the galah

One time i did ring hrnz about how covid mandates would impact participation within the sport at the time. They put me through to Catherine Mcdonald who i didn't know and she wouldn't have known me,but i found her a very approachable and accommodating person. She also said she would email me after she had checked out how to minimise the impact of a certain issue on those not vaccinated. I got the email the next day and was impressed with her efficiency. Hrnz does seem to have and have had some people who work there who go out of their way to be very helpful.Its an organisation who in my interactions with their staff, always seems to be doing their best to help everyone at all levels of participation.

I think its obviously a good thing for the industry if they can run more meetings. I mean more races,even if the new ones are lower stakes,means more stakes are paid to owners,more income for trainers and drivers,more for the clubs,more for the transport operators,starters and their assistants,etc,etc,etc. I think canterbury should have no problem as if you look at the trials each week they always seem to have plenty in their fields. It would just be a matter of running the remaining trials before or after the races. from a betting perspective people will still bet on them. I guess they would have to look to have time slots that work in with australian coverage,but it would just be a matter of running appropriate stakes as relates to turnovers. some may say that punters don't want to see any more meetings for the lower graded horses. But the people that say that are the same ones who keep telling us people bet more on the meetings with the high quality horses in,when anyone who watches turnover figures can tell you thats not true. Its more about the exposure meetings get than quality that is the driving factor for turnover. Midweek meetings,whether they be for high class or low class racing will get limited exposure,so anyone who comes along and says when the turnover figures are just average because of the low quality horses,well i think they just talk a load of rubbish. It does seems a bit of a head scratcher that they would be suggesting auckland or waikato run meetings regularly. Obviously they don't have enough horses. The only problem i can see is the handicapping system. Talk to anyone and they will tell you the worst thing that can happen to any horse is to win its first start and be thrown in against r50 horses. Just imagine a low grade horse winning a non win race and getting a low stake and a big rating handicap. That will be a reason that would stop people lining there horses up or trying So the handicapping of the winners would have to be addressed.

He does just say what he thinks. I think he often has good instincts,but i think sometimes he just needs to go on the merits of each thing. For example he has a headline about john dunn in which he suggests in race 3 he forgot to pull the hopple shorteners until after the winning post when driving millwood godess,inferring that in some way may have been dodgy. The video does show him looking to pull something after the winning post,and if he is pulling the hopple shorteners then you would wonder why he felt the need to do it at all if the excuse he gave was accurate, that the horse paced better with the shorter hopples yesterday than on the first day. But i think if he is to write a story,he should have asked the obvious question before writing that story,well did the horse pace better yesterday than it did on the first day. And the answer was clearly yes it did. so i don't think he should have bothered writing that story. but hey,i still enjoy reading his headlines.

Part of what i mean by that is they sometimes run their horses at the trials without the same gear that they use to switch them on come rasceday.E.g. sliding blinds not used at its trial..I think that was the case with woodlea jewel .

Dalgetys are very good for sure and their son has now developed a reputation for liking to dictate in front and other drivers seem quite happy to give the lead up to him,and its part of the success of that stable. I often think having the right drivers working for a stable helps install in the horses the mental alertness that is required for a horse to succeed at the races. Many horses have that naturally,but having someone driving them at home that can assist them getting to the races in the right frame of mind obviously helps. I agree with you about the mile racing brodie. I would rather they race over further as over the short distance racing,the first 200m and where you end up decides whether you have a chance or not at the finish.But there is always a winner,no matter what the distance and its just a matter of picking them.

My 2 cents worth would be i have backed woodlea jewel at times,based on one off nice runs,even just prior to her transferring to the dalgety barn,but every time i do, i end up thinking why did i do that. To me she a horse with ability that lacks enthusiasm for winning and in a lot of ways would much rather go for a sunday stroll around the track than race. Time and time again she has been driven very hard to make her take the lead when she just prefers to prick her ears and say to the driver,settle down mate,i'm enjoying the scenery. that was again evident when she won on the first day,but i guess like any horse,enjoyed winning and that probably helped motivate her to do it again yesterday. Also i don't take much notice of how the dalgety horses run at the trials as they are one of a handful of stables that in my opinion seem to go better on raceday. Probably the best stable to completely ignore trials wise is the alistar black stable in southland. For years now they improve an awful lot from the trials the week before a race compared to there raceday runs. I often wonder whether thats a plan or whether they just don't run for him when he drives them at the trials. Also you mentioned blue chip rock earlier. That horse has been heavily supported its last 4 runs and really has gone awful every time. People are backing it on its previous form which i agree was very good.4 starts ago it ran like it had something wrong with it the last 600m. Then next start it ran last. It did get a flat tyre that day but the reason for that was because it stopped quickly. Then both days at nelson it just didn't want to compete. Hopefully they can sort it out,but i'm surprised it hasn't been ordered to trial given its recent races.

i see the chiefs mate,peter profit has a headline suggesting the victim of the assault is no longer licensed.That is the case if you check on his name.Obviously it has impacted him significantly for that to be the case.Hopefully he doesn't let the incident define what he can and can't do,life or industry wise. You know whether people like it or not,honest john does have a point. A lot of trouble does come from the woodend based trainers. It certainly must be very annoying for others who train there to see the small area where they base themselves again tarnished. Like i have said,thats the reality.

Pat corby, the trainer of Grey Way. I had an uncle who used to go fishing a lot with him and maurice jones. At one point i recall he had 4 good jockeys that worked for him at the same time and another apprentice.Snooky Cowan,Harold Pateman,Pat Collins and doug Holden.All white guys. You don't see that these days. Actually snooky cowans father,acka trained and drove a few harness horses after he retired from riding,including a couple of nice horses. II remember i played rugby with snooky when i was a kid when i lived in that area.. A really good guy.anyway the galloping trainers and jockeys from that area all followed the trots back then,i think more than most galloping trainers do these days. those were the days.

Forbury's is entitiled to his opinion but anyone who follows this site knows hes prone to getting frustrated often based on what he has had his money on and often his comments go beyond what anyone could reasonably conclude. So him saying what he did was never going to have an impact on any drivers reputation as a race fixer. Suggesting hes trying to destroy thornleys reputation seems rather over the top,even a bit forbury like. As with anything forbury does say,there is an element of actual observation that detects certain patterns. I belive s thornley had a recent pattern of over driving his horses prior to his suspension,but hey as brodie has pointed out,a punter would rather be on a fella trying really hard than someone who is too negative. Many drivers go through patterns of driving where they are too conservative to please the punter. the punter is a hard person to please sometimes. the bit at the end of your post goes beyond anything forbury would actually say,but hey you may think someone would want to assault him just for having an opinion and maybe it does happen,i don't think so. At the end of the day i no longer get surprised that people seem to take to heart someones opinion on this site. I never know why they should but for some reason it often seems to happen.

I think the below post proves you are not on the money this time brodie when you suggest people shouldn't be talking about it.your ignoring reality. Besides brodie,i struggle with how you have expressed your concern for the person who assaulted someone,but no mention of the junior driver who was assaulted. Your first post on this topic has things totally back to front. It should go without saying that being the victim of any assault can be a traumatic and stressful experience. Like everything there are factors that come into play as to the person charged and how he deals with what he did will be just as important in how he is perceived as to what he actually did. if he has plead guilty as has been reported then he has taken the first steps in taking responsibilty for his actions.How he treats the victim going forward will be important in how stressful the victim handles what has been done to him. From my own experiences i can say that if someone is genuinely remorsful then you tend to view them with more forgiveness than someone who is not. Once i was assaulted by someone who i knew was capable of extreme violence but i got past that as i believe he was sincere in that he wished he had not let his demons of alcohol and depression get the better of him when he started a fight with me. He went on to be a significant party to an assault that caused someones death and spent many years in jail. Yet we both would say hullo if we saw each other today..Another time i was assaulted by someone who had taken too many drugs. I got to realise that he was taking the drugs because of anxiety and depression and he too showed genuine remorse and after getting to know him a lot better with further interactions .I realised he was more a danger to himself. Then i have also been assaulted by someone who i view the most dangerous of anyone i have come into contact with. Again on drugs and drunk,but the worst thing about that experience for me was the way the police handled it.I had a mixed bag when dealing with police,mostly very good but that last assault i mentioned certainly left me seeing a different side of justice. Anyway this topic again highlights to me what occurs in the harness racing industry when dealing with certain issues. Many automatically take a stance based on personalities instaed of peoples actions.In my view the chief and brodies posts prove my point.

i only read his headlines. Anyone who reads his headlines and who follows harness racing in nz would realise he actually reports stories that people in nz talk about. Its like the story about the woodend trainer he names. People would be talking about it,but it gets next to no coverage by other harness media in nz.No one has mentioned it that i can see as at today,yet most in the industry would have talked about it.Harness racing media in nz are mostly seen as PR people. NZ Harness racing media choose not to be controversial.They take the 'lets offend no one except maybe someone who is a harness racing no one'. Easier that way as they realise there is a price to pay, if they are seen as not batting for the right team. Gutless in some ways,but i can understand the "don't rock the boat and be otracized" in certain circles,approach. Archie butterfly stories on "how to cheat" that you refer to i find a bit amusing in some ways,but it also has a very serious side as well. Why. Well hes just telling people whats advertised as for sale via the internet if your that way inclined and if you have the right contacts. He just has done or had someone with more knowledge of the subject ,do more research than his average subscriber and it would no doubt be informative to many. Like i have said before,I'm not a subscriber,but he is certainly well known,successful and often expresses opinions that not everyone shares.What you must know chief is there is a market for what he does. Many people view him very highly .Of course not everyone,especially those he may have written about and whom he has expressed opinions about that may not be accurate. But ilke in the case of the trainer who has plead guilty to assault,he can't go wrong when he reports what appears to be a fact.

So archie butterfly is scum for reporting that the trainer has plead gulity in court to assaulting another trainer. No mention from you as to what you think of the actions of the trainer. You think Archie butterfly is the bad guy,as always. At least your consistent i suppose.Always looking to deflect.

Well i have asked the question hoping for some clarification. you say in your opinion,which tends to suggest you think,but aren't 100% sure. I'm not saying your not correct,i'm saying if you read that offical notice that hrnz put out,it can be interpreted that no raceday treatment is up to half an hour after the last race.Thats what it says. I know theres reference in the rules to ..prior to racing..,but if it was simply no treatment prior to racing then why even have the half hour after the last race in the rules.And if it is half an hour after the last race on course,why not just say that.

Its all about the timing. In 2019 hrnz issued an official notice saying... "a clear day prior to racing means the 24 hour period prior to 12.01 am on the day the horse is racing and includes the day of racing" A day of racing commences at 12.01 on the day in which a horse is to race and concludes half an hour after the last race." So i had thought that was pretty self explanatory. Am i missing something as robert dunn obviously is happy to say that they treated their horses after they raced, apparently as they came home before the days racing concluded. After all,he said someone didn't go to the races and stayed home so they could do that. If people can treat their horses after they have raced,irrespective of the time,why doesn't that offical notice from hrnz say that.

I was just reading a story about the successful day the stable had at rangiora. Robert dunn was quoted as saying how they have a great team of workers. At one point he is quoted as saying "all the staff are great. Jenna does a great job.she stayed home on cup day and when each horse came home she gave them a saline,dressed them all up and put them away". Now ,what are the rules relating to raceday treatment? I had always thought raceday treatment is ....up to half an hour after the last race. i know the rules say treatment is allowed after they have raced,i just had thought the half hour after the last race was the timeframe. Can someone clarify that?

I wish the betting was as easy as you and brodie say it is at this time of year. The only thing i could have predicted about that race was the turnover on the recent non win races at westport,gore,motukarara would be greater than you get on a race with akuta and don't stop dreaming in. According to the tab website,they had $10,499 in the win pool and close to $7,200 in the place pool. The $50,000 high clas trot with 5 in that is to follow will be lucky to get half of that. People who say the good horses attract the most betting simply ignore reality. Shame about the weather there. Thats the 3rd north island meeting in a row where they have had a wet track.

I see he pleaded guilty to failing to take all reasonable measures to finish in the best possible placing today. Suspended for 6 days. Did seem to over drive flo motion and it got rather tired.Its been driven hard before and stuck on,but not that hard. An interesting race with both b orange and s thornley trying hard,but not helping their chances with the over aggressive tactics. Still i suppose when they drive like that others watch and tend to conceed the lead to them because they know they drive aggressively when trying for the lead.Wouldn't have helped their horses mentally though. Paul nairn suspended for 7 days for the same thing on tu tangata. Looked like he thought he had the rest covered and was being extra careful to make sure he trotted all the way up straight,after breaking the first day. He probably was thinking,how did you get there, when ben hope shot past him late. Both drivers were trying,just misjudgments. But it does show that south island stipes notice things,unlike the north island stipes.

Not necessarily. I get ads related to what my wife searches like womens underwear and crock pots. If your seeing prospective wives huey,it could be your wife has gone off you and you've turned her into batting for the other team.'

It may be hard to believe,but even i can make the odd mistake.

No. last week the conditions of the race allowed him to start in an up to R42 race. He looks a nice horse to own,but this week hes in a far stronger race,an up to R51, given how harshly 1 win horses like him normally get treated ratings wise if they win early in their career. The ratings system treating him as it did,would have played a part in why he was driven like he was in the race discussed.

Good point. He wasn't able to run in this weeks race so i got that bit wrong. He will have to wait until next week for one of those races.

Whatever chief.

changes nothing given the publicity this horse has now had. Connections must be aware of what everyone thinks. Can you just imagine the comments were it to have been entered and even won the junior drivers race? Besides they run one for his grade almost every week.

Also,Sam thornleys drive,lets get tropical, shied away from 8 seagulls standing next to the markers,directly in his path the first time around,then turning for home the same seagulls were there again . Had the horse not shied out,it probably would have run over a couple of the seagulls as they were slow to get out of his way the first time around.Obviously they wanted to get a birds eye view of the action.

I just googled Weirs disciplinary record. Fined or disqualified 15 times since 2001.(12 different years he was fined) Misleading statements,horse at trails when on anti imflammatories,milkshaking,have milkshaking gear on racecourse another time,positive swabs,horses he supposedly trained at other trainers properties,Horses he trains not at the stable that he said they were,horse late scratched because it appeared to have been stomach tubed on the day..... Then he has these new charges of animal cruelty.