race — $300,000 cheque (first prize) thank you very much. "All her stats and all her figures are as good as ever … she's actually in pristine condition for a seven-year-old." Pride Of Jenni led in trademark style last start under jockey Craig Newitt but raced within herself. "Normally over that distance the first 800m she'd be off like a rocket, that's what she used to do," Ottobre said. "It will be interesting to see her racing over the next few weeks. It will be fun."

Geez Cardinal Network brings back some memories - some good some bad. They had the best Christmas parties at Christchurch HQ I've ever ever been to.

Changes to the way Incorporated Societies are set up and financial reporting requirements have changed under the new Act. These changes are about to be enforced progressively over the next 12 months. If you read the Wellington Racing Club Annual Report you won't be particularly enlightened about the profitability of the Club as there are essentially only two line items in the financial accounts - a fee paid to RACE for administration ($64k) and revenue from RACE of $723k which is essentially a dividen share from RACE's operations. A third figure is preseneted which is the Equity share of the WRC in RACE - approximately $16m which is roughly equivalent to Awapuni's (Manawatu Racing Club) equity share. The RACE annual report does NOT individually give a breakdown of the profit and loss, operating costs and revenue of each of the shareholder clubs other than a table of the three figures mentioned above e.g. the fee paid to RACE, the dividend received from RACE and the movements in the Equity share. Arguably the way the individual Clubs financials are presented do not meet the regulatory financial reporting standards. With pressure mounting to remove the tax free status of Incorporated Societies coupled with the new reporting standards perhaps we will see the some cracks occur in the RACE structure. At the very least improved transparency. What is clear there doesn't seem to be enough equity between all the RACE clubs to build a new track. RACE_Inc (1).pdf WRC_Accounts (1).pdf

From the Annual Accounts:

Does anyone know what the faint diagonal lines are which can be seen from the drone view of the 1200m shute? New drainage? Sand slitting?

Hand time according to the Stewards Report. All times were hand timed. Not sure how they do that when you can't see the start of the 1200m through the houses. But the bigger question is this isn't the first time this season they have had issues with the electronic timing at Trentham. Why the hell can't it be fixed at the Champagne Premier Turf?

But apparently Ellerslie and Trentham are perfect. Hypocriscy at its best.

Apparently the track was fantastic. I bet they regret having to rely on a drone to film the 1200m races. The track aside how can the RIB allow racing when no electronic timing is available nor the only stipe vision available for a 1200m race is the overhead drone!! Speaking of which full credit to Justin Evans for being able to do a commentary looking at an overhead shot on a TV screen.

If you don't irrigate you end up with this:

The quality of the product may differ but that is no excuse for not standardising how they are run across the country.

Doesn't make sense. But then when have any of the Ratings made sense lately.

Apparently it was a rabbit.

Was this the sweeping shot?

Seems the horse "blundered" (whatever that means) and only slipped when trying to regain its footing!!!! Maybe the Stewards blundered: blundered; blundering ˈblən-d(ə-)riŋ Synonyms of blunder intransitive verb 1 : to move unsteadily or confusedly In their exhaustion they often blundered against each other …—Norman Mailer 2 : to make a mistake through stupidity, ignorance, or carelessness blundered by not acting sooner

Race 1 THE MASTERTON CLUB EST 1877 MAIDEN 2050m UNUSUAL NUGGET (M Singh) - Knuckled at the start. Blundered then slipped approaching the 400 metres when free of interference, hampering FIRST EDITION, PLATINUM TYCHE and MR MIYAGI. Rider M Singh raised concerns with Stewards regarding the area of the track near the 400 metres where his mount had lost traction. A post-race veterinary examination found the gelding to have a small abrasion on the left hind leg. PLATINUMREVOLUTION (L Sutherland) - Began awkwardly crowding GOLDEN LINING. GOLDEN LINING (A Lawson-Carroll) - Crowded at the start, losing ground. Bumped with MAGIC EXPRESS near the 250 metres. FIRST EDITION (J Riddell) - Restrained at the start to obtain cover. Hampered approaching the 400 metres. MR MIYAGI (J Chung) - Restrained at the start to obtain cover. Hampered approaching the 400 metres RED LADY (U Holmquist) - Raced keenly in the early stages. PLATINUM TYCHE (K Hercock) - Hampered approaching the 400 metres. MAGIC EXPRESS (C Dell) - Bumped with GOLDEN LINING near the 250 metres. DUBAI’S POTIKI (L Hemi) - Raced keenly throughout. Following the running of this event, Riders’ representatives, Stewards and the Track Manager examined the area of the track where UNUSUAL NUGGET had blundered. This revealed a significant slip mark where the gelding had endeavoured to retain its footing after blundering. A meeting was convened with all riders and after deliberating, the decision was made by the Stewards to abandon the meeting due to safety concerns. Stipendiary Stewards report as posted is provisional and subject to further review and amendment

In my opinion the horse looked to be under pressure a fair way out and under a hard ride (which might have been questioned). Did it clip heels? Or something else? The rumour mill has started - Jockey's wanted to continue - Goodwin said no - apparently it might not have been a slip.

Masterton Racing Club must be in with a chance to win this award. They need the cash - 3 abandoned meeting in five years!

Masterton Racing Club - that's 3 abandonments in 5 years!

No irrigation all week!

Meeting News Masterton RC @ Tauherenikau | Sunday 23 March Race Day Weather: Fine Track: Soft 6 Moisture Meter: 51% Rail: True Rain: No Rain Last 24 Hours | 13mm Rain Last 7 Days Irrigation: N/A Weather and Track updated at 6.49am Sunday 23 March Saturday Afternoon Weather: Fine Track: Soft 6 Moisture Meter: 50.6% Rail: True Rain: No Rain Last 24 Hours | 14.5mm Rain Last 7 Days Irrigation: N/A Weather and Track updated at 4.22pm Saturday 22 March Saturday Morning Weather: Fine Track: Soft 6 Moisture Meter: 51.1% Rail: True Rain: No Rain Last 24 Hours | 14.5mm Rain Last 7 Days Irrigation: N/A Weather and Track updated at 9.00am Saturday 22 March Thursday Morning Weather: Overcast Track: Soft 7 Moisture Meter: 53.8% Rail: True Rain: 4.5mm Rain Last 24 Hours | 12.5mm Rain Last 7 Days Irrigation: N/A Weather and Track updated at 9.56am Thursday 20 March Withdrawal Morning Weather: Drizzling Track: Soft 6 Moisture Meter: 52% Rail: True Rain: 7mm Rain Last 24 Hours | 8.5mm Rain Last 7 Days Irrigation: N/A Weather and Track updated at 8.27am Wednesday 19 March Nomination Morning Weather: Overcast Track: Soft 5 Moisture Meter: 51.2% Rail: True Rain: 1.5mm Rain Last 24 Hours | 4.5mm Rain Last 7 Days Irrigation: N/A Weather and Track updated at 9.01am Tuesday 18 March Head Stipe - Neil Goodwin 027 444 1854