Reefton

This afternoon

Or scrubbing bird shit off the grandstand seats. I am not that anti Bernard though. He at least fronts up.

Of course Bernard and NZTR would not want 'that bastard from the West Coast' (as one of the breeders once described me many years ago) gloating about having to use a course they proposed to shut just nine months ago. And make no error if it comes to pass then gloat he will - long and hard!

INSIST? Everyone with any sense has known there was a huge issue for weeks but heads have been buried in the sand presumably to appease the Club or the public(or maybe out of embarassment that John Messara's favourite Coast course has once again proven not up to it). I saw the videos Michael has and it is not too good but equally I do feel for them to an extent but if you neglect your track that is what potentially happens. Organising an alternative day will be no problem if they run it themselves but if they dump the day and someone else has to organise staff and sponsors it would be bloody hard. Greymouth has heavy rain forecast for tomorrow so their track might not be in too flash a nick either. Thank God for the mighty Reefton Jockey Club!(he says with considerable modesty)

And if history repeats itself they will cock the all weather up by picking the wrong one and it will be a million plus dollar disaster. There is no real point though in bagging one course or club and demanding it's closure. In the fragile state that NZ racing finds itself we need EVERYONE. Arbitrarily closing Waikouaiti or Kumara or Reefton or wherever only alienates those who put their heart and soul into it. It might be only four or five people in each case but racing needs ALL the friends it can get. There is talk of how the Westland Club has fragmented and interest is totally gone in many cases because they were forced out by NZTR decree. Had NZTR expressed support and humoured them though their last years (like all our clubs it was a matter of time before the inevitable closure took place) then the $250k they gave the WDC would have come back to the industry but no NZTR took a sledgehammer approach and the industry is poorer financially and from a morale perspective as a result. Some probably don't care or are too stupid to comprehend it but those sorts of moves are dumb dumb dumb.

Shut up and eff off dick

And as a clarification if there is an argumentative prick in the relationship it is me. Kumara rarely if ever respond and I cannot recall too many cross words between us. And my offer of the Reefton track then and now is not out of goodwill toward them - it is simply to keep faith with the stakeholders who spend vast amounts of money getting horses to the Coast and who deserve opportunities. If some of them decide not to come the ones who do will probably still want to go to Kumara and if they miss one meeting it will be Reefton so we will be the victim of their inability to race. Bear in mind that if Winston and Messara have their way Kumara will be the only course on the Coast. I am well known for my argumentative nature and Pitty(and plenty at NZTR) will attest to that but the grassroots of racing are my people not a heap of people who grandstand about at their once a year trip to the races or the sales. And to be fair a lot of my best (non racing) mates would no more consider turning up at Reefton races than fly to the moon but religiously line up for the KRC meeting every year. 50 million blowflies can't be wrong!

There is no beef. Only thing is the Kumara Committee tend to look at their operation only and to be fair there are few real racing people on their committee so they are interested in their day on their course alone (and to be fair they run what is clearly a very good day). You rarely if ever see any of the Kumara people at other race meetings. I think one of them denied that I ever offered Reefton two years ago but(being an Accountant and habitually keeping records) I havethe email where the offer was made. And while they were tardy in paying their share they did stump up with the money for their quarter of the gates. There is a lot of talk about their financial situation but I am not a member of their club and have no idea or interest. For all that the Kumara Committee I know seem like decent people. Patrick Meates(the President) is a good bloke and some of the older Committee really have total commitment to making their day the success it so often is. Good luck to them. And what's more we have(finally) had some decent weather the last week or so so I expect all will be well with their course when the inspection occurs over the weekend.

In the interests of protecting West Coast Racing's forthcoming circuit I am electing to come back onto BOAY. (1) I am not happy with that release, have told NZTR so and requested it be amended (2)The Reefton Jockey Club stands ready to host the day(if by chance Kumara is unable to race at their venue) or in fact to take over the day if the KRC were to decide against relocating(quite likely knowing them). The only proviso is that our course does not get hammered by next Monday's trotting meeting which might bugger things up. NZTR were advised long before that release came out that we are ready and willing to go. (3)Stakeholders(especially trainers) need to be aware that we will absolutely do our best to ensure that there are four racedays in the circuit and that we are prepared to use our course to facilitate that. So long as the trotting meeting does not render our track unusable and assuming NZTR agrees to fund us the same as Kumara we will standing by. The bottom line is this. The spring and early summer weather here has been absolutely dreadful(I have been here 56 years and cannot remember it worse). Track preparation has been bloody difficult even for us on a very free draining track let alone Kumara on a swamp. Four of five days of fine weather(which is in prospect) will make the world of difference and I am sure their track will be fine come the inspection on Saturday or Sunday. I might add if the weather was to deteriorate again I would be doubtful of Greymouth's ability to race either but again we stand ready. The Coast is equipped to handle a lot of rain but this has been phenomenal - having said that a few days fine weather and all will be sweet. How Kumara did not pick up the fact that they had a pig problem is a mystery but their track monitoring system is their concern. Certainly if there had been a pig or any other issue at Reefton then we would have known about it within a very short time. My understanding is that nobody had been around Kumara for months and hence the surprise when the RIU and NZTR turned up. John Oatham and Todd Treweek came down here(well Oatham had been in Cromwell on the day before so deviated on the way home) the first time and Treweek the second. My understanding is that all tracks get yearly inspections so nothing unusual there and I do not begrudge them the trip over here.

I've told you several times to take the topic up with him directly Thomass. Are you having difficulty comprehending that? You're brave having a crack at him on a forum you know he doesn't frequent. As for being served in December 17 who said that? She was served early November 2017 then again late November and(obviously) never got in foal either time. But if she had been served in February that is the owner's business not your's so nobody is interested in your opinions on that. And you reckon finishing second to Devise and Kawi indicated her form improved - neither of them will go down as a great of NZ racing and again you are talking utter tripe. The year before she won an NZ G1 and the year after she won an Aussie G2 both of which were far superior performances than running second to those two(especially given the favourable treatment Kawi used to receive at starting gates time) You are confused, incoherent and you know nothing about Consensus Thomass so shut up

Its good fun but it is not that flash. I could not have argued if they had said the while lot was closed down given the standard of racing involved but when they decide to keep one track because the Minister likes getting on the piss there then that is inconsistency and rather irritating. Coast racing has probably had its day but it is not going any worse than any other region(probably better than most) so you could probably say the same thing for NZ racing in general

The bottom line with Consensus is this. Julie likes racing her. As she said she knows nothing about breeding(relying on the expertise of others) and does not have a property where she can graze her nor does she need the money a foal might bring. She has obviously never had a decent horse before let alone a Group one winner and there is a sentimental element to her in that we originally leased her so that our(now late) Mother could have an interest(even though she was not terribly keen on racehorses and certainly never had the money or inclination to own one). She got talked into sending her to Tavistock two years ago after she won the Zabeel and certainly wasn't too concerned when no positive test eventuated. After all since then the horse has had three Aussie trips and did not disgrace herself when she lined up against the very very best in the QE2 two years ago. Even I got within metres of the the best horse of the generation (Winx) in the Theatre of the Horse at Randwick that day. The horse owes us nothing but given she was healthy and seemed happy it was elected to give her one last campaign this season. Commercial reality(she is a G1 Mare who has won $800k so the foal ought to be worth a dollar assuming it is healthy and correctly formed) is the reason she went to Iffraaj not some hope of turbo charging her performance. And obviously it is very shortly coming to an end. Realistically none of us is going to get one half as good again and so it will be the end of a nice little ride in racing.

Hurren's pies. Now they were worth going to the races for! As far as Ellerslie and its superior facilities I went there as an owner one time - all they offered in the owners area was speights! No Stella no Corona no nothing. Piss poor! Give them an experience they want to come to the races for. Look at Kumara - shit track,abysmal facilities ( and I mean ABYSMAL) awful standard of racing and horsemanship and they bloody throng in! Birdsville is the Aussie equivalent. You can guarantee Kumara got saved because Witless likes to get on the piss there.

Exactly Yes racing is now a global sport and it is from here to your TV set away. Just like Rugby, League, golf or whatever. The money on offer in Aussie racing is frightening and no wonder the NZ game is rooted(but equally we look at it and it is hard to accept that we cannot be as good - 30 years ago we weren't too far away but we're out of sight behind now). And flash facilities certainly aren't going to cure it. The industry spend hundreds of millions on facililites and we are in the same shit

Anyone else hear that Moonee Valley Racing Club bloke say on Weigh In 'we turn over $45m on the Friday Night before the Cox Plate and $120m on Cox Plate day'?So even if they pay out $10m for the two days stakes it is only 6.666667% of the turnover. We recently had the Livamol here for a $250k stake and the turnover on the race was $490000. So the stake paid represented over 50% of the turnover. Whatever David Ellis or Winston Peters or those Waikato trainers say it doesn't add up and it won't add up even if they do steal all those community assets to prop it up. And then we have Winston meandering along not bothering to pick up the race fields penny lying on the pavement last year leaving the NZ industry in even deeper poop! Are we just kidding ourselves?

load of shyte all right the year she got served is the only season she has had(except this one) where she didn't win a race.

Haven't seen it but Messara is clearly keen to shut down the NZ industry - sad as it is this may just hasten the inevitable. And to be fair if this is the way these animals are treated(and we southerners all know of the trucks that go to Gore(not sure if they still do but they certainly used to)) then the industry should not be allowed to carry on. Having said that neither should the diary industry the way bobby calves are treated(but two wrongs do not make a right)

Go and tell him all this Thomass. there is no point you being on here playing the big man - most people here(because they are here) agree with your views on him so you are preaching to the converted You are now somehow venturing into the areas of how they get the mares in foal(clearly you get off on that from the detailed way you describe it). It may surprise you but the way mares get in foal has not changed for thousands of years(if not millions) and I think most of us have a vague idea. For your info Consensus was not a maiden mare anyway(in terms of never having been to a stallion before) having been to Tavistock twice two years ago but didn't get in foal either time. Your tread started by disputing the effect being in foal had on mares - now you are trying to tell us how to get them in foal. And you once again shoot yourself in the foot by whinging about Sharrock not declaring this mare being in foal. After droning on about being in foal not affecting a mare's performance why are you demanding Sharrock disclose?(Don't answer that - it is a rhetorical question - have a look in the dictionary what rhetorical means but I am sick of your piffle(again!))

He's got a veterinary science degree Thomass so I guess is as well qualified as any to have an opinion. But given he doesn't frequent this site why don't you hop down to the Viaduct and express your thoughts in person? Perhaps we could get Morty along to record the event(the audio will do little man as the visual might contravene Jacinda's new rules about carnage being replayed on the internet). I have heard back from McKee who has immediately given himself one hell of an uppercut for being so stupid and expressed his deep regret that in his time with Sunline he did not have access to your wise counsel in all things racing for he feels she might well have gone unbeaten throughout her career. In fact he did enquire whether you might be prepared to put your thoughts on the topic on paper and deliver them out to Ardmore? Apparently they are in the rather embarrassing position of having run out of bog rolls out there today and are quite desperate for a suitable substitute.

Thanks for the advice Thomass From someone who has owned so many group one winners, made such a mark in the industry and who backs the winner in every race (not to mention your literary skills) it is very much appreciated. I've passed it on to McKee(who after all knows nothing about training compared to you) with a recommendation that the plug will be pulled immediately.

You guys have a different view on this terminology to what I do and to be fair I cannot be bothered discussing or arguing about it.

Well not always but as a rule of thumb sales would make up the bulk of gross income. There may be other income items but in most business organisations sales would make up the majority of gross income. You are not confusing the term 'gross income' with 'gross profit'?

The TAB says 'this is our Turnover'. They are NOT incorrect in saying that. I have been an accountant for 35 years and have no idea what you mean by the second part of your post. If the Centaur wants them to report gross profit then that's OK the suggestion they are somehow overstating things or misleading people in the use of the word 'Turnover' is incorrect However taking gross profit is no more enlightening than turnover - the number you are looking for is Net Profit(Turnover less direct costs less overheads) but that takes time to work out(and some level of skill - hence why Accountants charge so much). It is impractical on a Monday morning to say 'this is our net profit for the weekend'. To do so would involve an unacceptable level of estimation

You better update your knowledge of accounting terms. Turnover is gross income(effectively sales). What you are talking about is gross profit which is effectively sales less direct expenses(in this case the payouts on the betting). You have a reasonable point but they do not mislead by saying turnover is $2m(if indeed it is $2m)

Well I've seen the variations with my own eyes the odd time I have had a look so my eyes must have deceived me(mind you I am not a big punter and do not have accounts with any of the others so the NSW TAB and NZ TAB will have to do) If the bookies are paying the same amount of commission as anyone else of course NZ racing can afford them and anyway we have got them - witness the people(like Barryb just stated) who use them. Bury your head in the sand all you like - they are a significant participant just at the moment a non paying one Whether they are parasites or saints they are here and we are not getting our share of their takings(and Witless and his RITA friends are showing zero urgency to get us our share). Re the hooha on Money Laundering the TAB isn't the only one caught there - we are too as are lawyers real estate agents stockbrokers or whoever. If you are involved in an industry where the AML applies you are caught - they don't restrict entry to those industries but if you are in there you are expected to abide by the AML. Clubs pay the wages for the raceday tote staff anyway so indirectly you have to deal with the AMLCFT Act in any case. And I have already said that big punters don't want gimmicks(and probably don't want big crowds either but to grow more big punters you need to get them hooked(wrong word but you get the gist) and to do that give them an enjoyable time while they develop the necessary passion). Big punters want decent service and decent returns(hence so many of them buggering off to other providers because of the slack attitudes and service of the NZ equivalent.