Freda

Yes, good luck to him. Shankar is a young trainer going well down there also, and the resounding successes from the Timaru-based trainers are giving the middle finger to the management's notion of squeezing the south out of contention.

Fair point.

I think Head Office can diminish itself without too much help.

Well done RV.

I think there might be.

What an embarrassment

Michael Roustaby posted an explanation, where he states that the 'map' shown to the riders had only one gap shown. A total dereliction of responsibility by track staff/officials and a disgrace. Probably to void the race altogether and refund all bets and entry fees would have been fairer.

Hmm...not casting aspersions on Sam at all, a very worthy winner indeed...but yeah, no idea who or what body did the voting.

Sadly, many I speak with voice the same opinions. Not totally do with the TAB stuff, but that as well as general dissatisfaction with so much of the operational decisions. The programming, the obvious bias against the south, the awareness [ which has been slow to come to many ] that the lolly-scramble will run out in another 2 and a half years - unless there really is a rabbit in the hat - is sapping the enthusiasm of so many participants.

Yep.

Wonder when/if Martin Collins might become aware of this breach? And what NZTR might do?

Shouldn't Nztr be all over this?

I was gonna say Old Fogies but didn't think that would be polite.

And yes, I agree, great initiative. But non-racing folk will still need to be informed as to what/ where such information is to be found. Adverts on Trackside won't cut it.

What's OF?

Never heard that terminology! I have heard of 'currying favour'....but cully - I think - means someone easily duped.

They may do....but I've never seen it done.

I fail to see why or how it is that the rest of the racing world [ or most of it ] can get it right, and we can't? are we all illiterate? As an aside, I was chatting to Tina Comignaghi a while ago, and asked her what were the whip rules in Argentina...she said, oh, there aren't any, you just smash them how you like.

I did say more often than not...and they switch their whip to suit the horse, not the effing camera.

Believe it or not, I actually do get your point. Both about the videos and about the 'rod for the back'. But highlighting what appears to be misuse is the only thing we CAN do. And when the best of the international riders get it right more often than not, it clearly is not impossible to manage. I found an interesting teaching video of an American former jockey, on a mechanical horse showing young riders how to swap the whip over into the other hand smoothly. Showed it to a local mentor, who seemed not to be very interested. After a few weeks I asked what the response was? Oh, he said, it was thought to be too advanced and not suitable for apprentices. FFS.

It proves that the whip is being used incorrectly. You can argue all you like, but the fact remains that our riders aren't being taught correctly and nor is the misuse being dealt with. Joe Doyle has appeared in a few pics..do you seriously think he'd get away with that at home? He knows he can get away with it here, is all.

Yes.

I'm pretty sure there was a time when 'man' in a sentence meant 'being of humankind' not specifically a male person. I do recall my English teacher referring to something like that, explaining that the practice simply saved time instead of writing he/she, his/hers, all the time. 'Woman' was 'understood' was the way she put it.

Now that is a leading question.