Freda

Agree with this. The sooner a significant reduction in allowable use of the whip, the better.

Oh...ffs....dont derail my query please Thommo. Think I'd better re phrase it...I just want to know what differentials exist in the WFA scale from country to country. It has stood the test of time as an arbiter of excellence world wide...I do remember, now that Fred jogged my memory, that the Aussies tinkered with the 3 y.o. section but wasn't aware that the girls had their portion altered as well. I'm not arguing about the need for a female allowance, just the size of it.

Thanks Chief....I clearly didn't make that point very well.

Hmm..not sure if I concur with that..however it does seem that the girls get a lesser allowance in the UK.

Remember that, yes. What about the mares' concession...I know ours get a ridiculous 2 kg through set weight events but does it follow through to WFA too?

A query for train-spotters....is the wfa scale standard world-wide? or are there differences from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. I

Yes, they do...a terrible shame but not one out of the box. It may well be that the company insuring R.L insists upon him staying closer to home...but I can't really see how it might affect shuttlers overall. It's not as if he had been domiciled at Cambridge for weeks or months...he had barely gotten off the truck....maybe a problem could have/should have been picked up at the quarantine station..? That's a big call though.

if that is in fact the case, it is an indictment that ' the industry' cannot/will not take note of carefully collated figures and plain common sense about many crucial matters.

That was a piss take in itself....if racing implodes as it well could, there won't be any classics....or anything else for that matter. Castlepoint indeed.

I'm not getting into a slanging match about Nth vs Sth....you have your opinions backed up by facts, fair enough..my comment however was that Cup week works, and the Guineas races complement the whole week beautifully. All the discussion abt the Guineas is deflecting the context of the thread and does absolutely nothing for the overall turnaround required in NZ racing. If things carry on as they currently are the 2000 and 1000 guineas may as well be run at Scone...or Launceston...

Nice idea....think there are two separate jurisdictions in Japan but no sure of the details. And, of course, they have MONEY...

The Te Akau mob were down here for ages though - preparing on good ground.

I stand by what Reefton and I stated..however I take your point about costs. That could/can be easily dealt with - if there's the will - logistics not a problem with appropriate planning. However, that is all pie-in-the-sky if the ship sinks.

That old saying 'if it ain't broke don't fix it' applies here, surely. This thread is about bouncing ideas around with the view to try and refloat the sinking ship. The Cup carnival in ChCh is one of the few things in NZ racing that works. Leave it alone and try and be constructive..there have been some good points put forward, as well as the sobering reality of just how broke we are. Your notion of moving the Guineas races is just more deckchair shuffling for no obvious benefit, it wont increase turnover/ revenue and that is the bottom line in all this.

And to add to the above - the Cup meeting is only part of the Cup and Show week carnival, comprising not just gallops but the Trotting Cup and Christchurch Show, attracting horses from not just the N.I but Australia as well....and all the associated hospitality and fashion hype too. Its the best Carnival of its type in the country, and the Guineas races are a perfect fit.

Can't find anything to take exception to here. I've expressed the opinion elsewhere, that as surplus land at Riccarton Park has now been sold for housing [ thus eliminating the scope for further stabling developments as well as a very valuable off-track exercise area ] and the majestic old stand which had fantastic views, is now facing demolition as a result of earthquake damage, that to sell the rest of it and redevelop on light, free-draining soil would make bloody good sense.

You should debate your points with Reefton...as a small club official and very conversant with figures he could give you better reasons why/why not than I could. However the ideas you put forward show an ability to think outside the square that has been needed for ages but not made use of - here, anyway. Plenty evident in NSW by the look of it.

Rangiora ( unfortunately) will never have galloping races again.....political stupidity. As I said, I like your ideas but dealing with head-in-the-sand administration is a soul destroying business.

They do indeed..but it is NZTR who grants - or otherwise - a clubs permit to race.

Geez...wish you would put yourself on and sweep the place clean.

I like the way you think, but NZTR have say over when/how a club races, and would be likely to refuse a raceday licence if the proposals didn't sit well with them. It is the 'chopping up ' of existing circuits that has buggered some of the traditional days. The West Coast of the south island is on the way out with the elimination of the Hokitika track for racing purposes, and can only be followed by the others at some stage as stakeholders see the writing on the wall. Similarly, the separation of Nelson/Westport/Blenheim has led to two of the three venues no longer used for galloping, with the third - Blenheim - hanging on by the skin of its teeth.

Agree here too. I like Barryb's ideas, can't see why a Racing20 trial couldn't take place without ado in the coming summer. Major Cup days would need a longer exposure as well as those country days that are left, I guess. Track improvements will have to wait until there is funding to do the work, a catch-22 for sure....but the other refinements you suggest can be implemented . Is there the will? That is the concern, the handicapping/programming/stakes structure highlighted by you and R.H. a few years ago was largely ignored - and when I brought it up with B Saundry more recently ( and forwarded him the work that he claimed to have not seen ) there was no acknowledgement or action whatsoever. All that can be worked upon at no cost at all.

You're right of course....but I guess I'm taking the view that without some forward thinking the hole just gets dug more quickly. What would you suggest, taking into account the reality of the revenue / costs situation?

Yep, agree.

Love the ideas...however,.do you not think there can be a place for a few one-day clubs in the country areas in summer? As long as there is no or little cost to the industry should they not be allowed to remain? After all, country racing is very popular in Aus and supported by local bodies too as being valuable for the tourism dollar. But all the rest, yes agree.