Noodlum

If I was one of the unwanted classified as such I'd sit on my hands and wait. I'd mothball the track - even get the volunteers onboard and revitalise it. Plow and then plant soil conditioning crops. Resow with the latest grasses that will give a good racing surface. Then wait. Deprive the leeches of any capital. When Cambridge Jockey Club starts looking for more money (when trainers and owners have left because it is too expensive to train there) to repair and maintain their new $16m All Weather Track tell them to contact a commercial bank. When Awapuni and Riccarton come knocking to raise the funds to complete their new track tell them to contact a commercial bank with their business case. When it goes tits up then I'd open the doors with open arms and say welcome back. I'd undercut the training costs for trainers.

The RIU in New Zealand enjoy playing Policeman wearing bullet proof vests, holding walkie talkie and hiding in bushes. To catch trainers NOT because they are administering drugs but because they MIGHT administer them. Then scratching the horses. No blood tests of the horses. No positives (obviously). Plus because of such actions the RIU have no confidence in their pre or post race testing. Orwellian is it not?

Haven't they tried this and didn't work? Triple Trio or something. I think TAB NZ should get back to the knitting first. Provide better information for the punter, fix their website, lower their takeout rates to be competitive with other agencies... That might stop the bleeding and maybe bring back those that have left.

Which river is rockier?

So the back to back OZ racing didn't pull in much revenue?

Are they doing the bunker type thing anywhere in OZ racing?

That's what happens when you force someone into a corner without good reason.

That's exactly what I was going to say. The announcement about stake levels for the coming year is just spin as Lichter wrote. They can only maintain individual race stakes by reducing the number of races.

It could possibly work for a JCA hearing however having recently seen a Court hearing done that way it doesn't really work that well. I don't think it serves justice very well. As for the RIU they have other functions to perform that should be done live on course. Commentators - good ones don't just sit in the commentary box all day.

Are you serious?

Why not?

So who do you suggest?

More chance of success than INCA.

So not only computer generated comments but randomly generated.

That's because the TAB don't see racing as a sport. They see it has a low quality product that can be imported from anywhere without understanding the followers knowledge of tracks and other variables that make the game interesting. They treat ALL punters with disdain. They treat us ALL as if we are pathological gamblers with no interest in the actual sport.

It's probably too late especially if the current mob continue down the current sloped path they are on. The degree of incline is increasing with every step they are taking in that direction. RITA has hooked into a high cost mode of operation delivering high cost products and broadcasting that their customer market doesn't want. They are killing off low cost delivery methods, provincial tracks run by volunteers, and replacing them with high cost models of operation that we cannot sustain like All Weather Tracks.

Not entirely correct. If RITA hadn't promised to fund stakes at a level that required the consumption of reserves their financial situation would be better. If they funded stakes at around 60% of the current level they'd be OK. Of course they could fund more if they slashed costs and somehow reneged on the two cockup strategic decision deals namely the betting system and broadcasting contracts.

Yes. They have no cash.

Yep. My interpretation of the "reforms" that the Racing Bill is imposing won't change things. In my opinion will make them worse. The industry needs to be weaned off the tit in cold turkey fashion.

Thoroughbred racing got a $30m gift from the Government for new infrastructure (Synthetic Tracks) why didn't Harness get a similar amount? Afterall Harness provides as many races to bet on as the Gallops.

Plus things don't add up in this article. Where was the bicarbonate and the herbal spray? He wasn't caught "red-handed" as he wasn't in the process of tubing and the equipment was in a bag. Makes one wonder also about the pre-race and post-race testing regime.

I understand he has handed in his license. Not surprising given the harassment he has had from the RIU.

They weren't the first 2 to be granted an exemption. It is evident that during the level 4 and 3 lockdown the Governmemt did nothing about the porosity of the border. Nor did the MOH do anything about their lax processes.

That's a bit harsh. They were given an exemption by the Government to visit a dying relative. The MOH didn't bother to test them before they left quarantine!!

Which probably explains how the Minister didn't know until the last moment that the Creditors were pulling the pin.