Murray Fish

Talking race tracks, early '70's, Addington, there was ONE public telephone box on course, a long line would be formed for most of the meeting! most trying to ring their bookie! ps. (blush) we still have a landline!

you be way more generous that I could ever be!!! for some! I say "a pox on their testes!"

technically No, due to his current ACC status! ps, others have been included while still riding

ps, same stake as 30 years ago?

I don't have a clue about 'the form', will attempt a look, to see if anything 'takes my eye'. ps. it is in the same approx time frame as the Fight (not) of The Century! <- many are Hoping for a Smart Mouth getting seriously Knocked Out!

wow! rather impressive!

Actually I have respect for the effort that he puts in! Both into this site and to the effort to better educate himself about The Industry! At times does he come across a tad stern? snappish even! In the end, each to their own... As always, I only visit this site re racing (about to crank up me FB acc for my big run at retirement) and find 'biting my tongue' is a approach I often take! Isn't it mostly meant to be a bit of Fun! ...

5th? the other 4? Ellerslie, Trentham, Te Rapa, Riccarton. what be Wingatui? Awapuni?

It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled. — Mark Twain

tick... otherwise, warts and all! thanks for the effort you put in!

1975, CHCH, there was a thriving underworld of local Bookmaker$. One being us kids 'local hero', he drove the Biggest Car! and gave out cash for thingimiss... the one I bet with gave a 5% rebate on all bets! I think one of the house rules pay out might have only been 15/5? Later late 80's, CD, Most Pubs still had one working! I was running a nice little betting club, me and a couple of jocks! We had to stop betting with one! Cos he went out and laid off on Tote! We stop using him! Did get a nice result via him!! we Feed him some 'horse info' via a 3 rd party,.. sent the word we were having a bet! he Bit! He talked it up! then Backed his 'info' horse into Fav! Ours came home, under a wet sail! via a ride that was given "ride of the day".. it all seem to easy! ps, in 1975 the NZ Working Class had a Lot more disposable income than today!

And rather $adly the local rate payers have to foot the build and then pay for maintenance of said 'vanity projects!' All of those projects are won through Politics not rational economics!

Australia and New Zealand are major players in global thoroughbred racing, but they offer different racing ecosystems. The table below provides a clear overview of the current status and historical metrics for both countries. | **Metric** | **Australia** | **New Zealand** | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | **Total Races (Annual)** | Approx. 19,400 | 2,423 | | **Total Black-Type Races** | ~623 (as of last full season) | 150 | | **Group 1 Races** | 74 (status quo) | 21 | | **% of Races that are Black-Type** | 3.08% | 6.19% | | **% of Races that are Group 1** | 0.38% | 0.87% | | **Key Context** | System under international review; likely changes for 2026/27 season. | Stable, high-quality system with a dense schedule of elite races. | ### 📍 State-by-State Breakdown in Australia Australia's black-type races are not evenly distributed, with the two largest racing states, **New South Wales (NSW)** and **Victoria (VIC)**, hosting the vast majority of elite events. * **New South Wales (NSW)**: Leads the country with **34 Group 1 races** annually, predominantly at Sydney's Royal Randwick and Rosehill Gardens. * **Victoria (VIC)**: Hosts **31 Group 1 races**, with Flemington, Caulfield, and Moonee Valley being the premier venues. * **Other States**: **Queensland (QLD)** has 8 Group 1s, **South Australia (SA)** has 4, and **Western Australia (WA)** has 3. The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and Tasmania (TAS) host lower-tier black-type races. ### 🌍 How Australasia Compares Globally When placed in an international context, two key insights emerge: 1. **Raw Numbers vs. Ratios**: While Australia has the **second-highest number of Group 1 races (74) globally** after the USA (108), this represents a smaller percentage (0.38%) of its total races. New Zealand's ratio (0.87%) is more than double Australia's. 2. **Quality of Elite Races**: Despite debates over quantity, the quality of Australia's top races is world-class. Historically, over **40% of Australia's Group 1 races** have been rated among the world's Top 100 races. In contrast, while New Zealand has a high proportion of black-type races, fewer of its Group 1 events typically rank in the global Top 100. ### ⚠️ Important Context: Australia's Black-Type System in Flux It is crucial to understand that the Australian figures above represent a status quo that is about to change. Since 2017-18, the country has not had a properly functioning committee to review and downgrade races, leading to an inflated and unbalanced pattern. In a major development, the **Asian Racing Federation (ARF) has temporarily taken control** of Australia's black-type system to restore international compliance. Key implications include: * **Downgrades Expected**: The ARF has identified several races for potential downgrade, including Group 1 events like the Sydney Cup and The Metropolitan. * **Future Uncertainty**: While the total number of black-type races could ultimately increase by 5-6%, the composition will change significantly for the 2026/27 season. The goal is to return control to a new, compliant Australian committee in the future. To summarize, New Zealand offers a dense schedule of high-ratio black-type racing, while Australia provides massive scale and world-class quality at the top, though its system is currently undergoing significant international-led reform. I hope this detailed comparison is helpful for your analysis. If you are interested in the specific races identified for potential downgrade in Australia, I can provide more details on that list.

tick, re horse betting! lol, more a 'un-coupling' for me! Personally, I now have a DEEP DEEP DEEP contempt for the way NZ Racing is now presented! 99% of any horse bet I have is Locked in by how the horse has presented! Now nearly imposable because of the Directress hand says NO... I've held out hoping things would improve! It was so brought home on Champions Day, where the extra channel covering the day was great! Hence I perhaps bet more that day that perhaps the whole year! Re Sports Betting, 100% MLB, rather proud to say that the Dodger$ Going All the Way for the last two years has paid off rather well! 70 for me! Part of my logic of un-coupling is around Stress of doing so, energy can be better directed elsewhere! Very thankful not being a 'one trick pony', off to share my skills with others!

you support that?

giving them a wee bit of string, given time they hang themselves!

lol,.. I have had to suppress the urge to share some stories along those lines.... stories of a mate who might have lost closer to 10 m than 1m! the one who jumped out of a window many many floors up.. two! Death by car suicides..

Back in day! in the lead up to Lotto, would it surprise you to know that a few of us suggested to Head Office that the TAB should fight to be the one that delievered technical backbone... the Ostriches won out! It has been interesting that 'racing' has never championed how Lotto's take out is 45%

contra deal....

lol "for a ruthless criticism of everything existing!" 💪

"circle the wagons!!!" and be damned! ps. think I might have to right the first post through AI, lol, what brutal polemical critique do I need to filter it through!!!

pardon! CRIMINAL! Ned Kelly had Guns when he robbed you! This lot with the stroke of a pen...

It will be interesting to see what this sort of thing is going to look like?