Flagship uberalles

It certainly can't be doing very well or falling well short of what they expect with the drastic measures they are proposing, I mean our premier thoroughbred racedays stakes don't even come close to a Wyong or Hawkesbury Tuesday meeting and that's not to mention the very poor money on offer for a Friday night harness meeting. Something has gone terribly wrong with the home grown product and it stands out a mile.

West Star Sam @ 9.8 I backed tuherbstoo last week @$8.5 and see he's opened up at $2.2 today, not for me today thanks!! Good luck to all having a bet at the punters graveyard today!

I'm pretty sure Sports betting has leapfrogged race betting, a few years ago I remember reading that it was growing at a staggering rate of 30% year and one commentator suggesting the tab would be happy just to commingle with Aussie racing and just have Sports betting.

Basil, thats why I hark back to the late 70s to early 80s, I went to live in the u.k from early 90s to 2012 so coming back to nz it was boom!! A complete change from what I remembered, I sort of got immersed in the pommie racing With trips to Vincennes in France to get a trotting fix.....it was sort of the same as coming back to the east coast bays in Auckland where I grew up and the places that were orchards 20mins away were now housing estates or shopping centres with Chinese writing all over them....My point is the dumbing down of harness racing here stood out like dogs balls!!

I don't know about that, they are becoming to in bred now, it's taking the fun out of racing, same as the tracks being made so fast now, it's making it very boring, give me the old grinding breeds any day and tracks like Greymouth, claudlands and thank beegezus for forbury Park!!!

Zzzzzz can't even bring myself to watch a replay!!! This was 1983 equivalent sad state of Play now!

New punters now seem to just like Sports betting on u.s Sports! The problem is all the nzrbs fault really, the introduction of tracside with Wall to Wall racing (90% from Australia)no one can arsed going to the track anymore...even though our population has doubled since the 1980s patronage has shrunk!

I didn't watch the race last night, just looked at the results, what happened to dream about me were there any excuses or is it just not the horse it was before? and will it be on a plane soon to join it's other former stable mates?

You are quite right, unfortunately!!......those small harness meetings in the summer on the west coast have capacity fields and big crowds, even the likes of motukarara get big fields and a good attendance in summer. I guess this is now the reality of trying to salvage the wreck that is racing in this country, problem is you get sick very quickly of the same old shit running around Alex Park and Addington every week, those smaller clubs are a great novelty and I much prefer to spend more gambling wise at those venues.

How sad it would be to lose those small tracks on the west coast for Gallops/harness, it must add to the economy there, as a lot of people make the trek to watch on the coast. That is the problem also with getting an outsider in to assess the sustainability of racing in NZ, they have no attachment to racing tradition over here, these small meetings I have always thought are what made nz racing/harness racing unique, how boring will it be just having everything centralised to the main tracks!

I like your Tijuana taxi Mardy, you should have a few winners tonight, good luck?

Peter baken is not as colourful as the Brodster!!

You love that music Brodie, when you get dressed up in your Gary Glitter outfit to avoid attracting attention from the bookies I bet your foot is tapping to the sounds!?

Maybe so.......Sweden has 35 harness racing tracks and only 3 thoroughbred tracks!!

I would really hate to see any of the West coast tracks go or hawera look forward to that over Easter, I'm sure if the gallops call it quits at some these tracks used for both codes, I'm sure the harness will to.

Haha too true?

I'm guessing it will be, no different to the amateurs I suppose!

Very sad

Great, I enjoy those Montes

All stars just a transit stable for u.s, they must be making more money negotiating deals to America for the owners than racing the horses here!

He's a good grinder and talent is thin on the ground here, probably will pick up a few cheques.

Bloody hell Is that right Brodie...I remember they brought him back as an 8 or 9yr old for a couple of runs but can't remember if he wasn't the same or just broke down again.

Excitement machine really honkin, pity it couldn't stay sound

Didn't realise it was his first winner.

Very lucky 1984 Derby winner!