the galah

The question is would Purdon have driven like that if ultimate sniper was not trained by him. And I think the answer is no. His job was to drive cruz bromac to achieve the best possible final position and its debatable whether he did so by allowing his stablemate an easier run. Of course both did not have to strain as much in the final 400m as they would have had he remained parked. I think we have to be realistic and accept that in a series like this some horses will get driven more conservatively so as to get through the 3 runs in a week in better shape. The punter and the trainer have different perspectives. I think the stipes were right to ask the question but nothing will come of it because it is unclear whether staying parked would have made any difference to the result. Having such high numbers in the final will make it very hard for the opposition drivers.

Well reading the stipes report it confirmed Monkey Selfie did not get a fair start at the 3rd attempt because the tape did not clear it. That is what it looked like and that is why its driver was looking in front of her horse when it was reluctant to move. Clearly a case that Chilcott should have reported but obviously she had no thought for punters who backed her horse. What a debacle. 3 tries at a standing start and even the 3rd one was unfair. Punters shafted. If that happened in Canterbury we would not hear the end of it.

As expected the one I backed was looking for a false start 3rd time round spooked and broke shortly thereafter when the horse outside it squeezed it up. They should allow punters to get off.

How hopeless are those standing starts at Auckland. 13 minutes and 3 attempts to get a start where the tapes go. You don't see that sort of stuff in the south island. Do they actually pre test those tapes before a meeting?

Its not irrigation that is the problem,but excessive irrigation. That may be true , but is that a valid reason to alter track surfaces through irrigation?

Again Mr Pitman was asking the question why so many tracks are watered so as to make it unsuitable for horses who prefer firm tracks. Every time I hear him say this,which is often, I agree with him. He was commenting after a win by one of his horses who he said finally got the firm track that it needed. From a betting perspective punters should not have to factor in how much a track is watered, as in the end it just puts you off betting as the form is more inconsistent. Some horses yesterday turned their form around big time which just goes to show punters should be wary of betting on gallops as the form can change in summer depending on track irrigation .

I tend to agree. The starters assistance should not have been there but the 2 horses bad manners happened after the start. A poor look in that race. That starting point at oamaru is poor for horses who draw the outside,they get spooked by what appears to be the noise of the tape hitting the outside fence. Anything drawn the outside seems to break.

Would this be the boring race ever run in recent hstory. Going by the times posted the highest assessed lcass race of the day ran their first 2600m in 3.50. Snails go faster down hill. The pacemaker,doitson,is known for being better with cover but no one seemed interested . It looked like one of the 6 pulled so hard it dropped out badly. An old lady with a zimmer frame could have shown more mid race speed.

Doing some reading it seems Russian athletes were using this well over a decade ago. Tests on rats showed a 70% xenon,30%oxygen mix doubled the epo levels a day later. Remember we were all told how those oxygen chambers were being used by Australian trainers who were leaders in their field when it came to new training methods. As we knew, it was just another way to get an advantage, not through training, but through science. As far back as 2015 Australians officials were saying this would be a significant integrity threat to racing in the future. If NZ officials are serious they would test all frozen post race samples of the stables who look like they use .They say they can test for it,so go ahead and do so. That will never happen. The only thing I would say is it once again proves what many of us have been saying for years. That is science is a vital part of a successful winning formula.To be a successful trainer you have to embrace science. People like the mick guerins of this worls think we are all stupid. But no we're not. Anyway,from a punting perspective does it really effect the way we bet. For me no it doesn't. The reason for that is because those using the latest science appear to always be there to win and they race consistently. I'm not saying it is ok, i'm just saying its the way it is. This subject is the reason many give the game away who used to own and train.

Does anyone really think anything will come of this? You say the article says hrnz is able to test for it. That's different from saying they are testing for it. Does it say it is illegal,or is it just another one of those things that will become illegal. All a bit of a yawn to me as nothing much ever happens and will hrnz really want another scandal? I doubt this has anything to do with the all stars,as currently there are a couple of stables that's horses seem to have more oxygen at the end of a race than theirs do. That's saying something isn't it. What this all really means is its just time for the search for the next performance enhancer to begin. Find something currently legal and use it until someone kicks up a fuss. its just history repeating its self. Call me cynical,but hrnz is probably saying the matter may be investigated by the SPCA or Ministry of Primary industries because they know those agencies will not put much resource into doing so,and they also have seen how many of the industry participants view operation inca and the search for the truth there. In other words,best not to go there.

While they don't hold them as long as they used to,that hasn't really happened in Canterbury as yet from my observations, It does still happen occasionally further south but I think it better to have that than have them stand too long. Prior to the change in Canterbury you would see horses from down south becoming fractious prior to a start when having to stand for too long in a Canterbury start. And the opposite applied., Horses from Canterbury would not begin as quick in the stands down south as they were not used to there starts. It especially applied for horses who were inexperienced. The current overall consistency has got to be a good thing.

There's always been a lot of talk around the quality of the Canterbury starts. in my opinion they are very good these days and the starters are doing a good job. My only negative is I think some drivers haven't adjusted to the better starts and are often deliberately starting too far back when drawn the second line or the unruly. I think there needs to be a change in the negative perception many have of some of the Canterbury starts and that we should be judging on the present and not the past.

Just watched race 1 at Auckland. daisy hill gallops for the 4th week in a row and wipes out a runner who's driver gets hurt and who's horse not much better after falling. Just another example .

Those were the days indeed. His excuse was he 'got cramp " I think from memory.

I thought it was a 50/50 call but guessed it would be relegated. I have worked out how they decide these things. What they do is check my tab account to see what result from the inquiry I need to get a collect, then rule so I don't get one. At least that's what it seems like happens.

The intention of the rule is the right one in my opinion but as you infer how will it be applied. There also seems to also be an assumption that vets all act within the rules and what they sign off on can be trusted. You only have to look at the scratching penalty system which i believe illustrates how vets constantly issue vets certificates at the request of trainers which in my opinion would contain questionable information. So while I think the new rule is well intentioned I believe those who specialize in using such techniques will easily find ways around its enforcement.

Ive just watched Barclays drive on swanp major in race 8 at wyndham.She is defending an excessive whip use charge. Is slapping with the reins deemed excessive now? How is her drive any different than the 2nd and 3rd placed horses? If she had just let the horse ease up would that have been ok? Charging her seems all a bit over the top to me.

Oscar B probably should have got past Bordeaux but he was only having his 13th start and had very little race experience in a field. Marcoola at his best could still have done that time I think. She probably had the intention of making it hard for Oscar bonevena. Personally I think there had to be doubts on marcoola pre race as it went off last year for unknown reasons and it was given such a hard run at ashburton . Maybe they wanted a fast mile time at ashburton,but it could have won without the extra strain there,so I thought running that time in only its 2nd preparation run was a worry. Who knows. I agree about Blair Orange. I believe he is the most talented driver I have seen. What I admire about him is it makes no difference whether he is driving in a group 1 at addington or in a non win race at forbury. While no ones perfect,he is as close you get to it with each race drive. He installs so much confidence for the punter.

I understand where your coming from cross codes.They no longer stand down horses who continuously break time after time. Theres lots of them running round at the moment. As you mentioned the horses with ONE in their name were shockers. Other high profile examples are a g 's whitesocks-has he ever not galloped in a stand. Has Bordeaux trotted all the way in the last couple of years. he certainly got in Oscar b way today.Sundees Son.So many examples. Problem happens when they cause interference. As to matua tana. He hung terrible on the bends at addington 3 days ago,so no surprise he did the same today. looks like he needs a big grass track with no bends,where ever that exists.

Ist that just to give the perception that every thing is on the level. Isnt the reality that the work done to increase the oxygen carrying red blood cells has already been done,so a retention barn is not going to change anything for some.. I guess it depends on the method being used as to whether a retention barn is effective.So the literature says anyway.

maybe the tip is not to back on the amateur driver races. I'm at that point now. That race just run you had 3 of the first 4 favorites give their drives no chance with seemingly no idea you cant come from 10 to 15 lengths off the pace at the 600m on a sprint home. At least the favourite was well driven by woodward.

He dictated the speed very well,and it was just a sprint down the straight in the end. The 1-2 win race went a similar time and the trotters almost as fast overall. Purdon allowed him to do so on cruz bromac. The all stars strength has always been they never get tired, so why did he do that? My guess is because their strength was not in play today. It will be a different story in the cup. As an aside,why has My uncle sam bothered to come here?. .

Well m geurin just rambling on about virgil and how hard it is to get past them. Well the dunn horse gave the whole field a 20m start,looped the field and sat parked and got beaten by a head. That's the same horse who virgil would have beaten the week before had it got a clear run. I do agree that come cup day the all stars are very hard to run past,but that's because on days like that ,they look like they can do another lap.

Well virgil won,but just fell in for mine . Watching that race I still have the same opinion.

I think its more a case of the all stars aiming their horses at cup day and their lower grade horses can underperform a week out as a result. No doubt their cup horses and the one in the $50,000 race will be primed to go today. It will be interesting to see how virgil goes latter. I think they run like they will run forever on cup day, but not today for some. That's my theory anyway.