Riccarton-Synthetic?

[Newmarket]

How disappointing with the small fields today? Why did so many owners/ trainers scratch? Always complaining when trials or meetings don’t go ahead, yet on our back doorstep is a local meeting? 
 

Yes I know it’s not grass, but surely let’s get behind it more, who knows how the winter ahead will turn out. Just for the record, from a punters view, I don’t mind betting on it, form holds up well, and the $6 on Spartan today was great 😁

[Chief Stipe]

I see Tony Pike just posted this online:

Tony Pike

Colin Wightman ok people I don’t want nor like getting involved in these discussions. Each to their own. Synthetic tracks are now a world wide phenomenon. We came to Riccarton on Sunday with a purpose of gaining some black type at the end of her preparation. She flew down Sunday. The weather bomb arrived and she would have run on either surface. You talk about the poor horse. If the race had been run on the CP it would have been extremely testing we may have won or we may not have handled the ground? Looking at the result based on form coming in the best two horses have more than likely run one two in the race. My filly has pulled up perfectly. We use the Poly in Cambridge extensively when the weather is poor and it is a great asset. I have been in Sydney recently and they use the synthetic tracks more than the grass tracks. It is a consistent surface.

Anyway you can choose whatever tracks you wish to use but please do not come in any public site and say poor horse if associated with my stable. We look after and care for our horses to the ninth degree!

[Chief Stipe]

Which was in response to this comment by Colin Wightman about Lucy In The Sky's win on the Poly.  I guess Lindsay and Wightman won't be sitting together when Pivotal Ten lines up in OZ!

Poor horse. Obviously the mercenary owners don’t care too much for its future. To think that some poor bugger at a horse sale in the future will be conned into buying a near relative not knowing that the black print attributed to Lucy In The Sky is Clayton’s, against a desperate field of 8 only shit track tried horses.

[Freda]

1 hour ago, Chief Stipe said:

I see Tony Pike just posted this online:

Tony Pike

Colin Wightman ok people I don’t want nor like getting involved in these discussions. Each to their own. Synthetic tracks are now a world wide phenomenon. We came to Riccarton on Sunday with a purpose of gaining some black type at the end of her preparation. She flew down Sunday. The weather bomb arrived and she would have run on either surface. You talk about the poor horse. If the race had been run on the CP it would have been extremely testing we may have won or we may not have handled the ground? Looking at the result based on form coming in the best two horses have more than likely run one two in the race. My filly has pulled up perfectly. We use the Poly in Cambridge extensively when the weather is poor and it is a great asset. I have been in Sydney recently and they use the synthetic tracks more than the grass tracks. It is a consistent surface.

Anyway you can choose whatever tracks you wish to use but please do not come in any public site and say poor horse if associated with my stable. We look after and care for our horses to the ninth degree!

Yes, they do use the synthetic tracks in Sydney, but not for racing.

Not to be pedantic, but just for some balance here.

[curious]

6 minutes ago, Freda said:

Yes, they do use the synthetic tracks in Sydney, but not for racing.

Not to be pedantic, but just for some balance here.

And certainly not for programmed grass racing when there are perfectly safe grass tracks available.

[billy connolly]

2 hours ago, curious said:

And certainly not for programmed grass racing when there are perfectly safe grass tracks available.

More nonsense from you, the correct decision was made to race on the Poly.

As T. Pike alluded, the two best horses ran first and second in the listed race yet on a bottomless bog grass/turf track they might not have fared as well.

Heavy grass/turf brings the quality horses back to the opposition, nothing (not even weight) will take the speed out of a horses legs more than heavy ground will and the race times would've been 5/10 seconds slower on heavy grass/turf.

IMO Poly track form is more credible than heavy 10+ grass/turf form.

[curious]

31 minutes ago, billy connolly said:

More nonsense from you, the correct decision was made to race on the Poly.

As T. Pike alluded, the two best horses ran first and second in the listed race yet on a bottomless bog grass/turf track they might not have fared as well.

Heavy grass/turf brings the quality horses back to the opposition, nothing (not even weight) will take the speed out of a horses legs more than heavy ground will and the race times would've been 5/10 seconds slower on heavy grass/turf.

IMO Poly track form is more credible than heavy 10+ grass/turf form.

I don't disagree with any of that.

[curious]

5 minutes ago, curious said:

I don't disagree with any of that.

Except that it was programmed as a grass meeting likely to suit horses that can only run 5-10secs slower, then changed at the last minute to no longer suit the horses prepared for it.

[Newmarket]

People need to move on…. get behind the poly….

[Chief Stipe]

2 minutes ago, Newmarket said:

People need to move on…. get behind the poly….

You miss the point.  There is a proportion of horses that have stamina but not top line speed. Horses that don't  mind slogging in the wet.

Is the NZ Thoroughbred racing industry in a position to effectively write them off?  As well as the tracks that support them?

[curious]

24 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

You miss the point.  There is a proportion of horses that have stamina but not top line speed. Horses that don't  mind slogging in the wet.

Is the NZ Thoroughbred racing industry in a position to effectively write them off?  As well as the tracks that support them?

I happen to race one of those which has won 3 of its last 5 starts. Saturday was the last grass staying race in the country for it until late October but it was shifted to the poly and shortened to a middle distance. Am I pissed? Yes, especially when there seemed to be no good reason from my inspection of the Riccarton grass on Friday other than it was very heavy and waterlogged.

[Special Agent]

2 hours ago, Newmarket said:

People need to move on…. get behind the poly….

Maybe some are reserving that action until the AWT report comes out.  Or is it already out?

[Newmarket]

1 hour ago, Chief Stipe said:

You miss the point.  There is a proportion of horses that have stamina but not top line speed. Horses that don't  mind slogging in the wet.

Is the NZ Thoroughbred racing industry in a position to effectively write them off?  As well as the tracks that support them?

I get what you’re saying, but you have to be realistic. So many variants, too wet, too dry, wide draw, too short distance, too long distance, straight too short, straight to short…. and so on. 
 

One thing I will say….  if every race at the poly track at Riccarton one Saturday was worth $40k…. all of a sudden trainers would be jumping out of trees to line up. 
Just to add, of course I would rather watch and bet on the grass at Riccarton, that’s a given. 
But at the same time, I can see the benefits of racing on the poly, some horses love it, some don’t.

[Chief Stipe]

1 hour ago, curious said:

Am I pissed? Yes, especially when there seemed to be no good reason from my inspection of the Riccarton grass on Friday other than it was very heavy and waterlogged.

You have my sympathy.  I can't fathom the rationale of the decision on the grounds of safety.  What was the point of thrashing Ashburton to save Riccarton Turf if you are not going to use it?  The only reason you would transfer is if:

1. The weather forecast was for more foul weather and the likelihood of surface water was high - which it wasn't;
2. The track was unsafe - which no one said it was probably because it wasn't.

I do find it amusing that the institutional propaganda was working over time to say how beneficial it all was on the day.

[Chief Stipe]

35 minutes ago, Special Agent said:

Maybe some are reserving that action until the AWT report comes out.  Or is it already out?

Why wait for the report?  You realise how the problem arose in the first place don't you?  The AWT customers didn't inspect the track they were using nor join together and demand maintenance occur when it should of.  

A bit like those moaning about the "dangerous AWT at Riccarton" on Saturday who obviously didn't bother to inspect it and see that it was in good condition.

As I've said many times before Trainers are part of the problem.  As an Owner representative I've tried to walk nearly every track prior to their horses racing (except those in OZ).  As I did 20 years ago it still amazes me how many Trainers or Jockeys don't bother.

[Chief Stipe]

32 minutes ago, Newmarket said:

One thing I will say….  if every race at the poly track at Riccarton one Saturday was worth $40k…. all of a sudden trainers would be jumping out of trees to line up. 

Nope as has been proven time and time again increased Stakes doesn't correlate to increased participation.  On Saturday on one race at Riccarton was less than $35k that being the Maiden race which was $20k  Even @curious's horse battled her way round for $2k for running fourth.

 

[Newmarket]

Well…. Look how big the fields are for Riccarton on Thursday….good that owners & trainers are supporting the poly more….