Brodie

Ranga, everyones freedom has been badly compromised over the last year or so, we all know that! CONTROL, of everything is what this lot wants! Well I have news For them and it is not good! The most incompetent government that NZ has ever had is going to fall flat on its face, however unfortunately a-lot of its sheep are going to be the ones far worse off over the next few years. Ardern wouldve been gone last time if it was not for the extremely contagious deadly disease that very few catchs and people do not even know they have it! How many from MIQ know they have it coming in from overseas? None!! and how many in hospitals from it? NONE!! We need to not be complacent and stay very scared!

Whiplash, yes tote pools! We never get told what the fixed odds wagering is! Transparency is the last thing this lot does. Lol yes they certainly have been very good for business. They think they are hindering us but reality is they have made some people plenty!

Gammalite, very good point in regards to Sheryll Wigg! If she is deriving income as a trainer then you would have to question the amateur driver status? She is the best amateur by far in the country by her stats! Some will say we are being negative and Sheryll is great for the industry and certainly need her! However now she has taken over Tim’s horses she couldnt be classed as an amateur

Yeah stakes and turnover is increasing!!!! Cambridge highest assessed horses racing for $8k!!!! Turnover on win and place only $3500k each! Pathetic and harness can not continue to be paying the paltry $8k with such small turnover!

FFS Basil. Stakes have gone nowhere over the past 30 years. $8k stake races is less than what they had races for 30 years ago. Owners are significantly out of pocket now compared to 30 years ago! What you think of Brodie’s financial nouse I don’t care, however I would back it over yours any day!!

Galah, bollacks that $8000 converts to 14k over the last 30 years!! The CPI is a load of BS always has beEn. What you are saying is that over the past 30 years cost of living has gone up approx 80%?????? I say that is so wrong!!! In 1991 the national average house was just over $100,000 nowadays it is $800,000 effectively an 800% increase. You can not tell me that food hasnt doubled over the past 30 years!!!! The horse training bill has gone up well over 80% over the last 30 years!!!!! Anyone that believes that the stakes being raced for nowadays compared to costs 30 years ago, are delusional if they think there is not much difference. Stakes being raced for in NZ are rubbish compared to 30 years ago, if not why are so many horses sold overseas and we have trouble getting new owners??? We have trouble filling fields in the middle classes of horses, why is this? Because owners costs have escalated and stakes have remained stagnant.

congratulations Ranga, you are the most pedantic person I have ever dealt with. I unfortunately havent retained racebooks going back 30 to 40 years from Addington Ranga!!! I still maintain that stakes of $8k were run at Addington going back 30 plus years ago. Stakes havent increased much at all in general. They were racing for $75k NZ Trotting cup 50 years ago! You are delusional if you think that stakes of $8k are worth racing for compared to what they used to race for and compared to costs back then! Ranga, as I say I havent got any racebooks but clearly you have so I await you backing up the fact that you reckon they did not race for $8k,

Ranga back your claims up with evidence that they werent racing for $8k at Addington!!! I say there were any races 30 years ago for in excess of $8k!!!!!!! We have debated this before Ranga and races being run over 30 years ago were in excess of what horses race for today!!!!!! Show us a program or racebook from Addington that shows that they werent in fact racing for $8k

They were also racing for far more than $5k werent they Ranga Convert $5k in 1991 to what it should be in 2021 Ranga to see how stake money has declined

Longer the races the better I say. 1700metres will obviously give a longer run into the first bend which is good. Mile racing just to get quick mile rates and black print is so yesterday, as most horses win in quick times compared to years ago. Drivers need to speak up, there couldnt be any that enjoy mile racing could there?

Jj, there is absolutely nothing wrong with backing yourself! The country would not be in the mess it is if people would grow a backbone and stop believing and following Ardern. Chief isnt arrogant, he just expresses his opinion which is his perogative. What I have learnt in the last year or so is that there are too many people easily led in NZ. Speaking your mind is liberating rather than being easily led.

Yes it was a different Board, but it was a board that lost something like $100 million in reserves? They are still very non transparent! No details on anything

Saint Basil, what solutions are you talking about? 1390metre races?

Davis, had one bonus bet in NZ years ago lol. You are right, winning punters dont seem to get them and their accounts are marked. Turnover would increase substantially if they allowed punters bets to be taken! They put up the odds and then say, these odds are only for punters we want to take money from. By these huge restrictions on punters they are costing themselves big by reducing revenue. I am still waiting on seeing the betting breakdown from Methven 2 weeks ago. I know the win and place tote pools are a fraction of what they jsed to be so where is this increased turnover coming from? I know no one who is new to punting on harness racing, however I know plenty that used to punt that now just can not be bothered!!!! The TAB is relying on overseas racing where it costs them bugerall and also Sports betting. They do not give a Rat’s about local racing as it is a liability to them with the costs involved.

Gammalite, there are some good things still in harness racing. The reality is that that harness has gone backwards significantly unfortunately in recent years! This damage that has been caused by several things need to be addressed so that harness racing in NZ has got a future. Auckland has trouble getting full fields and struggling big time in encouraging new owners trainers and juniors! Watched something on Trackside that had Ray Green saying how bad it was in Auckland and how it was impossible for young people to be able to afford land to train. We have had the TAB hierarchy continue to make utterly stupid financial decisions to the point where they were basically broke and needed tax payer bailout. They are still hooked into the lemon of the betting platform that they purchased and the noose around their neck must be very uncomfortable. Of course I have a bitter opinion of the way the TAB treats punters differently, and if you were treated differently then I would presume you would not be happy about it as well. They state that turnover on harness is increasing on harness racing but I say BS! Punters are having their bets severely restricted, the tote win and place pools are a fraction of what they used to be and the on course patrons are negilable. TAb agencies are few and far between and there are very few punters at the Pub Tabs if you have a close look. So where is this increased turnover coming from?????? Then clubs program races that are not worth running if they are looking for increased turnover. Smaller fields so smaller divs so less wagering and this is for what???? Horses racing for stakes less than they were 30 years ago and owners very hard to find I have heard, and why would you? We have had one stable dominate the big stake races for years leaving peanuts for everyone else. NZ’s best driver has left NZ indefinitely and probably wont return for a long time. Then we have the continued media castigation of harness racing by Van Beynon and co every week! We now have Swarbrick and Tubby wanting Greyhound racing banned so that the Greyhound breed will die out in NZ. We have the clowns bringing in stupid whip rules pointing out that harness shouldnt be having drivers carrying whips, so fodder for the same tossers! Sad but true and telling it the way it is Gamma. I am up for anyone to shoot the messenger down, but most know that Brodie is a totally correct messenger!!

Tubby is a flattering name for Robertson. What he is doing to NZ is an absolute shocker but people think he is KIND! The sooner the sheep wake up to these incompetents the better as they are going to be making your lives so much worse than they are currently. Ardern and Tubby are so out of depth with everything it is ridiculous and yet they got voted back in??? The biggest underachievers we have ever had in Parliament.

Jj, the Dogs are the target of the Greenies and do gooders as you must know! With Swarbrick and Tubby on the warpath they can wile Greyhound racing off our calendar before National overturn it. They are such a total bunch of dropkicks but 50% of the population support the dropkicks!

Prince Teka

Yep. There is no way you can make money racing horses here, that is why owners need to sell overseas. When it costs $2500k per month training min, and you are collecting under $4k for winning a race, clearly you are on a hiding to nothing. I love the harness racing industry, however things are unfortunately looking pretty dire. As the current owners who have been lifetime enthusiasts move on to greener pastures, there is no way at the moment that it is going to have nee owners coming thru. The racing family generation thing with harness racing is not happening like it used to. You only have to look at the Juniors race at Methven today! Half the field is male and half is female. There are not enough males coming thru the Junior ranks and many leave after they are out of the Junior ranks as there is no future in it for them. Have a look at the North Island Juniors, they are barely surviving and only because of South Island Juniors who have moved up there. Harness racing is a great sport but is seriously in trouble. TAB is certainly not helping either

Lol, great to hear! Was it an enjoyable experience for you Ranga?

What were horses running for in 1990 at Addington in an average race? Costs now related to what you can win is out of sync big time!

Crowd appeal? Ranga, they dont care about crowds anymore! No one goes oncourse anymore unless you are an owner or work with the horses! Punters arent bothering to go oncourse nowadays as it is not offering anything! Punters that used to go have been driven away for several reasons and unless they change things dramatically the industry is dead! Sad but very true.

Sack the dickhead who programmed those races yesterday. The mile race, the horses drawn the outside of both lines scratched. JJ said the fields were full for the 1390m races, off course they had starters as owners need horses racing to try and recoup the massive training costs nowadays! Racing for $8k nowadays is disastrous. They were racing for this amount 30 years ago!!!

Jj, it is shite and you cannot defend this crap programming! Maybe Auckland can race the correct way around just for a bit of variety?? You only had to look at Trackside yesterday to see that there was next to no one oncourse yesterday at Rangiora. You would have to have your head in the sand if you think that harness is going ahead. Poor stakes, poor oncourse attendance and poor TAB tote pools and poor Bookies that do not want to take your bets!!!!!! They can post about increased turnover on harness but most people know it is just BS! There is buggerall new punters on harness and existing punters nkt wagering anywhere near what they used to.

Addington! It doesnt matter where you program the starts from, have them on bends, lets just try everything it seems! Bad starting points make things interesting and gives variety some think?