Wingman

What tracks are left in the CD that can be trusted to do the job they were once made to do?

The rating system pushes all above average horses up the grades too quickly. I had a look at the last 5 Oaks winners and prior to winning all bar one fell in the 70 somethings. The exception was Amarelinha who was R91 due to a ridiculous 17 points penalty for winning the Eight Carat but the most notable, beyond ridiculous was Pennyweka who came into the Oaks rated 70 having received 5 points for 3rd in the Desert Gold, nothing for 3rd in the Lowland, then showing a total disregard for the horses future once out of age group racing the handicapper penalises Pennyweka, with 28 points!

I have just finished watching a recording of tonight's Guerin report. To get straight to the crux of the matter regarding thoroughbreds, Minister Peter's is not impressed with the slow progress of 'rationalization' which he believes is a continuing drag on the industry and stopping its ability to financially develop. He talked about events from the past, one that obviously annoyed him to a large degree, where he was invited to Kumara. Bookings made, entourage confirmed, travel booked and made, then on the day the meeting is cancelled due to pigs digging/rooting the turf. Sound familiar to Tauherenikau's disaster yesterday? (All be it a lesser meeting but still an expensive exercise for most who didn't get to compete) His take is basically bigger is better, yes, he said, we want (singular) representation in the provinces but so what, about small tracks that race once or twice a year, yet continually let the industry down. I know there is a catch twenty two here in that if the industry does not fund track development then how can country tracks afford to maintain their tracks to the level of city tracks. Then there is the shameful state of the Trentham track which suggests there is a hidden agenda which is, do not fund the tracks NZTR has no interest in being around come 2030.

In days gone by it was a no brainer to go to Oaks day but not so now. Why go to the tip that is the public area even if it was free entry on Saturday. You could have paid $30 and had access to the 1st floor members stand.

A crying shame and an ugly look. Next season may well be its last.

The fault ultimately lies with Entain. They are a European bookmaking giant who thinks all punters are mugs and should be treated accordingly. This is why the viewer now gets waffle over substance. A few examples from todays coverage from Trentham, part of me was still in mourning at how the champagne turf is now yesterdays dregs. Example 1; Race 2 roughie wins but really difficult to line up 2nd and 3rd, a nose in it and the fav eventually got the nod for 2nd. A lot of people would have been sweating on that result, particularly from a quinella perspective but not one word from the studio as to the official result Example 2; Race 7 and 8. This one is 101 how to shoot yourself in the foot. After R7 they decided to put the result up in graphics. First 4 not struck and 26K carried forward. No mention of guaranteed pool so I look on the TAB website and it shows a pool of 32K with the word 'guaranteed' next to it. A minute or so before the start of the Oaks I had another look and the pool was now approx 132K, so I am guessing a 100k guarantee but incredibly on channel 62 no hype about it. Example 3; Race 9. Platinum Attack was continually backed over two days into favouritism, a lot of chat about that however a late surge of support brought Glamour Tycoon into a similar price. The cameras meantime showed the horses walking around the birdcage and the presenters starting with number 1 and numerically working their way down the field gave us their waffle on each horse in picture. Platinum Attack was number 12 and the viewer was not shown the horse in the birdcage as the presenters ran out of time. In summary re example 1 and 2, how hard is it to tell the viewer the judges call, and how difficult is it to advise the viewer of a carry over and a guaranteed pool? With birdcage commentary and preliminaries the obvious thing to do is ensure the favoured runners are always shown first however that is exactly what a bookmaking company does not want to do as it gives the experienced punter a potential advantage. That is why with horse racing the fairest betting medium is the tote when bookies are nowhere to be seen. Stranger things can happen. Maybe one day the likes of HK, NZ and Victoria will be one happy tote family. In the meantime whilst chasing a younger base, Entain are losing their older established customers turnover at an alarming rate.

The Oaks meeting has finished yet they are still advertising to get your bets on for Oaks day...Doh

You have to take their times with a large gulp of disbelief. R4 Tossuforit R65 1200m wins its 2nd race in 21 starts in a time of 1.07.83

CORRECT!

Agreed Those days are gone. The sad part is with wall to wall racing one can feel the love of the horse diminishing. Even on champions day they were talking about a horses chance but not showing any of its preliminary. Just another name, no more, no less. I also think Entain/NZ TAB are missing a lot of betting turnover by their minimalist screen detail. They are wanting us to bet on very race but once that race is run they don't give a rat's arse about it, onto the 2nd at Kalgoorlie. In the meantime people like myself who used to have a serious annual turnover are oblivious to the fact that the next race has a guaranteed pool of X. By the time I am aware it is too late and that develops irritation which in turn leads to apathy.

Most 50 to 60yo punters feel your pain popeye however we are not the demographic they are interested in. Many people see racing as a sunset industry, yet there is too much investment worldwide for it to fade fast. Where it all ends up though' heaven only knows but short term if one can find areas that keep you interested than that is where to focus and stuff the rest.

Good to see as the reality is female jockeys are far more dominant in the ranks today. Ten years ago Danielle Johnson was 2nd in the premiership and the only female in the top 8. She went on to win it some years later. At the moment Craig Grylls is leading the premiership from Lisa Sutherland and Sam Spratt, then Hashizume followed by Comignaghi. We are not getting like for like replacing our top end riders, such as Innes, Coleman, Bosson etc and to compound the issue if we do they quickly, like Rory Hutching, move offshore. Lance O'Sullivan said as much this week in the Guerin report that if he was plying his trade as a jockey in todays world it would not be in NZ.

An Excellent watch, thank you for posting. Obviously was off colour, showing his age (then 81) and passed inside four years of this interview however there are some superb pieces of information contained amongst his constant cough. As an owner/punter I am not qualified to comment on his thoughts re feeding but to those who are, do many trainers today feed as he insists? (mixing grains) as opposed to pellets

Ten years ago a low key saturday meeting like yesterdays Wanganui meeting would have had stakes for lower grades excluding maidens at 20K so R65 + cannot complain at being able today to race in 40K fields. The lower grade open handicappers Rating 80+ are being short changed however as ten years ago they were typically racing for 40K and today only 50K. To pay your way for the season the 80+ handicapper needs to win twice and then becomes uncompetitive in the process as its rating goes into or close to 90. A few less lower grade open handicaps but at a stake of 80K would achieve a lot of good IMO. i.e. bigger fields, better returns for owners and punters alike. That of course needs that rigorous work on the poorly functioning calendar. Looking briefly at the more serious races there is no reason to be disappointed with the stakes on offer, most have doubled, or more. The only example I can see where it did not is yesterdays 150K Japan trophy at Tauranga which ten years ago was 100K.

Agree, the short term input from Entain is why we are mostly agreeing on 'enjoy it while it lasts'. Certainly everything had been going the wrong direction for the period 2011 to 2023 but one still gets the distinct impression that 2011 - 2023 era is going to look pretty, compared to uglyville in 5 plus years time.

Jaarffi?

You do prattle on and I note you are not adverse to 'big noting' yourself. So you have been to York, well so have I and I have probably attended more more major meetings around the world than your dodgy accounting skills can add up..It was 48 racecourses in NZ you quoted as a fact wasn't it?

An Article today on racenet has to be the understatement of the racing year. $2.5 million yearling Railway Man onsold as 3yo for $210,000. And THAT statement... " Railway Man hasn't quite lived up to his yearling price" 🤕In fairness few 7 figure yearlings ever do.

He more often than not misses the start with his rides which whilst not unsurmountable adds another few degrees of difficulty

What about a few that you would repeat?

OK. Then over time this track could develop into a classic 'horses for courses' track. I don't know if I am in the minority but I have not made up my mind about it which continues to see me watching more than betting. What I do not understand is the obsession with sand. Awapuni being the latest to go down the 'beachy' path.

Early in the day the winning jockeys on Champions day described the Ellerslie track as perfect, with a little give and said it would firm up as the day progressed. You seem to be suggesting it went from easy to firm and for the late races fast? Yet the times do not reflect that.

Absolute shambles 🤣

Get off your pedestal. You come in guns blazing with dodgy/aged data then justify yourself by saying what is quoted above. My comment was not some sort of model but rather showing that in England the courses are sacred, not for sale. And yes because of that way of being, their infrastructure is superior in all facets.

I read somewhere where a former jockey said "I don't know how he stays on the horse". He does however, so if there is an experienced jockey out there what I am interested in is: does his style help, hinder or neither.