Gammalite

Well it's a day for the slow horses that couldn't compete Albion Park and get anything. I'm not surprised incidents happen like you describe. They're all in for a bit of a dig. They all seem to have a crack in QLD as they are cheap horses , and you can drive them with gusto and not damage them. (if against their own class) . The McMullen girls do a fine job (like their brother Pete does at Albion). Taleah and Danielle Quinellaed the last race of day, and nearly had a look at taking that. But got scared off by the 3rd horse of trainer John McMullens there in it , that ran 4th in the end. It had won it's last start at Redcliffe and here at Marburg last month . so missed out on the $25 Quinella unfortunately. They (the McMullen sisters) drive with the aptitude of Crystal Hackett and Monika Ranger there in the North of NZ. and so get lots of wins. and you get a run for your money everytime. Just looking at those horses Mr Galah , it is the reason I support these little meetings. John McMullen Knows everything about harness racing, done it all his life. his dad very famous winner for decades. But he still has many horses like this , that can't go fast enough at Albion Park. They just go so darn fast these days. so the little Marburg (Cambridge type races ) for $4000 allows him to get wins. he's a $40 per day trainer (not a $70 per day like Dunns and Telfers) so needs 14k from each runner per year to return a profit for his owners. Done properly (with these little meetings) is easily achievable. we are 3/4 through year now. let's look at his 3 runners in the last race yesterday. race 7 Marburg the winner SPLASHNDASH picked up $2400 yesterday to go 23 starts- 3 wins- $16k for 2025 year. a PROFIT 2nd place B MAC C (NZ) $700 for 2nd to go 25 starts - 5 wins- $21k for 2025 (so far) a PROFIT 4th place TAYLORS FOUR up to 28 starts - 4 wins - $20k for 2025 so a PROFIT so John places ALL his horses somewhere where the owners won't lose. He had one other runner in yesterday . It won and picked up $2400 as well. That's Why MARBURG (and CAMBRIDGE this week) are so important . Keeps People in the game , and NOT out of Pocket. All those horses racing at Cambridge this week are 'Paying their way ' so there's nothing wrong with that. Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan had 5 FFAers stacked up in the Group race last Friday . so was certain to win it. They have the Millionaire owners buying the best around (as Allstars have done for Years) so dominate the city racing. So YES. Run Cambridge . give the small bloke a go. NowOrNever and Brodie are just being mean expecting those trainers /owners not to get any races to compete in, while the millionaires do.

You've got to start the Slow horse's somewhere Brodie. Don't you want these people to race ? there's some really good folk starting their horses at Cambridge each week. Today our slow QLD horses are going around at Marburg in 7 x 8 horse fields. No one is watching. No one is betting . We're all still celebrating the 2 Grand Final wins in the AFL and NRL to be Champions of the world . Probably inspired by LEAP TO FAME. 😂( well not really) no one has heard of that horse as Trotting is SMALL FRY these days. No one begrudges them racing though. it's their Hobby. just a few horses going around for the entertainment of their connections. Can't you just let your small fry participants run around once a week without all the hate for them ? It's just a hobby for them mate . You have the Big meeting each Friday night for millionaires and fast horses. WELL Done Cambridge !! (you should be saying) Putting on some racing for the few participants still going. Yep . All positive that the CEO puts races on for enthusiasts to pursue their livelihood or hobby. Good on ya New Zealand . Still having a go in tough times. Look after the small bloke Brodster. that's the spirit. 👍

Heard that the UBER came across some riders training for the Tour De France on the way to the track 🏇. Was going to get held up for a bit. but Not a problem in the end . 😋

One bloke in Darwin took bets from 1983 Chief. On-course only at races piggy backing 'Sports Betting' on the back of a licensed Bookmaker at the races. Took 10 years but finally in 1993 the Northern Territory government Legalised Sports betting away from the track. So 2 blokes sat in a office in Alice Springs with 2 telephones and a pen and paper , and took phone bets from Around Australia all day long lol , CENTREBET was off and running. By the turn of the century they (Centrebet) were turning over $300,000,000 per year . They sold out their 'small' business to a local competitor in 2003 for $47,000,000. You may ask why Alice Springs and Darwin ? because they Tax at half the rate of other states. Even to this day I believe. The revived 'Centrebet name' from other companies still trades out of the Northern Territory. Their are that many on-line betting companies these days it's crazy

Borana raced for John and Doreen Murray throughout his career . Purchased by them for $2000 and retired after 126 race starts for 20 wins and $380,000. The 1984 NZ Cup had a Huge crash in it caused by George Shand , and 6 horses bit the dust. The winner of the race was Camelot who missed the disaster by millimetres. The great Australian horse Gammalite missed the crash as well, but off a ridiculous tough 30m handicap ran down the track with Borana. George would of got a very LONG Suspension for that foul driving , so the horses transferred to Peter Jones and 2 weeks after the Cup ran 4th to the Old Peter Jones drive of Hands Down . Peter had won a Cup driving Hands Down as well of course. Hands Down driven from then on , and for that Win by the Young junior driver Anthony Butt . for his granddad Derek. (The Cup winner Camelot finishing 3rd in that FFA ) Gammalite was favourite in that same FFA won by Ant's on Hands Down, but ran down the track again 🙄. Bloody NZers always so hard to beat at Addington lol 😆 . Luckily Lightning Blue came along just 2 years later to show him (Gammalite) How it's done properly 😁💰🏆👍

I think the horse had a bleed once Chief. So they were thinking of her health at the time. But a lot of horses have a bleed from a airway blood vessel , and its not often as serious as what people think. I used to drive a pacer that little sprays out a nostril time to time. The amount of air under pressure running in and out of a horse per second at the end of a race, is quite substantial and no surprise they can have a little vessel break now and then. Plenty of them do but don't show it outwardly, as trickles don't always make it up to the nostrils. Pride of Jenni picking up $300,000 tonight so well worth a quick gallop around lol 😆 would take pacers years to earn that much a lot of the time 😎 Alabama Lass was pretty poor in the Manikato ? . stopped badly . was hoping would go well for NZ too. certainly not a shadow on Imperatriz.

I do have to reply to that Hesi old mate, as have worked with nearly every Veterinary Specialist in Brisbane in my working days, and they are the most wonderful compassionate people you could ever wish to meet in your life. And their wonderful staff are amazing too . So I don't want any image of vets being cast like 'Tradies' or anything , coming from you 😉😁 lol Yes , I guess there is a huge problem with 'Levels' of education. and qualification. We had a Vets bridging course at UQ where overseas vets were trying to get a ticket to practice Vet in Australia. a total nightmare . some had only seen large animal in their days. Cows and goats and horses are valuable commodities in some countries. And Cats and dogs just run feral in the streets and they have no idea how to handle them , let alone treat them. Is REALLY Funny to see first hand. Our graduates are near best in the world in Oz and from Massey. I don't know what Nairn is lecturing exactly , or what qualification she has. But if it is a NZ one it is certainly better than what a Heap of other countries have. She is performing pretty intricate stuff, albeit on cadavars. also Taxidermy and shit like that. Do you need a special qualification for that ? she's not holding a scalpel over living horses is she ?

He's probably retired like most of us mate . And is quite a bright Punter too. Seems to recognize a good horse from a battler whether galloping or trotting, as has much Experience racing in both codes as an owner , and is a regular attendee. This leads to a huge 'edge' on the TAB for the TABman 🤣👍💰. Personally I love about 10 different sports , but only participated harness racing out of the 10 , so is a strong suit. And find it very easy to Punt on in NZ or Australia with this edge. What a great Sport it is Brodster !! Hope your Punting goes well through the Spring too, and you had a great Europe trip , and back home resting now.

Fair comment I spose. Professionals are supposed to perform to High standards in any area/field , being paid for it and all . so when amateur opinion appears, then the critics will arrive in force if they feel their output is incorrect.. You are strongly against a number of things that Nairn has done so have attacked hard here. (against Nairn ) A lot of forums Express their discontent with things . and we debate strongly without being too personal. (except for JJ lol ) So identities are hidden , and we can debate without personal insult or even scientific evidence . Brodie, Galah, Chief and I have debated a lot of topics and only agree on things half the time. It's just all opinion , and lots of the stuff is quite interesting to do with our great sport . some things are more important than others to some , like betting to Brodie, and Track conditions to Chief, and whip rules to some observers etc. I strongly love that horse welfare efforts are made by some. I spoke out about the awful treatment of Ben Yoles Tas operation, (which was eventually bought to some justice too) and love when horses can get re-homed. I'm appalled by anything administered to horses for race performance. ( I raced in the milkshake era but never applied one) you had a blue magic saga in NZ and all that sort of thing. and So Steven, am not dismissing anything to do with Animal welfare. Regarding the current whip debate, we were sanctioned in our races for whip use way back in the 90's , and rules were adopted to fix. and been no problem in harness since. Alas galloping still has on-going issues. Talk to Curious about it. As for comparing alive to dead horses. Well Nairn like a lot of people around, can see there is a difference between the 2 . they are a carcass once they're deceased. no 2 ways about it . you treat a carcass different to a live being. I've seen plenty . I worked in vet after harness and was caught up in the HEndra virus outbreak in Brisbane in the 90's . plenty of dead horses, there were dead people as well Steven. including a horse trainer a vet and a vet nurse. Plenty of dissection and plenty of opinions. a very frightening time . you've got no idea. Was close to being an apocalypse. we were locked down in Pathology. Some welfare things I've seen would make your teeth fall out mate. Bec isn't one of them . you are attacking 'small fry' there . she is someone pursuing her interests. and trying to help horses. Go After those BIG GAME Hunters that pay $30,000 each trip, to go to Africa just to 'shoot something' for their Trophy Room. Absolute disgrace that is allowed to happen EVERY WEEK. I hate those mongrels. (mostly Americans) There's something to be angry over, rather than a lady doing a horse dissection on a retired horse.

It's such a hard arguement . Is great some people want to step up and have a look at re-homing tried or tired horses that owners want to finish with. Like I said previously I saw many winning retired thoroughbreds in the show circuit show-jumping around Aus. was excellent to see. the horses were teenaged , but enjoying themselves it seemed and the pampered and looked after well. we sent Standardbreds to youngster Gymkhana's where they were quite popular doing the events as were bigger than ponies and better manners too , for the kids riding. (most of the time lol) Foundations and Charities of any Type do well if they can get a TOP Rich Benefactor, but still need social media Exposure to remain potent and functioning , or will just fade to charity and volunteer workers as you indicated Chief. This re-homing lot Standardbred to stirrup would be Very Small in the great scheme of things, so would be very hard to keep operating at ANY Level. as indicated in this thread. But GOOD on Some-One for trying . that's all you can do in life. Have a Go . Like Nairn is with things she enjoys. As for getting upset about dissection, well that's her business. Someone was paying Nairn so she performed a service that would be mega -expensive to pay a professional to do, to form an opinion. and if you want to believe her or not is irrelevant. (her assessment of dead or alive horses) she is intitled to an opinion. Seems she used a Canadian Vet as consultant and that received back lash as well ? nothing wrong with getting a vets opinions if possible ? sounds a good strategy rather than going totally alone. Definitive Science is Physics and Chemistry.and that sort of thing. What you want and Hesi and Steven B. but racing, horses, re-homing ,is emotional stuff. as you all mention comes into it , but the lady is just pursuing things she feels strongly about . if she makes a few bucks for her opinion = So what ? might as well , as with a lot of pursuits such as racing a horse, personal costs add up at times, so is good to get something back. And why does her opinion hurt anyone anyway ? surely some sort of feedback on ARCANO and that is better than none ? people comment on PLENTY of folk (including top level Governments) doing things poorly in their opinion. And they DO GET PERSONAL about it too. which isn't nice. Not to mention the endless Criticism of the PROFESSIONALS that make the decisions for HRNZ and NZTR. nobody at those mobs seems capable of making the right operating procedures At All, going by the amateur opinion you see on social media Everyday. also with personal attacks and name calling quite often. Hell , you guys turn on yourselves posting half the time lol 😆 ( I think they're (HRNZ) doing a fine Job in the current social environment IMO ) The Galah on the money. If you shut down everyone's opinion because they're not a bloody 'Scientist' , the world wouldn't even have forums Chief. let alone persons trying to re-home or train horses. there is No great conspiracies here. it's just horses. No UFO's . just opinion.

Gaita just coming up 70 very soon Mr Galah. Their Italian family been in the game forever it seems. were based in Victoria for a lot of years , but with all the DQ's shifted to SA where could get re-licenced easier. Rita Burnett (the sister) is an excellent horsewoman in Victoria and somehow avoids all the controversy. Gaita's son Tony Pullicino has done 'several terms' on the sidelines as well . Tony even used to drug himself sometimes 😁, as well as do the milkshakes and a was swabbed with marijuana in his system 2 or 3 times at the races. Had to rehab and was on the sidelines near a decade at one point. They are a 'Do it Our own Way' sort of family. 😅

Great win by Fannin with his ride . He did so Very well to avoid Nedwin when he crashed just after taking the lead in the last lap. Great evasive action by all the jockeys really. 👍 one of the hardest jobs in any sport ( being a jumps jockey) think that was Nedwin coming past the post riderless with the field soon after too. so looked ok. and just stopped on his own looking over the rail as the field pulled up. Probably near gunna Win The Race too if he hadn't done that ??. So I think in the Big race, JESKO the winner, would of been under a huge ride if having to battle out the finish with Nedwin head to head for the glory . so better to think he had an easier time the way it played out. Well done Jesko and Fannin and connections . 🏆

Here'sthe fast Menangle on the grass from a while back. A NZ bred of course , by Garrison Hanover, and even though he carrying the number ONE Saddlecloth, Ian Henry had started off 20m after winning twice in the 4 days prior. and being re-handicapped accordingly. So Ian Henry makes it 3 wins in five days as he powers to victory. Very little grass on Aus tracks as the summers long and hot in NSW/QLD

Well when you have a Slug-fest like that, No one on the planet could set a market for slow horses like these? with No barrier advantage , and in Overly inflated size fields that give most runners NO CHANCE at all. would be like putting a market on the NZ sheep heading in to the shearing shed 😉. impossible. Just a disgrace for harness racing that 56 horses have to go home with a ZERO next to their name, at the end of the days racing. that's like a whole meeting of horses ? FIFTY SIX with ZEROES, and with another 60 horses finishing between 5th and 9th as well , that's near 120 horses getting NOTHING. NOTHing at all . over 120 horses with Punters dollars on with ZERO return. 120+ horses in one meeting ZERO for owners. after paying the larger training FEES they have to these days. That's Far Far to many losers on one day to sustain the industry. Better to have 2 days of 8 horse fields where EVERYONE gets a chance to get something. and NO One at all gets a Zero next to their name. And gets a race start in the first place . like Sensibly, they do in Aus each week in every state that caters for their slow class horses so much better than this huge field crap from a by-gone era . No wonder people are giving up in NZ racing horses. you worried they can't set a market ?? hahahaha🤣 These stupid meetings ( that are so bad you can't price them as you say) just Stack up the Losers. p.s. Only one good horse is in on the day (group 1 winner Oscar B 🏆 ) and there's 2 Junior driver races. Carter is excellent driver so should win both of those no matter what he's on lol 👍💰 so there's 3 wins for ya 🤣😂 what's the Value runners then ? or are you too scared to name any ? Brodster won't be diving in mate. He says he's a winner , so wouldn't be if betting on that racecard. Fools and their money .

Up and over mate !! the bloke is half kangaroo I think. 🤣 And I thought it was fantastic LEADERBOARD winning the Aus Grand National for the Walker stable sailing over the fences. kiwi's jumping around all over the place going crazy. 😉 You blokes are setting the 'Bar even Higher' now 😂😂 well 2m 36cm to be exact for HAMISH KERR The Lady Pole Vaulters are about to go live right now. 3 more kiwi ladies . and the BAR is SET real HIGH for that indeed lol 😎😧 Well done Hamish Kerr . new NZ World Champion to be like Mark Purdon 💰🏆