hesi

I see the counsellor in you coming out, a specialist in human nature, thanks for your concern. The thread is a prompt to the many lurkers viewing the BOAY site. of which thoroughbred is a major part, to register and contribute

The Chief could answer that with a fair degree of detail. Knowing what I know though, I would say no

The undersides of bridges and On the Origin of Species have been quoted with some degree of frequency. Not sure what it has to do with Racing though.

Well hopefully that will change on BOAY, when people start to see and realise that the site will be professionally run, without all the toxic stuff, and that they can join and post without getting their parentage or living arrangements questioned if someone disagrees with what they have to say

But those diehard RC followers, who eventually see the light and decide to take advantage of the many more features on offer at BOAY, (not to mention the quicker speeds and auto refresh) may in the spirit of freedom of choice, still want to visit RC. It appears that by registering on here with your RC user name, you are subject to sanctions on RC

Lots of visitors checking the site out, particularly during the day. Come on in, register and have your say, or just enter one of the many comps for a bit of fun, they are open to EVERYONE Or just start one of your own, we could do with a Dog comp If you are worried about being cut off at the knees on another site, just register using a different name THANKS

Lots of visitors checking the site out, particularly during the day. Come on in, register and have your say, or just enter one of the many comps for a bit of fun, they are open to EVERYONE Or start your own, we could do with a few more Trot comps If you are worried about being cut off at the knees on another site, just register using a different name THANKS

Lots of visitors checking the site out, particularly during the day. Come on in, register and have your say, or just enter one of the many comps for a bit of fun, they are open to EVERYONE If you are worried about being cut off at the knees on another site, just register using a different name THANKS

Oncourse turnover for the Easter Handicap meeting, switched to Counties took a huge hit

Turnover Report to 22 Apr 2018.pdf

I wouldn't have thought people supposedly infringing software copyright would not be subjected to people in suits knocking on doors I took the comment to be a little bit more sinister. I think you mentioned at some stage the need to stay well clear of a copycat name like Racetalk, Racebuffet etc, hence the reason for something totally different like Bit of a Yarn. Anyway, you're stuck with it now

Probably best for people just to focus on this site(I know the temptation is hard to resist) People have joined this site for the many new and refreshing features and vibe it has, with many more being worked on as we speak. Remember, this site can't present itself as the premier chat site in NZ Racing, if it is tainted with a toxic vibe This site is only just over 3 weeks old and has exceeded expectations by a big margin to date, for which we thank all those that have taken the time to join and contribute. Each week we will gain a little bit more with your help

Fair comment and a good point Barry, a lot of the stuff you talk about is already work in progress. Probably gauge popularity based on users online at any one time, an approx guide only, but easy to measure The Chief keeps a close eye on that, and I think Friday was the first time we were ahead, which is not bad considering that was the 3 week anniversary

So what's the pick on when this will happen I'm privy to quite a few of the things that are planned, so I won't say

MESSARA REPORT WILL BE THE JOB ONLY HALF DONE 27 April 2018 Story by Brian de Lore / The Informant Benjamin Franklin once said nothing is certain in this life except death and taxes, but in view of events in New Zealand racing over the past couple of weeks a major overhaul of our industry also looms large as an over-the-line certainty. Arrowfield Stud boss and former chairman of Racing NSW and Racing Australia John Messara is more than a week into compiling his report ahead of forming recommendations that will be delivered to and then adopted by Minister for Racing Winston Peters. After conducting his due diligence on Messara and then making the appointment, it is unlikely to be followed by debate over the recommendations. Peters knows that Messara has the track record, the experience and know-how to do the job, and it would be naïve to believe the Minister would do anything outside the Messara recommendations. But once the report has been handed to Peters, the involvement of Messara realistically cannot end at that point in time. The fix will have to be put into practice and who better to do it than Messara himself, which is what happened at Racing NSW in collaboration with CEO Peter V’landys. Completion of the report is a job only half done; implementation is the second phase. Messara said recently: “In the end, it’s all about personnel. You can have all the right structures for governance, but you need the right personnel in key places or it won’t work.” And for that reason Peters should appoint Messara as the new Chairman of the NZRB, at least for an interim period as the new board is installed and the industry is reshaped. Let’s be realistic, the current board members will be gone by the back half of July so the Messara blank sheet of paper strategy, which obviously appealed to Peters and had something to do with the Messara appointment, can be carried through to a satisfactory conclusion. The Minister has that power and it would be delusional to believe otherwise – the way forward has to begin with a completely new board at the NZRB. Peters wants to leave a legacy for racing and as previously stated; what he is putting in place now will be there to survive succeeding governments and be functional in 10 years’ time and beyond. Messara is unfamiliar with failure and between the two it’s very hard to believe either will consider the job complete until the agenda is not only finalised but set in concrete. Already NZRB board member Alistair Ryan of Sky City Entertainment has resigned. Greg McCarthy has stated he will not be seeking re-election after serving five years and it will be nothing but a major surprise if chair Glenda Hughes doesn’t tender her resignation before July. The Messara report and its findings will be wasted if the wrong people are seconded onto the board and a new management team is not up to an unprecedented standard for better governance – a state of industry position we have been sadly lacking. We have a history that chronicles numerous failures and this might be our last chance to get it right. Messara’s impartiality offers the perfect opportunity to eliminate some of the cronyism in racing that has been prevalent here for years. He is coming in from the outside and therefore will not have preconceived notions or bias about finding the right person/s, and we need a CEO that possesses racing savvy and an uncompromising approach to the task – in the mould of Messara and V’landys themselves. What we don’t want to hear anymore is that narrow-minded parochialism about Australians; we just want the best person for the job and if that means the best candidate comes from Timbuktu then so be it. Imported CEOs have a poor record but that’s more a symptom of the selection process rather than the origin of the incumbent. Some years ago when outsourcing of the TAB was first mooted, then Racing Minister Nathan Guy said it would never happen under his watch – for what reason other than a reluctance to be part of an Australian institution is unknown. Outsourcing the FOB platform to Tabcorp might be achieved for the $6 million to $7 million per annum that RWWA’s is said to be paying instead of the $30 million plus $17 million a year commitment we are tied to under the current NZRB strategy. Outsourcing is simply about sharing the Tabcorp technology already in place and taking full advantage of the $120 million/year that organisation spends on IT development rather than doing it ourselves. The NZRB this month relented and with NZTR has now formed a steering committee to investigate outsourcing – too little too late. It should have happened years ago. The horse has bolted with the stable door wide open. The business model that the NZRB has been pursuing has been out of date ever since globalisation took hold in the betting world a decade or more ago. We ultra-conservative Kiwis have been too slow to recognise and embrace the global picture just as we were in the early 1990s when some leaders in our breeding industry decried the then new practice of shuttling stallions. We were soon left behind and our speed out of the barrier is still in catch-up mode. And today, thinking that we could afford to build our own FOB betting platform at massive cost and then compete with the big, powerful global players just to secure the domestic market alone borders on lunacy. That thinking could only be the product of the insular minds of people with no understanding of the meaning of the word scale. But while it’s not hard to find evidence in the smorgasbord of NZRB faults and excesses that Messara will be currently examining, don’t forget that the erosion of our industry over the past dozen years or so has also taken place under the watch of thoroughbred code governing body NZTR. Under the NZTR Statutory Role, Section 23 of the Racing Act 2003, clause four which is headed ‘Participate in the Racing Board’s Governance and Decision Making,’ (b) (1) says ‘consult with the Racing Board about the Board’s business plan’ while (b) (iii) says ‘consult with the Racing Board on the terms of reference for performance and efficiency audits of the Racing Board.’ NZTR has simply not been strong enough. Over the said period of time they have watched passively rather than objected loudly, and allowed themselves to be bullied by the NZRB which has taken full advantage of the wording of the Act. Instead of marshalling the Trainers’ Association, the Breeders’ Association and what’s now left of the Owners’ Association into some type of action, they adopted the ‘look-on’ approach and now we’ve had to hire a trouble-shooter. Henceforth, how exactly the Messara rejig of this business will be shaped is something no-one really knows at this time. While his head is no doubt buried in annual reports, submissions, etc., he won’t be making statements and will remain silent until his completed report is delivered to the Minister. But we do know from previous discussions that he believes we are overburdened with one level of administration too many, we are far too expensive to run, management of the finances should revert back to the codes and that in the end it comes back to the quality of the personnel. That was an overview from Karaka Sales time but whether or not all these beliefs will still hold true through to the completion of the report is the burning question. Personnel has been a sticky issue in the past but New Zealanders who could be part of the future of our racing include lawyer Mark Freeman who is chairman of the NZTR Pattern Committee and the son of one of our most successful administrators in Bill Freeman, and Dean McKenzie, who has an impressive record of success where ever he’s been. McKenzie is now something of a wasted talent to racing employed in the food industry, but previously he was CEO of the Metropolitan Trotting Club at Addington for six years, that despite his background from an early age in thoroughbreds in Southland, where he qualified as an accountant. He became racing manager of the Southland Racing Club at an early age, moved to Avondale a week before the club went into receivership but nevertheless made a sound contribution, and then did four years as CEO of the Wellington Racing Club, another four years as CEO of Christchurch’s Jade Stadium, and another four years as Executive Director of Esportif International. McKenzie is the most recent appointee to the Board of NZTR, but he is someone racing needs to get back full-time. Likewise, Freeman understands racing and should at least be utilised at Board level. These are just two suggestions to enhance the future of New Zealand racing. My knowledge of them is limited but it demonstrates that New Zealand does have the expertise to make a significant contribution to the industry’s future and get our best people into governance. Others are certain to be on the periphery, and Messara must be made aware of them all. To read this and other important industry stories in The Informant each week

But you were an asshole Porty The confusion with respect to sending one to the sideline was understandable though. The human anus, lips and fingers all have a similar high concentration of nerve endings

Anyone who ventures onto the briny in a small boat(you're one Chief) will understand how lucky these 2 were. Looks like they have drifted overnight from Barrier to Waiheke with a strong NE wind http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12041594

From a Denis Ryan article back in 2014, forecasts by the 2 previous CEO's Bayliss and Brown That same SOI also forecast continuing revenue increases up to $180 million by 2018, along with increases in stakes and returns to owners of 50 per cent, new market revenue growth of 30 per cent and a reduction in the cost to income ratio to below 30 per cent. Discrepancies between optimistic forecasts and actual delivery by the NZRB are nothing new. How many of us recall the bold prediction by previous CEO Andrew Brown in his Racing Ahead fantasy of a return to the codes of $185 million by 2015?

The data should really be available to anyone who is interested. Curious knows all this stuff, but any FO betting has a lower profit and higher costs compared with tote Tote betting has the highest profit, but is the one that is declining

NZTR obtain the turnover data from NZRB It used to be in the NZTR weekly bulletins online, but now it appears(sometimes) under Recent Publications on their website. Last one was April 1. The Chief copied over the first couple, and I did the last one, but they seemed to have dropped back to their old ways unfortunately. The body that governs Trotting, HRNZ, should have this data on a regular basis. Why not drop them an email and ask them about publishing it on their website on a weekly basis

I recall some market research was done about 3-5 years ago, NZTR maybe The only positive thing that came out of it, was that a day at the races was still well perceived

Definitely a pro bono Might shut up a few of the critics

MESSARA APPOINTMENT THE PRECURSOR TO A PARADIGM-SHIFT IN OUR RACING CULTURE 19 April 2018 John Messara is determined to turn the New Zealand racing industry around. (By Brian de Lore, The Informant) Close your eyes and make a wish for racing! If a year ago you had been accorded that luxury and thought “I want Winston Peters back as Minister for Racing and I want him to appoint John Messara to review New Zealand racing”, the TAB odds on that double would have been 10,000 to one. Yet, it’s happened. No-one in their wildest dreams could have predicted such a long-shot double. For a decade or more, we in New Zealand racing and breeding have experienced a steady decline that has become serious to point of a crisis. Not everyone in racing recognises we have reached crisis point, and not everyone is happy about either the Peters return as Minister or the Messara appointment. But then again, not everyone in racing has an IQ over 70, either. This is a double that this writer had both hoped for and actively sought but never believed might become an actual reality. But now, I can pinch myself along with everyone else who has been constantly separating facts from NZRB fiction and say that the light at the end of the tunnel may not be a gravy-train heading straight at us but instead rays of sunlight from the rising dawn of a new racing era. We are not over the line by any stretch, but to quote an oft-used line ‘the wheels are in motion’ is enough to say we have commenced a journey that will take us down a path never previously taken by racing and towards a destination of greener fields and richer pickings. Using the train-station analogy – after years of sitting idle on rusty tracks we have now set off with the Minister driving the train at his speed and Messara firing up the furnace to produce a head of steam that will easily propel us to a new destination called Racebetter. Messara has already commenced his review as you read this and will be working at full pace to produce an analysis of the structure and strategies of New Zealand racing to be delivered in a report to the Minister with his recommended changes at the earliest possible time. Speaking to Messara soon after the announcement last Thursday, he said: “We are going to turn it around; I’ve agreed to it and I’m happy to help – New Zealand is part of the family and we are going to get moving on it. “I will be doing a lot of research before I come up with my recommendations and I’ll be visiting once every two weeks for a couple of days. I have been retained by the government so I can’t say anything more than that. “Any questions will have to be answered by Winston Peters and not by me. I can’t say anything about the project – my report has to be to him and nobody else.” The blank sheet of paper is on the desk but still blank and understandably, little more will be heard until Minister Peters has devoured the completed Messara Report and is ready to make an announcement about changes. Rest assured, the Minister will not be saying anything until he is good and ready. Reaction to the Messara appointment has mostly been very positive and both the Messara office in Sydney and NZ First having been inundated with emails of support and enthusiasm for the review. And while ‘mum’s the word’ on the progress Messara will make while delving into racing’s administrative abyss, his record as a trouble-shooter for Racing NSW suggests his recommendations in the end will be substantial and game changing. Having known Messara since the late1970s as a somewhat younger journalist working for the monthly Racetrack magazine in Sydney; having knowledge of his entree committee role in racing which happened to be the NSW Racehorse Owners’ Association, Messara is a familiar character to this writer. Add to that his commissioning from me a feasibility study into founding a new racing publication in the early 1980s for which there were numerous visits to his then Sydney stockbrokers office, also his two years as a director of Ra Ora Stud during my term as general manager, and having attended his lavish 40th birthday party at Arrowfield Stud way back in the day, it’s fair to say those experiences have provided an insight to how the man thinks and acts. Then take a look at his achievements in more recent times. He was the founder and is principal of Australia’s most successful stud and the business acumen he displayed during his five years as Chairman of Racing NSW (2011-2016), and as Chairman of Racing Australia for just on three years during the same timeframe, is unprecedented. He and Racing NSW CEO Peter V’landys turned around racing in their state, where the industry was declining alarmingly and falling behind Victoria until the pair constantly lobbied the NSW Government and took drastic remedial action. Messara is an uncompromising character who likes to get his way and isn’t fazed by treading over a few slowcoaches or dissenters to achieve a result for the greater good. His appointment by Peters is a stroke of genius and there’s no doubt the Minister will trust the Messara recommendations and get straight into action with the appropriate legislation. My experience with Messara tells me he will be savage on expenses – he will cut costs to the bone as he did at Ra Ora and later Racing NSW. Instead of the NZRB costing $205 million to run and returning $143 million to the codes, those figures might be reversed. He will set out to maximise the returns to the codes which will on-flow to the owners, trainers and all other participants in thoroughbreds, harness and greyhounds. In my chat with Messara at this year’s Karaka Yearling Sales from which the ‘blank sheet of paper’ article published in the February 1 edition of The Informant was hatched, one of the points he stressed was cost saving. “I can’t understand why you don’t immediately cut your costs and stop variegating about it,” Messara said. “It’s one thing you could do straight away.” Messara’s list of achievements at Racing NSW under the sub-heading of ‘Costs’ is highlighted by ‘Cost effective industry management’ which states that ‘Racing NSW operates at 38 per cent of the cost of Victoria despite running approximately 20 per cent more race meetings.’ All this points to the costs at NZRB having the guts ripped out of them. But costs at NZRB will not be scrutinised alone, because the code bodies are certain to get the same treatment as are the Racing Integrity Unit (RIU) and the Judicial Control Authority (JCA). This cumbersome set-up is not only expensive but poorly conceived and possibly destined for the dustbin. Messara overhauled ‘Integrity’ in NSW and setup a Racing NSW Investigation and Surveillance Unit amongst many other associated reforms that streamlined the integrity side of racing. This could well be the template for an alternative New Zealand model. Other reforms that Messara addressed and vastly improved during his tenure for Racing NSW included industry modernisation sustainability, animal welfare and jockey welfare. He was also the overseer of NSW thoroughbred prize-money increasing from $118 million to $203 million per annum and he was instrumental in the creation of The Championships. It all points to Messara being the perfect man for the job. But despite the impressive CV and his impartiality, immediate criticism was levelled by National Party Spokesperson for Racing Ian McKelvie who released a statement a day after the Peters announcement entitled ‘Shine coming off Peters’ racing crusade’. But the only shine detected in McKelvie’s press release was that radiating from the adjacent photo of his own bald head. He contended the Messara appointment was contrived only to ‘deliver the answers Mr Peters was wanting on behalf of his supporters’ and the delay to the racefields legislation was costing the industry unnecessarily. McKelvie’s words barely justify a response, except to say that with the shallow knowledge displayed in his rant it doesn’t look good for racing if National eventually regained power and this ill-advised pretender was to become the Minister for Racing. When former Prime Minister and legal expert Geoffrey Palmer was used as an adviser to the racing industry back in 2002, he told the authors of the Racing Act 2003 that they should get the wording of that legislation absolutely correct because the train stops at the station only once every 15 to 20 years. Here we are 15 years later with the race-fields legislation on hold for very good reason. The new legislation will not be rolled out until after the Messara Report has been lodged and then considered by the Minister and to which the race-fields legislation will be added and rolled into one package. The racing industry will get only one chance at this and that’s why Peters confided a month ago, “It’s very complicated and very slow to write but it has to be right before we roll it out.” In the meantime, Messara will be seen here talking to what he described last week as the ‘key players of the industry’. Knowing Messara, he will be avoiding those who look as though they know the answers, or those who would have him believe they know the answers. Instead, he is more likely to seek the company of those who are trying to understand the question. To read this and other important industry stories in The Informant each week email ADMIN@RACINGMEDIA.CO.NZ. Mention W@W and get 20% off an online subscription.