Special Agent

We seem to be part of an industry that is not about "the industry" but, more focussed on a few venues and a select group of licence holders. Unless NZTR and it's head honchos take a wider vision "the industry" will narrow into oblivion.

Such progress.

I thought Awapuni and Palmerston North Raceway race on the same day sometimes.

To see that even farmers are abreast of modern techniques and skill sets.

Opie Bosson and Sam Weatherley can't have ridden over these areas in their prior staged ride around. Their opinions don't count for much now.

I remember Maurice being a really nice man. I think he was quite fussy with his horses and he may have had a pretty good strike rate. I couldn't remember any of his horses though. I thought maybe he trained Wadi Wahid but, that may have been Barry too.

Alcohol is also a distraction and there is plenty of that flowing at sales, in fact has been the reason for some questionable buys. Not everyone buys solely on conformation. Sometimes it's connection with the breeder, leader, owner or just a plain hunch. There would never be those cheapie near champions without a bit of luck in whatever method is used for selection. Shallow though the sex sells advertising method is, it is a known successful formula. We are all different and variety is the spice of life.

In this modern era there are some things you are not supposed to say out loud but, I don't always conform with today's thinking. I agree with Honestjohn that some ideals still resonate ... like "sex sells". In an advertising world the first step is to catch the potential buyer's attention. I had a chuckle about your comment on how hot Anthea is/was. I knew her way back when she was Anthea Dick. I'm sure she would love your comments on her appearance.

It wouldn't matter what the jockeys said because it clearly states the stipes made the decision.

If you go to the races and read the Stipes Report that night there are times when what is written and your recollection are quite different. Even though these reports should not be open to debate, you cannot believe everything you read. As for this new state of the art surface, some Australians remarked on them in a not too favourable manner. It seems state of the art is not what it is cracked up to be. The lazy method of just throwing money at something is not the answer. It seems there are big noters who have a following while they are here. When they move on to other occupations they become someone else's problem for a while. Unfortunately the bad pennies have a tendancy to turn up at a later date.

Yes, a lot of passing the buck in this industry. I agree with Freda. Previous Starters with obvious pride in their work and a sense of responsibility have managed to regularly check and maintain the starting gates. I would have thought that would be part of their contract. Surely the Starters of today don't just rock on up on race day.

Do we know if this positive is to cobalt, or something else? The ruling for cobalt was flawed for one thing. There is no evidence cobalt is performance enhancing. The Australian court cases proved the injustice. Same applies here even though all trainers bar one put their hands up, and were charged as guilty. Every licence holder should be treated equally.

All the hype leading in then an unsafe track offered. I think that is more than teething problems as mentioned earlier on here.

I don't see how they can race on the back of how the track played on Karaka Millions night. I doubt many jockeys would put their hands up. Avondale may be a cot case but, the track surface looked a lot safer than Ellerslie and in better condition than Pukekohe. Can we PLEASE forget about people getting drunk and focus on the horse and rider safety?

It will be an interesting one to hear by the sounds.

Who would want a horse in Central?

There are examples of farm training, the use of water treadmills and trips to the beach that have worked wonders for such horses.

And thus sold at market value.

WTF!!! Trentham off due to an unsafe track. Well done to all concerned. Stop worrying about what licence holders are doing wrongly. Get your own shit under control. This is not a joke. Injuries and deaths are unacceptable.

And now Trentham off!!!!!! FFS.

As one trainer told NZTR, don't bother us with stable audits until you get tracks up to scratch. What they are and aren't doing with track maintenance is killing and injuring. I don't think a bucket not properly scrubbed is even worthy of mention on their report.

Inconsistent (unsafe) track at Hastings so, just the two races there today. No further comment from me required.

In some instances that could be tricky. Why would riding engagements and fees be different to any other race.

Probably not gossiping, more likely annoyed.

Oh yes, you are all correct. NZ Bred OR the other condition.