Doomed

Amazing stuff. Other than the fact it is quite poorly written, it is also quite aggressive. Sets a bit of a precedent though. Sounds like heads will roll at all levels, including NZTR, if there are any future cock-ups.

I went to Cup Week for about 20 years non stop and it was all about the racing in those days, and the same people used to return every year. Now they just want the one offs for a piss up, but there is nothing sustainable about that. I have been to NZ Cup day and Wgtn cup day about 3 times each in the last 7 or 8 years and it is so boring. I just happen to have been in Auck about 3 times on their cup day over recent years and it has never even occurred to me to head along. 30 years ago I would have been so excited to go to Auck cup day.

Sounds like a tea totaller function John. No sav?

I largely noted premium cheeses, brie etc, which really are about a third of the cost of NZ, bigger blocks were significantly cheaper than in NZ but I forget exactly what price. You don't see NZ cheese here so I have no idea where it goes. It does show what competition and a bigger market can do.

Largely working actually, but that does involve quite a bit of drinking.

I'm interested to hear whether all Riccarton trainers feel they need a three week break now before the next Canty meeting. There were almost 60 ballots scratched over cup week, admittedly some duel acceptors, and any trainer with a maiden they consider not really good enough for those $30,000 maidens during cup week has to wait five weeks for an opportunity to run for $14,000. Do trainers keep charging owners even though there is no realistic change of a start for over five weeks, and then over a distance they don't really like, on a track they don't prefer and possibly on suspect track conditions?

I wouldn't let labour/greens organise a piss up in a brewery, so I certainly wouldn't let them organise light rail.

Come on Chief, trains are fun, everyone likes trains.

I think the Timaru Cup, Reefton Cup double would be the way to go Pam. Don't think it has ever been done before. Just a suggestion.

I'm not wanting to get into an argument about private enterprise etc, but I do think NZ is the most backward country in the world when it comes to using trains, and public transport in general. I'm in the UK at the moment and I must have used at least 16 long distance trains in France and the UK over recent weeks, not to mention dozens of London trains. It is such an efficient means of travel and transport. NZ has some of the worst roads in the world and makes the worst use of trains. People really have no idea how backward NZ is. Not to mention cheese three times the price that it is in the UK. We do get ripped off.

No idea. It would be disappointing if they are because the programming doesn't seem to be great.

I think the only Pitman winner was at that low key 3 race meeting. Congratulations also to the Parsons who had a successful week, and to Tina for some good wins.

I think a guaranteed start would be a good inducement, it is a horse that has spent a lot of time on the ballot. Hopefully now Pam can plan a campaign with some hope of actually getting a start.

The major problem with the Guineas is the structure of SI racing. The CJC is the major club and they suffer the most if the Guineas get moved north, but they are too thick to see that they need SI racing to be strong if the CJC is to prosper. They think they are incredibly clever with their AWT and they don't need the rest of the SI as long as they have their AWT. Eventually they will realise that Group 1 winners don't come through a series of $14,000 AWT races. There are only 3 lead up races to the Guineas in the south, and only one of them restricted to fillies.whereas the NI has numerous lead ups. They need a proper pattern of 2yo racing if they are to have early season 3yo features and they need some 3yos to come out of Otago and Southland if they are to have form and field size. There should be a 1,400m fillies race at Wingatui on Melbourne Cup day and there needs to be a series of 3yo races in Southland. The horses may not be that flash, but at least you will have some enthusiastic owners and some last start 3yo winners to bulk out the Guineas races. And the SI horses will have had some hard racing to help them be competitive. The problem is that no one seems to be sure just whose job it is to create a proper structure for racing in the south. It is probably too hard for most of them anyhow.

Every now and again you want to tick "like" twice.

Whoops, it was a very quick look on my part.

One thing I haven't read anything about is how the CJC ended up on Saturday and what sized crowd and turnover they got on Monday. Most of Saturday's crowd were only there for the piss up anyhow so they would hardly have noticed there were no local races. They probably thought the five horse fields from Tauranga on the big screen were what it was supposed to be like. And any actual punters would still have had money in their pockets when Aussie racing kicked in. Did they get much of a crowd on the Monday? I notice one of the Aussie jockeys went home.

One thing that appears obvious to me with all the problems at Riccarton and Wingatui is how crucial Timaru is to SI racing. There must be more horses trained within a 3 hour radius of Timaru than any other SI track. I think an indication of how genuine NZTR is at wanting to fix SI racing would be whether they are big enough to come out and say "we have totally stuffed up about Timaru, and Messara was wrong. We need to spend money to make the Timaru track first class." I get the impression that the powers that be think SI racing was totally sorted once they built the AWT. Just as they think the CD is all good now that the Awapuni AWT is up and going.

So many firsts. Imagine what odds you would have got a week or so ago that Pam would train as many winners as Te Akau on Cup Day, that she would train more winners than the Pitmans for the week. That she would probably be the top strike rate trainer for the week. Also, could $126 be CWJ's highest priced winner? I don't recall many at those odds for him. And could it be the highest priced Cup Week winner for a very long time. I can't think of any that have paid more than that.

Looked like a Timaru Cup type to me. I have watched the replay and he was travelling all the way, never really looked like being headed.

Bloody hell. Looking at the price I would guess Pam hasn't dressed for the occasion to throw them off again. The female Dummy. Very cunning.

Six horses going around in the $40,000 race at HB today that they desperately had to reschedule because it was so crucial to all the superstars summer campaigns. It will be interesting to follow the progress of those six as they contest all the group races in coming weeks. Five yesterday in a $30,000 rating 65 at Tauranga. Not much accountability or consideration of profit and loss when it comes to pouring money into the favoured clubs.

I have mentioned this a few times. No $30,000 races in Canterbury now until the end of January. Unbelievable. Heaps of racing at Wingatui, if Canty trainers want to take the chance of travelling 5 hours south and hoping the meeting isn't abandoned. SI racing is so badly run. I think the next 2yo race is at the end of January as well. It really is hard to believe this is a multi million dollar industry. It is basically run on similar lines to someone running the weekly quiz night at the old peoples home. The only difference being the person running the quiz night would get run out of town if they stuffed up.

I notice all the scratchings have been reinstated for Monday. Could lead to some interesting situations. Pam's horse was first ballot on Saturday but got a start because there was one scratching out of the field. That horse is now back in the field, for now, and Pam is balloted again. Could be interesting if the originally scratched horse has come right and wants to start. You imagine some people could potentially be a bit pissed off.

Well, that was pretty inevitable wasn't it. I went to bed seeing one jockey had ridden the first three and woke up to see he had ridden the whole card. Perhaps they should have been decisive on Friday and moved the whole meeting to Timaru.