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Bit Of A Yarn

The Invitation: an example of where novelty races in NSW is going wrong. NZ's South Island Only Race Too!


Chief Stipe

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Actually thinking about this a bit more isn't the industry going down  the same stupid path it has done before?  Spending windfall profits on stakes for a few while neglecting the infrastructure.  Wouldn't $350k a year be better spent on improving the track and training facilities at Riccarton?

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3 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

Actually thinking about this a bit more isn't the industry going down  the same stupid path it has done before?  Spending windfall profits on stakes for a few while neglecting the infrastructure.  Wouldn't $350k a year be better spent on improving the track and training facilities at Riccarton?

Yes, but they probably think they'll fix the infrastructure from the windfall from the asset sales.

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34 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

Good point but those Karaka races have some quality about them.

Here we are leading up to Cup week at Riccarton and there is an Open Handicap 1400m race on Saturday with 13 starters with an average rating of 81. 

Only 3 rated over 85!

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“Open to all horses trained by a trainer operating a Trainers Premises (as defined in the Rules) located in the South Island as at 1 August 2023”

 

Which North Island trainers operate a Trainers Premise in the Sth as at 1 August 2023? Is it just Marsh Racing?

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14 minutes ago, Tesio said:

“Open to all horses trained by a trainer operating a Trainers Premises (as defined in the Rules) located in the South Island as at 1 August 2023”

 

Which North Island trainers operate a Trainers Premise in the Sth as at 1 August 2023? Is it just Marsh Racing?

Oh. That's a refinement on the rules I posted. Where did you see that?

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I'm not a fan of all these gimmicky races. Sydney is destroying the pattern in Australia with all their non group, high staked gimmick races. The supporting races on Caulfield Cup day were pretty ordinary. There must be quite a few group races in Australia due for a down grading, even some of Sydney's own group races.

And these stupid NZ novelty races are just taking the piss to be honest. A one win race at Trentham worth more than the Wgtn Cup, and a novelty race at Riccarton worth more than the NZ Cup. Too stupid for words really. All thought up I would imagine by some bright spark who had never been to a race-meeting until a few months ago. Someone who probably thinks Karaka day and NZ Cup day are what NZ racing is all about.

The original concept for the Riccarton race forgot that Trentham over Cup week relies on SI horses for numbers and by going to Trentham to race for $65,000 horses became ineligible for a $350,000.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg, who knows what other great ideas they are just waiting to unleash. I fully expect a race restricted to horses trained at Ellerslie and Trentham, seems like a good idea surely?

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1 minute ago, Doomed said:

I'm not a fan of all these gimmicky races. Sydney is destroying the pattern in Australia with all their non group, high staked gimmick races. The supporting races on Caulfield Cup day were pretty ordinary. There must be quite a few group races in Australia due for a down grading, even some of Sydney's own group races.

My thoughts exactly.  The NZ novelty races are worse because we have fewer horse numbers than OZ to draw on.  A bit deja vu.  Reminiscent of past so called "boom times" where the industry wasted money on similar races.  Remember the Kelt!

I see these new ones have nice PC names as well.

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18 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

My thoughts exactly.  The NZ novelty races are worse because we have fewer horse numbers than OZ to draw on.  A bit deja vu.  Reminiscent of past so called "boom times" where the industry wasted money on similar races.  Remember the Kelt!

I see these new ones have nice PC names as well.

At least the Kelt was largely funded by one fly by night big noter, it didn't chew up industry money. The classic waste was all of Winston's million dollar races that achieved zero. The Derbies were won by total non entities and the Oaks winners were largely sold off shore.

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3 hours ago, Doomed said:

On the subject of Sydney and all the changes and big money there is the CINCOTTA CHEMIST CALLANDER-PRESNELL, a $1m group 2 race, something us traditionalists would know better under another name or is it a newish race?

Was the Stan Fox Stakes but not sure if that was its original name or not.

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17 hours ago, Doomed said:

I'm not a fan of all these gimmicky races. Sydney is destroying the pattern in Australia with all their non group, high staked gimmick races. The supporting races on Caulfield Cup day were pretty ordinary. There must be quite a few group races in Australia due for a down grading, even some of Sydney's own group races.

And these stupid NZ novelty races are just taking the piss to be honest. A one win race at Trentham worth more than the Wgtn Cup, and a novelty race at Riccarton worth more than the NZ Cup. Too stupid for words really. All thought up I would imagine by some bright spark who had never been to a race-meeting until a few months ago. Someone who probably thinks Karaka day and NZ Cup day are what NZ racing is all about.

The original concept for the Riccarton race forgot that Trentham over Cup week relies on SI horses for numbers and by going to Trentham to race for $65,000 horses became ineligible for a $350,000.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg, who knows what other great ideas they are just waiting to unleash. I fully expect a race restricted to horses trained at Ellerslie and Trentham, seems like a good idea surely?

If you have a look at the rules, Sth Island horses can still go to Trentham and race at their carnival.

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4 hours ago, Tesio said:

If you have a look at the rules, Sth Island horses can still go to Trentham and race at their carnival.

Yes, but not under the original proposal. I am pretty sure they refined it when they realised it was poorly thought out. Still poorly thought out of course, but not as stupid as originally.

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27 minutes ago, Doomed said:

Yes, but not under the original proposal. I am pretty sure they refined it when they realised it was poorly thought out. Still poorly thought out of course, but not as stupid as originally.

No. As I posted above, allowance to run contenders at the Wellington Cup meeting was there in the initial NZTR release. The refined conditions have actually removed that statement but I don't think they are precluded from racing wherever they want to.

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39 minutes ago, curious said:

No. As I posted above, allowance to run contenders at the Wellington Cup meeting was there in the initial NZTR release. The refined conditions have actually removed that statement but I don't think they are precluded from racing wherever they want to.

You are probably correct there. I recall thinking there were some strange anomalies. What I was probably thinking about was that it precluded southerners from racing at the March meeting at Trentham. Southern 3yos had quite a good record in the Levin Classic, but that may have been moved now anyhow. Love racing website is down so can't check that. It still means southerners can't race at Trentham in March and be eligible for their own race. Seems strange to create a race that potentially means horses have to miss a group race elsewhere so they can be eligible for a richer non group race. I do struggle to understand how that helps the racing pattern, but greater minds than mine have obviously thought it through.

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