Most enjoyable days racing.....Boxing Day at Ellerslie

[TAB For Ever]

I guess I qualify to comment re todays Ellerslie racing on a track that looked and played superbly , the first BD meeting there since 2021.

The venue looked superb and the various groups in attendance all seemed happy and positive about the day.....the serious punters. , the families , the racing folk and the young people many of who dressed up for the occasion.

Importantly to me the racing was excellent , with very even and keenly contested races with horses coming from all parts of the track. There was really only one 'hot pot' winning at $2 [snazztavi] in what was a brilliant race of quality Group horses . The Stake was over twice it was a couple of years ago [$500k] and it was a Group 1 finish and great to see Hanger's horse prevail.

The Dunstan races were also keenly contested and the classy Australian jockeys found their match in some well timed 'local' jocks !

I didn't walk the track ,but walked the areas where the Public and members were situated.Most areas buzzing with several rooms in members stand seating 200 plus. The Food /Hospitality areas were busy and most food nearly all consumed at end.

And obviously a lot of casual punters as lines , at one stage I counted 14 in lower public stand,tellers ,kiosks and outside caravan all over 20 deep. The TAB room and serious punting ones were flat out on phones and a couple of younger ones tried to show me the Betcha App and the options avaliable with boosts ,bonus while keeping a sly eye on the boobs and bums ! The TV news just showed the Public Stand ,every seat taken ,and two levels !

Fashion in the Fields looked full on , the newish stable area is brilliant for viewing horses up close and the 4 x majestic clerks horses were creating a lot of interest.

So the racing and hospitality side was very well catered for...many people prefer to watch the TV screens while the race on. Families were having fun and kids playing in the infield.

Left with a big crowd of others after 8pm when the music finished...at least 3 x different musicians enjoyed by hundreds...the Grand Tour with music catch is very popular world wide .

So overall it was an excellent days racing IMO ,even I got ahead of the game.......the Herald suggested 5 x steps to punting success ,but only the Snazzytavi tip came off !

The years not over for me for on-course attendance but I rate today as by far the best raceday of the year in NZ...yes ahead of Karaka day , and only behind Victoria Derby day overall.

Today I counted 8000 then gave up so I'd guess between 8 - 12 k there.  Perfect size IMO

[Huey]

Fantastic news to hear , long may it continue.

It's great to see the track doing the job.

[Chief Stipe]

Nothing won drawn further out than 8.

[muzenza365]

This is not a crack at the ARC, but this money Laundering rubbish is just that, rubbish.

I went to the races yesterday and got 1k out to have some bets with and I prefer to put it on a betting voucher. The guy behind the counter asked if I had a TAB account and I said yes but why do you need to know that ,his reply was it was for money laundering,so I said give me a voucher for $950 on one voucher, and $50 on another and he said yes I can do that, but when I went to place a bet I had to give the operator my details every time I had a bet and this was all for just 1k.I believe in Australia it only applies to anything over 10k.

[SLB2.0]

I don't have a TAB account, but about a year ago I walked into a store to place a $1k sports bet. The lady told me I needed a TAB account to place the bet, I told her that I don't have one, and I was simply trying to help out my local TAB, she looked at me with disgust, so instead I told her I'll place it with sportsbet instead.

So strange to need a TAB account to place an over-the-counter bet worth more than a can of beans.