All The Aces

It was her own fault that this incident happened. Luberon had warned her at the start of the clip that she wanted to lay out. You will notice that Gaudray had to straighten her and she should have then pulled her whip through to her left hand to contiune to ride the horse out. Instead she keeps her whip in her right hand and hits Luberon on the right hand side who immediately runs out sharply with Gaudray losing the right rein. I think Gaudray is a very promising rider but she stuffed up on Luberon on Saturday but at least both horse and rider have come through relatively unscathed.

Message re Avondale NZTR has tried, without success, to engage meaningfully with the Avondale Jockey Club on track management and track safety issues following the abandonment of the Club's meeting on 6 September 2023. In the circumstances, NZTR advises that no further trial meetings will be held at Avondale, and that it will request TAB NZ to revoke the allocation of race dates to the Avondale Jockey Club for the current season, until such time as it is satisfied regarding the Club's track management regime and the safety of its track for racing and trialling. NZTR is currently working with the Northern Programming Chair and Club's to look at alternate venues for the affected trials and race meetings. These will be advised shortly subject to obtaining TAB NZ's agreement to changes to venues for racemeetings.

It woukld be easy for Owners and trainers to show cause. Because the stewards allowed Pinn to ride witha 3kg claim at his first meeting in Australia then all owners and trainers are then led to believe the 3kg claim is correct and engage him on that basis. He has weighed out and weighed back in under correct weight in all those races according to the clerk of the scales. Surely the blame lays squarely at the feet of the Melbourne stewards.

Track a good 3 tonight with the prospect of showers tonight and tomorrow according to the forecast. I hope this doesn't mean any problems.

But wasn't that for false papers for a jumpers ticket which he got four months and a $5000.00 fine for?

Stable staff error.

What a storm in a teacup. The promotion was for one day only to acknowledge International Women's Day. It was all over the media. What a sad lot moaning and bitching about that. Hang your heads in shame!

AWAPUNI RETURNS TO RACING WITH THE LITTLE AVONDALE LOWLAND STAKES ON WEDNESDAY 1 MARCH Racing is set to resume at RACE Awapuni on Wednesday 1 March featuring the transferred Little Avondale Lowland Stakes, following the successful completion of the Return to Racing Plan that had been enacted last December. Following the abandonments in November and December an aggressive renovation schedule was agreed upon by industry and track representatives, and this work took place from late December through to the end of January. It included aerating, groundbreaking and coring, along with undersowing, and gypsum applications. The irrigation system was also reviewed and improved where possible. After local gallops last week, a thorough programme of 14 trials took place on the course proper on Monday 13 February, with relevant industry personnel in attendance. Following the trials the running rail into the back straight was also realigned with a number of horses galloping on the area near the Synthetic Track Crossing on Friday 24 February with senior riders aboard to achieve a final tick of approval. All participants were happy with the rail alignment and track surface

Better question is Was there any atmosphere at Pukekohe? Far, far smaller turnout than what would have turned up if the racing had been Ellerslie.

RaceInfo Meetings Meeting News INDUSTRY UPDATE – ABANDONMENTS MEETING NEWS INDUSTRY UPDATE – ABANDONMENTS INDUSTRY UPDATE – ABANDONMENTS Friday 11 November – Awapuni & NZ CUP Riccarton – Saturday 12 November The NZTR Board have now considered all reports provided on the respective abandonments at Awapuni on Friday 11 November & NZ Cup Meeting held Saturday 12 November. Reports were received and reviewed from Club, RIB, NZSTI, Independent Track Manager and Irrigation specialists. Both RACE & Canterbury JC have been provided with the NZTR Board findings of these reports which also include proposed sanctions with regards to funding. Both Club’s have a right of reply to these findings and further relevant details will be provided to the wider industry by the end of next week. Following on from these abandonments, communication with Clubs will begin earlier leading up to Race week to ensure track preparation is on schedule & identify issues, NZTR and the NZ Jockeys Association have also put in place an application for senior jockeys to provide feedback and ratings regarding Track surfaces immediately post Raceday. This is designed to assist NZTR and further support Track managers identify and address any concerns when it comes to their respective track surfaces but also identify when work being done is having a positive effect. NZTR and the Regional Track managers held the first Regional Field Day at Ellerslie on Thursday 17 November with Turf and Equipment experts present to support the knowledge of the Northern Track Managers. The CD Field Day is being held today and a Southern Field Day will also be held once a suitable date can be identified. This is all aimed at increasing the capability of our Track managers and allowing them to build further networks with their peers for support and advice.

TO EACH TOTALISATOR CLUB Following recent abandonments of both race meeting and trials, I need to make it very clear that I, and the Board consider that each club CEO/GM is accountable and responsible for ensuring that their systems and processes meet the standard required and requested by NZTR in relation to presenting a safe and suitable racing surface. This could mean for some clubs that a thorough review of their people and processes is undertaken immediately and that everybody responsible for presenting a track is clear on the role they play. Should a club not follow the track preparation policies and procedures, and these actions are found to contribute to an abandonment I need to make it clear that this will jeopardise the club funding for the meeting. If any club CEO/GM is unsure of the requirements I encourage you to contact Darin Balcombe to answer any questions. I also want to make clear that we are all in this together, support is available for all clubs, and utilising the resource of the Regional Track Advisors and early engagement of NZTR should there be any concerns leading into a raceday is the only way we are going to be able to mitigate the impact of these issues going forward. As always, I am happy to discuss with any club directly. Bruce Sharrock Chief Executive

That track was a disgrace today with the length of the grass on it. Incompetence at it's finest.

I spoke with a jockey yesterday and they mentioned that the horses were slipping on jumping. Interesting the stipes report uses the term "blunder" instead.

The joint statement from the Starship Foundation and Waikato Studs reads: "The Starship Foundation welcomes donations from gaming societies and the horse racing industry, and has long been the grateful beneficiary of donations of this nature. Donations are the life-blood of the Starship Foundation and every single dollar enables Starship Children's Hospital to deliver world-class healthcare for children. "Mark Chittick's offer to be involved with and become the potential beneficiary of the charity component of the Golden Eagle Race, came in at 3pm and required us to make a rapid decision by close of business the same day. As with any charity, due diligence is an essential part of our responsibility to accept donations. In this instance, considerations around the size and off-shore nature of the donation regrettably could not be resolved within this timeframe. "We are tremendously disappointed that we could not meet the deadline and become the beneficiary of this incredibly generous donation. If we had had more time, the decision may very well have been different. "We have spoken directly to Mark this afternoon and he too is disappointed at the outcome, but acknowledges there were time pressures involved. He would have loved to be involved in the Golden Eagle with the Starship Foundation as the beneficiary and he remains a huge supporter of the incredible work the Hospital does for children and families in need," the statement said. "Both the Starship Foundation and Waikato Stud have a huge amount of respect for each other’s work and industries and intend to work together to build a partnership in the future.” Waikato Stud principal, Mark Chittick. (Source: Supplied)

One accident after another. Hopefully a full recovery BUT Time to give the riding away Michael.

That happened only a few weeks ago with the demolition at Cambridge.

Suspended Riders: Craig Grylls | From close of racing Sunday 23 October to close of racing Sunday 30 October Sam Spratt | From close of racing Saturday 22 October to close of racing Sunday 30 October Lily Sutherland | From close of racing Saturday 22 October to close of racing Friday 28 October Tayla Mitchell | From close of racing Wednesday 19 October to close of racing Friday 28 October Opie Bosson | From close of racing Saturday 29 October to close of racing Friday 9 December Kate Hercock | From close of racing Sunday 23 October to close of racing Friday 28 October Lynsey Satherley | From close of racing Wednesday 19 October to close of racing Friday 21 October Crystal Lindsay | From close of racing Sunday 16 October to close of racing Sunday 23 October Wiremu Pinn | From close of racing Saturday 22 October to close of racing Friday 28 October Rahul Beemud | From close of racing Friday 21 October to close of racing Sunday 30 October Courtney Barnes | From close of racing Saturday 1 October to close of racing Saturday 29 October Megan Taylor | From close of racing Saturday 15 October to close of racing Saturday 22 October Niranjan Parmar | From close of racing Saturday 8 October to close of racing Wednesday 19 October Sam Weatherley | From close of racing Saturday 1 October to close of racing Saturday 3 December Callum Jones | From close of racing Saturday 27 August to close of racing Saturday 27 March

Have had a re-read of the full summary and this is it in a nutshell. 26. That is what occurred. To summarise, the Adjudicative Committee finds, by a wide margin, Mr Weatherley chose to deliberately direct his mount outward abruptly in an attempt to force its way into a run/gap that did not exist. What followed was severe forcible contact to “GOODO JO” which led to the fall of “TE ATATU PASH” on its outside. The following runner “NANTUCKET” had no opportunity of avoiding the fallen horse. Mr Weatherley was indifferent to the harmful consequences that could follow from his deliberate actions and was reckless.

It's raining here in the Bay. Soldier Boy will beat more home than will beat him I'm picking. Don't forget he did finish fourth in the Derby after doing plenty of work in the race.

Makes pretty grim reading showing a rider with a shocking riding record. One thing this clearly shows is the urgent need for Messers Marsh, Simon and Coleman to vist an optician.

I wasn't being critical. More pointing out how unusual it was yesterday for them. I am sure they will bounce back.

Te Akau lined up five hot favourites today and they all got well and truly trounced. Prismatic and Sans Doute at Hawera along with Dynastic, Stella Splendida and Imperatriz at Matamata. You don't see that very often. And Opie would have opened up a very hot favourite to win the jockeys competition at Matamata with twelve rides and ended up with a win a second and two thirds. Go figure.

Jockey Sam Weatherley cops 9-week suspension for reckless riding after death of Taiki Yanagida By Belinda Feek 27 Sep, 2022 06:00 PM6 mins to read SaveShare Top jockey Sam Weatherley, pictured in January 1, this year, has been suspended from riding for nine weeks after being found guilty of reckless riding. Photo / Trish Dunell The actions of a top young jockey, which led to a promising Japanese rider's death at Cambridge, have been ruled "reckless". But Sam Weatherley, 23, says it was a "freak accident" that he will continually struggle with for the rest of his life. Taiki Yanagida died after injuries suffered in a fall at Cambridge Raceway last month after his horse, Te Atatu Pash, was bumped when Weatherley made an "abrupt" and "aggressive" turn with his horse, Jack Hammer. Today, after a hearing by the Racing Integrity Board, Weatherley has been handed a nine-week racing suspension as result of his actions on the track. ADVERTISEMENT Advertise with NZME. CCTV footage shown to the board's panel at the Te Rapa Racecourse in Hamilton, shows how a fatal series of events played out in a matter of seconds during the last race of the day on August 3. It shows a group of horses rounding the final bend at the 300 mark. Up until then, Weatherley had trailed the leading horse, Searchlight, on the inside barrier. Start your day in the know Get the latest headlines straight to your inbox. Please email me competitions, offers and other updates. You can stop these at any time. SIGN UP By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to NZME’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Weatherley would later tell investigators at his initial hearing that he was looking for a "run" and then he's "just gone". "I thought there was a run appearing out three wide and I've looked to come out for a run and obviously Darren Danis' mount has been going better than mine ... no disrespect to Darren but I thought that run would appear, just the nature of the way it happens." However, as Weatherley attempts to make his "run", his horse made contact with the girth area of Danis' ride, Goodo Jo, which he says "overreacted quite badly". "Unfortunately, it's just a freak accident and something that I've gotta live with for the rest of my life. It's very, very unfortunate," he said during his interview last month, which was adjourned to continue today. Horse racing jockey Taiki Yanagida died after falling from his horse during a race at Cambridge in August. Photo / Trish Dunell Footage of the race was shown multiple times to the adjudicative panel throughout the hearing. It showed Jack Hammer bumping into the girth of Goodo Jo whose hindlegs are then swung out to the right. ADVERTISEMENT Advertise with NZME. That caused Te Atatu Pash to appear to tap the ankle of Goodo Jo and fall forward, throwing Yanagida to the ground, where he was stomped on by a horse following close behind. Neither horse nor its rider could have avoided the collision. Yanagida was rushed to Waikato Hospital and his Japan-based family flew over to be by his side, but he died from injuries to his brain and spine. The accident stunned and divided the racing industry, Weatherley's co-counsel Philip Cornege told the panel today. "Half of the industry have been quite supportive .. the other half have frankly branded him a murderer and it's quite wrong." He said those people felt that Weatherley returning to the saddle was him "thumbing his nose" at Yanagida's death. "But he literally had to get back on the horse. Sitting at home trying to cope with what had happened was not good for his mental health." Weatherley's remorse was genuine, he said, and he'd not only met with Yanagida's mother but also contributed to the funeral and a headstone for his grave in Japan. Dennis Dow, counsel for the board, earlier submitted Weatherley's actions were reckless and called two of its stipendiary stewards, Brady Jones and Warwick Robinson, along with its chief steward John Oatham as witnesses. Robinson told the adjudicators Warwick Gendall and Noel McCutcheon that Weatherley "used his horse as a battering ram", after pulling it to get into a space, or gap, neither of which he said existed. "You say gap, I'm saying there isn't a gap," he bluntly told Weatherley's co-counsel Fletcher Pilditch. Robinson, a former jockey and stipendiary steward of 25 years, told the panel from his viewing of the race footage, Weatherley suddenly "shoots out at least two and a half horses" to his right as he finishes negotiating the final bend. He explained to have a "gap" wide enough to head into, it needed to "at least" fit the horse's shoulders. "Even if you see that it's still a very narrow gap to negotiate a horse through ... I think Mr Weatherley is a very experienced rider and knows the only way he could get through there is to make a gap." However, fellow retired jockey Michael Coleman, said he could see the gap Weatherley was aiming for. "There's no doubt in my mind that there's a reason why Mr Weatherley has jumped out for that run, because there's a gap there." He said everything happens in "microseconds" riding at that pace and although he could have corrected, Weatherley's "instincts have taken over" and he's continued to aim for the gap that he saw before it's closed on him. "There has been a run fixed for Mr Weatherley to take and as a competitive rider you would also try to go for that run." He, together with Weatherley's counsel, submitted his actions were careless, not reckless. However, after 45 minutes of deliberations, the panel found Weatherley guilty. Dow pushed for a three-month ban, which would include uplifts for his "poor" riding history involving 11 charges of careless riding and seven convictions in the past 12 months, and more going back to when he started in 2016. Pilditch said Weatherley had already been subjected to trial by social media. "We live in a very vitriolic age. We operate in a world of social media where people are tried and judged via social media and that's certainly been the case for Mr Weatherley and his family who have faced very divisive views ... about his involvement. "He really has suffered and will continue to suffer quite a high level of antagonism and animosity from people in the industry who really aren't in a position to be making comment. "Good ole New Zealand has already done a fair amount of crushing through social media," Pilditch said. He urged the board to hand down a suspension which left him with a "sense of hope" for his future career. While Weatherley had always accepted culpability for his actions, he felt they were careless rather than reckless. However, it was pointed out that Weatherley had been subjected, and pleaded guilty to, a charge of careless riding earlier in the same meeting. Panel chairman Warwick Gendall said there was "no question" that there was never any intent by Weatherley to purposefully cause the fall. "No jockey intends that, ever," he said. In delivering not only their verdict on the charge but also the penalty, Gendall and McCutcheon found Weatherley's horse made "very firm" contact with Goodo Jo, "when in no time correcting his line exhibiting reckless behaviour". "And the actions establish that he acted in a deliberate manner," Gendall said. Gendall acknowledged it had taken a toll on Weatherley's mental health but reminded him he had "a great future" and wished him well. Weatherley declined to comment when approached outside by Open Justice. Yanagida was the first jockey to die in a race fall in New Zealand since Rebecca Black at Gore in December, 2016.

Stewards opened and adjourned an enquiry into an incident passing the 600 metres which resulted in DEEBEE BELLFER falling and LOOSE MONEY being brought down as a consequence. Initial evidence was taken from riders D Prastiyou and C Barnes. The matter was adjourned due to the unavailability of rider T Mitchell.

Karma don't you think. 😊