TAB For Ever

Well done to NZTR for investing in this type of education and upskilling to develop a career -path for participants. A major part of the main Action points in their Strategic/ Business plan. Of course another MAIN focus is investing in Tracks and the education of people involved in improving this. Money sure helps but BSharrock explained these types of investments and great he NOT talking BS !

Yep ,most likely ...I lived further north for a while so not exactly sure when the horses left there cos there were still Andertons and Kennedys. But they left in droves !

I'm sure Messara got some things wrong...the last person who was perfect ,well?.....his report got thru to those in charge of NZ racing including Winnie who welcomed MR that action was necessary ,afterall NZ racing was damn near bankrupt. NZ Racing had known and talked about 'too many tracks' for over 50 years and most had agreed that many should be closed ....Close some but not ours ! Waikouaiti track closed but races at Wingatui , I could never work out after 20 years of attending why it was open. A little rain made it a skating rink so it was far from safe .It was a very small town with no horse population .It was close to the big horse centre Wingatui and Oamaru and not far from Central Otago which had a swollen population over Summer. Waiikouaiti held a prime race day..New Years Day ,often had small fields and betting ! Plus I knew a few families living there among the tiny population and they had no interest in the local race meeting. I was very surprised that an area like GORE with a horse population , was at one time a big horse population ....it got the chop. They didn't cry ,they created...rolled their sleeves up and called to action. Their Harness Club had 3 x very successful meetings and are now back up and cooking with gas. Well done Gore Harness. Having lived a lot in South ,I've witnessed first hand how the Racing lost its connection with and relevance to the local community and I think many of the bitter posters on here have experienced the same. They woke up one day and racing was on way out and thought 'what the hell just happened ?'. Quick to blame the suits and powers that be , but maybe should look local and maybe in the mirror !

You South Island folk seem so bitter about racing these days. Yet back in the day South Island not only held its own but often stood out. What went wrong ?

Aardiebytheseaside was originally a $1500 purchase as a yearling.Out of a family of breeders Diane and Ray Kennedy[RIP] who bred all the 'Maguire' harness horses and trained a few thoroughbreds as well.

He certainly purchased a number of 'low cost' horses. Didn't chase the 'blue bloods'.

I always liked Washdyke myself Doomed. Do you live near Timaru as you often talk of it glowingly. Especially as it bats for both sides having all-weather Harness as well . Maybe it needs it's own thread as to why it dropped so much in it's rating.....it used to have 7 or 8 meetings a year ! 7's Rugby final just started...of course South Canterbury held the Ranfurly Shield briefly at one time...another Timaru pearl which has drifted down the scale .

You probably right Wingman...May be the Chief can change my name to Wingnut ! I bow to your superior credentials as a 'punter' , I but of the small mug variety ! But I learned many years ago that the Te Rapa track has it's own 'make up' and it is often referred to as a 'horses for courses' track. And many punters I know would study a track ,certainly watch the first race of the day and maybe be cautious before unloading on a 2 year old race there .

And you will never let us forget that Chief ! Certainly Orchestral , Master Fay ,Desert Lightning , Velocious and myself will always remember it as a fantastic day at the races !

Messara said 'not one decent track' , I refer to a comment/query above from Wingman about Saturday's Two year old race.He asked was it another 'dodgy' track.........I think you started this paranoia Chief. A group of us looked at Auckland facilities these past couple of days. You will be pleased to know Chief ,Alex Park looking good but more importantly Ellerslie track looked amazing and the grass surface looked superb. By spring it will perform brilliantly .2024-25 season gonna be a cracker !

Blame game ?

All thru the year the track conditions in NZ vary from place to place from week to week ! Especially at certain times of year when polar blast heads north and scotch mist arrives. A lot of tracks never had irrigation which added to the puzzle. Maybe a good reason to cut down on tracks ? Keep the picnic tracks who do so well in their traditional spots on calendar. And spend more on track preparation and maintenance...yes they doing that now , its the plan and money being spent. If you want real consistency , bet more on the Synthetics maybe....similar all year round ????? But calling every track dodgy is maybe heading toward paranoia ! And blameing NZTR for every little hiccup in racing is also stretching it a bit.....the clubs maybe not taking their responsibilities of tracks serious enough ,both the condition of them or the reporting of them.There is more information required and given out nowdays ....is it being done accurately ? Whatever ,NZTR have added another layer to track management , no doubt at great cost ,money which could have been spent elsewhere ? A lot of questions re tracks ,I'm sure the regulars will have a bit to say. Must have a few bets on Synthetic today .

Common sense is really not that common !😊

What can you tell us about 2024 winning trainer of Fridays Group 1......Tate Hopkins ?

I knew someone would enjoy that....it's an oldie but a goodie !

Same thing..investing in training of people to work on,maintain and check on tracks seems good thing to do. It just a shame that those who know best how to maintain surfaces in NZ climate and soil conditions are working on golf courses , sports grounds ,parks and reserves,farming , agriculture or banging away on the internet like us ! And really any National body who is relying on Clubs to keep the standards high needs to get involved more especially with the basics ...a bit of money should help to that end ! Messaras report wasn't flowery and it didn't cost much. He said there wasn't ONE decent track surface in NZ. Money began to be spent but unfortunately it hasn't been spent well .

I'm only telling you what I know...... Most of above was sourced from actual figures...and the %'s are the increase over the 6 years....the odd comparison was 10 years. The number of owners is factual and actual from HRNZ records. The margins % are the CHANGES ,not the actual. So in 6 years the South margin has risen and North has decreased. When I last looked about 2018 the TAB margin was about 12.4% over all codes. I mentioned Entains current plans...ie increasing meetings in North etc cos it hard understand ...but the obvious drop in North Island action over last 6 -10 years has been significant but the population continues to grow and the sheer numbers make it an obvious target area to increase business. Just my opinion....they dont build new Supermarkets in Waikickammookau do they?

Get with the program Chief. The document is merely the latest updated Marketing Plan....all the plans are live documents being updated regularly. Reading the correct documents you would have noted that the 3 x key strategies were.. 1.Tracks and Infrastructure 2. Wagering and Participation 3.Marketing As BSharrock emphasised Tracks are at the top of the list ......top priority. The document to read is the Statement of Intent and Business Plan 2024-2026. After governance and regulatory stuff it gets into the 5 x Strategic Areas of Action 1.Industry training and enhancing the welfare of people and horses 2.Enhancing track surface performance for better racing outcomes 3.Accountability for performance among clubs .....{ making Clubs take some ownership ,in preparation of decent racing surface at all times } And the latest Annual report dedicates a page to each of the 3 x key Strategies headed by Track and Infrastructure ,so it been out there a while ! Bloody brilliant ....the money is there ,the will is there and in a year or two all your dreams will be realised...how do you intend getting amongst it ? Only too pleased to point you in right direction , it gonna be good. Now preparing for a big night of fantastic Group Harness racing !

A few facts from a Survey done among Stakeholders in Harness ,with a Couple of presentations made at different venues in North Island. It was mainly from a North Island perspective......most comparatives done with 2016-2022 [ 6 years ] a few covered 10 years, so Covid a big influence. Held April 2023. 2016 Horse Numbers..South 6815 ,North 2524 2022 Numbers ..South 5351 [-22%] North 1535 [-39%] -42% drop of breeders in North over 10 years ONLY -3% drop in owners in North , Auckland down ,Waikato up ! -15% drop in Licence Holders in North. -25% mares served. -30% North ,-23% South Current race horses ..March 2023 510 North , 1500 South 161 two and 3 yr olds total in North ,335 in South.....in total may not be Current Races held.... -28% in North , similar number in South [no decrease] turnover drop -42% North , -3% South 6 years Gross Betting revenue....-47% North , + 6% South 6 years Gross Betting margin ...... -8% North , + 10% South....Brodie heavily resticted ! Other Info.....450 People answered survey....93% Euro , 72% Male ,68% over 60 years old with 20 years in Harness. Big issues seen as ...Stakes , Handicapping system ,Increased Costs. From this you can kinda see why much of the current focus over next 12 months from Entain will be in the North as drop off has been significant. But where will the horses come from ? You welcome !!!!

Wow...did you catch me out Chief ,find a little typo or something. I got diverted by harness question , more than you trying to trip me up ! Actually Murray asked me a direct question earlier and as he clearly off beat I tried to answer that....and as well as going by BSharrocks 12 minute interview on weigh in I overlayed my experience from former roles in sports organisations . Even some of your more regular posters don't seem to understand that the CEO doesn't rule the roost and make all the decisions. He usually working thru a plan that is made up from the Boards strategic plan. But I guess we have to blame someone......we have hated and criticised all the Pommis ,Aussies and Non-racing folk who have got head roles in our RNZTR/TAB organisation. Then along comes Sharrock...a good Kiwi sportsman ,from strong racing blood ,with skin in the game......quite new in the role but now it's him in the firing line. I thought he spoke very well , knows whats going on , what needs fixing and has a bit of money so is doing the best he can to improve things. Apart from the odd cancellation ,I been enjoying racing since COVID,. But I think it a mistake to be giving a lifeline to Avondale....IMO should be sold ,it a shit hole , let courts decide who gets the $$$ ,if racing gets a big chunk build the new racing greenfields near Hamilton ! But I'm not gonna bang on about Avondale ,I had a few good wins there ! In the meanwhile I still on my soup ...read your Document later....geez this soup is endless ,I now drinking it in the Shower ,it will never end !

Yes it does seem obvious.....one of the most serious issues facing Harness is lack of horses being bred and racing in NZ. If you look at recent years the foal numbers are well down...everything is so expensive, so those breeding to race themselves should be encouraged to know they racing for decent money .If they breeding to sell they hope they will get some decent prices by owners wanting to chase the big stakes. So if our foal numbers could double then that would mean double the horses racing. With 2 yr old racing there is basically one class to race in....2 yr old, so the slugs have to race the hot shots. Trainers can earn a living from training fees if they lucky but are looking to on-sell to survive. Aussies still love buying our horses and they tend to dominate the yearling sales at present. Many go abroad but some big owners like to race in NZ eg Copy That, Self Assured , Merlin and recent 2 yr old winners at Auckland all Aussie owned. Another feature of harness sales is the 'quality' yearlings who sell for top prices are more likely to earn well when you compare it with Thoroughbreds ! Always the odd exception. But if you suggesting the big money races decease for 2 year olds...you dreaming ,not gonna happen.For starters many of the races are Sales series races or other sweepstake type races where fees are paid from foaling or as yearlings ! So some running around tomorrow night will be running around to pick up $3 or $4 k just for running.

You showing your age ! Noodlum deadheated at Waimate in one of his early races as a 2 year old. Then a few starts later he was the proverbial racecourse certainty at Forbury Park and it was stated he'd have to fall over to lose. That's exactly what he did. In the straight some paper blew across the track ,he veered out and crashed to ground when in lead.

But never assume things Chief.......I am currently in Harness mode [ some great racing happening ,and about to get better ] with an eye on Jumps racing as well.......you can't state that I seem to agree with things when you have no knowledge but want to stretch out a discussion.ie you want to bang on about the same old stuff. Currently I having Soup and toast but after that I'll try and work out your queries about some Summer Plan. Where I am we heading into winter. Stuffed tracks ,compromised tracks ,unsafe tracks , closed tracks ,synthetic tracks ....you all about tracks ,I get it. Watching BSharrock on TV and the few times I've heard him he gives Tracks the first mention, his top of mind. Number One ahead of Stakes even. In 12 mins he talked of every NZ track getting at least renovations carried out.He said they gotta improve .Most been neglected for decades[ I said that], not one decent track surface in NZ[ Messara said that] .BSharrock said it his nimber one challenge hence invest ,invest ,invest ! He investing heavily in tracks with new machinery but in particular people. More people and upskilling them too. Plus a new level of management [ costly too I guess] so the audits of them will be more often and more realistic.......this is a job for you I feel ,I'm sure he has no one as capable as you to oversee the tracks. He all over tracks Chief.....you will have to revert to banging on about something else. I'll check the significance of your Document later. My soup is going cold.

I'll try to be direct... Firstly this thread was about the appearance of Bruce Sharrock on Weigh In TV show recently. You seem confused ,as your question is about take-out $ on betting products offered. He is the CEO of NZTR the leadership body of NZ Thoroughbred racing that supplies TR to NZ and he tries to implement ,carry out and achieve the aims of the Business Plan which comes out of the strategic Plan of the Board who he directly reports to . He oversees the racing on which the wagering happens but the take-out $ and betting products would seem to be further up the chain . You seem confused....about as direct as it gets !

I'd say it is the longest standing 2yr old major/group race in NZ but even though still a Group 3 [I think] it has lost its former standing and often has a small field.One year about 1990 it not held thru lack of noms. It was the longest 2 yr old in distance [2400m] but over 20 years ago cut back to 1600m ,then in recent few years was 1700m. Many 'great' horses have won it ..Lordship ,Holy Hal ,possibly Terror To Love. I particularly remember Noodlum winning it easily on what was common back then, a wet grass track in June. Time was well over 3min 20 secs and often over 3min 30sec. Of course Ashburton trots in 1980's moved racing on to hard All weather surface . The breed ,athleticism etc of the horse has changed a lot over the years and with the high costs involved horses are expected to race and earn much earlier. With horses costing between $20k and $40k per year to care for/break in/ train etc owners cant be waiting around and breeders cant stock them on the shelves for people to come and inspect as late 3 or 4 year olds.