Central Districts Race Tracks

[curious]

7 hours ago, Shad said:

The year the helicopter was bought into dry the track was the last time I attended Kumara races,

Last time I was there too. Only time I was persuaded to race a horse of mine on the coast and after walking the track a couple of times, we were back on the the float and home for tea. It was two helicopters I think and from memory, there had been no major renovation but they had spread coal dust on the track to improve it. Unperturbed, the party was still on with the crowd in good spirits when we left, racing or not.

[Freda]

Gold fines, Bill Kennedy told me, were used to ' improve' the track,  along with the sowing of the right sort of grass.   Didn't improve anything, the pakihi is taking back the ground bit by bit, the boggy bit in the dummy straight is there, as it always used to be.

[curious]

1 minute ago, Freda said:

Gold fines, Bill Kennedy told me, were used to ' improve' the track,  along with the sowing of the right sort of grass.   Didn't improve anything, the pakihi is taking back the ground bit by bit, the boggy bit in the dummy straight is there, as it always used to be.

Oh correct. It was gold fines

[Shad]

3 hours ago, Freda said:

Yeah, the Reefton turn out of the straight certainly caught a rider out in the case you mention.  Had been negotiated safely for decades.   Definitely rider error, with disastrous consequences.  Similar with Hokitika, when a few ran off at tbe turn out of the straight....always a possibility with new riders but not an issue with a bit of nous.  Unfortunately the combination of very, very heavy ground on one particular day,  along with so many riders now not up to standard, led NZTR to decide that the circuit was not needed,  not 'the look' that was required going forward. 

 

I was there the day Gold Dust went over the outside rail an on to a car,with a couple of other horses affected, one trained by Mark Nyan, from memory, for me it appeared the rider forgot to steer the horse around the corner, the caught the horse at blacks point, heading for the hills, shame as it no doubt cost the club for the realignment, was always wary of the times posted after the fix, one day posting 2.02 for the 2000m race, that very heavy ground no doubt Hokitika, but everyone horse an ride returned unscathed, real shame wasn't wanted any more.

[Shad]

3 hours ago, curious said:

Last time I was there too. Only time I was persuaded to race a horse of mine on the coast and after walking the track a couple of times, we were back on the the float and home for tea. It was two helicopters I think and from memory, there had been no major renovation but they had spread coal dust on the track to improve it. Unperturbed, the party was still on with the crowd in good spirits when we left, racing or not.

I thought that was the first meeting on the revamped track, I thought it had been flipped an re grassed, but do stand to be corrected, also like you I didn't stay for the after party, was the first of a few cancellations, club these days certainly must feel abit anxious come race day.