Time to move Derby/Akl Cup back to Boxing Day/NYD

[Mark D]

As the great Neil Young once sang "there comes a time" and the time has come.  Pitiful crowds, pitiful turnover (tote on the Derby last Saturday was Win $157k and  Place $89k and while they are supposedly doing more on the FO these days the commission earned would not come within a bulls roar of paying for even a third of a 1 million stake).  Arguable that it was worth a gamble to move the race dates and attempt to create a Cup Week in Auckland and while there were some reasonably positive early returns (and I went to a couple of the early ones) it is an enormous strain on the viability of the industry (if there is one left after the last decade of bizarre decision making).  Pull the plug now.

[Huey]

2 hours ago, Mark D said:

As the great Neil Young once sang "there comes a time" and the time has come.  Pitiful crowds, pitiful turnover (tote on the Derby last Saturday was Win $157k and  Place $89k and while they are supposedly doing more on the FO these days the commission earned would not come within a bulls roar of paying for even a third of a 1 million stake).  Arguable that it was worth a gamble to move the race dates and attempt to create a Cup Week in Auckland and while there were some reasonably positive early returns (and I went to a couple of the early ones) it is an enormous strain on the viability of the industry (if there is one left after the last decade of bizarre decision making).  Pull the plug now.

They'll be OK Mark,  must be 20 odd country tracks they can sell to subsidise it.  My how boring has it all become , I can't blame anyone for not going. 

[Mark D]

$179k Win $119 place for the Cup.  Better than the Derby and half the stake.  Only a massive loss rather than an astronomical one.  Used to have the infield full on Boxing Day and New Years day - look at it now.  Participation is almost non-existent

[Bloke]

The problem is that only A listers and Posers turn up and they bet very little. They just stand around looking good, taking selfies with  wine glasses in their hands. 

Weaver chased the punters away saying that he was not interested in those that walked around with a best bets in their pockets.

NZTR need to introduce incentives for clubs who attract large on course betting and those that cannot need to be penalised. 

What makes it more laughable is that Auckland receive a healthy subsidy from NZTR to promote the Cup meeting which they clearly waste given that they cannot attract a decent crowd.

Edited March 7, 2020 by Bloke

[Huey]

31 minutes ago, Bloke said:

The problem is that only A listers and Posers turn up and they bet very little. They just stand around looking good, taking selfies with  wine glasses in their hands. 

Weaver chased the punters away saying that he was not interested in those that walked around with a best bets in their pockets.

NZTR need to introduce incentives for clubs who attract large on course betting and those that cannot need to be penalised. 

What makes it more laughable is that Auckland receive a healthy subsidy from NZTR to promote the Cup meeting which they clearly waste given that they cannot attract a decent crowd.

You're right , they don't bet much or know much about horses. What is going to happen to this game when they take all the real race courses away? Messara reckons we will be competing internationally so I guess we will be making a fortune out international punters flocking in droves to bet on our product , they'll love it there will be about 25 stables left in the country by then , TA will have about 50% of the horse population ... I can't wait!

As an aside , how boring has our 2yo racing become over the past few years, it really is just for the rich now.

So glad to see a battler win the cup though.

[barryb]

Yes the 2yr old racing is pitiful, it’s boring as batshit at metro venues.

[Freda]

2 hours ago, Huey said:

You're right , they don't bet much or know much about horses. What is going to happen to this game when they take all the real race courses away? Messara reckons we will be competing internationally so I guess we will be making a fortune out international punters flocking in droves to bet on our product , they'll love it there will be about 25 stables left in the country by then , TA will have about 50% of the horse population ... I can't wait!

As an aside , how boring has our 2yo racing become over the past few years, it really is just for the rich now.

So glad to see a battler win the cup though.

Agree,  great to see.

And was there ever any doubt that he would run the trip?

Damsire Yamanin Vital. 

[nomates]

The game is run by "POSERS" who are only interested in attracting "POSERS" !! 

Ellerslie was all but deserted , can't even get a decent crowd on a day like this . God knows what it was like at Trentham .

They can sell half the tracks in this country it wont help , the problem is the continual stream of no hopers running the industry , I honestly can't see any way back .

[Delta Bro]

5 hours ago, Bloke said:

The problem is that only A listers and Posers turn up and they bet very little. They just stand around looking good, taking selfies with  wine glasses in their hands. 

Weaver chased the punters away saying that he was not interested in those that walked around with a best bets in their pockets.

NZTR need to introduce incentives for clubs who attract large on course betting and those that cannot need to be penalised. 

What makes it more laughable is that Auckland receive a healthy subsidy from NZTR to promote the Cup meeting which they clearly waste given that they cannot attract a decent crowd.

Auckland Racing Club set up a tablet PC with a ring of LED's around it to provide extra light, on a pole outside the member's stand. They employed a young bloke to explain to the "A listers and Posers" how to take selfies using this set up. It proved to be extremely popular.

[Mark D]

For many decades "new people" to the administration of racing, particularly the TAB, have wanted to get rid of the NZ punter stereotype white male, Best Bets in back pocket, smoking a roll your own in a smokey back alley TAB or on course leaning against the bar drinking a watered down beer with a whisky chaser.  Nothing wrong with that, it needed updating and to move with the times.  However in doing so they alienated a whole generation of people and did away with various traditions and methods by which these people enjoyed a punt and a day at the races which they used to drag their kids and friends to and thereby bring new customers into the game.  There was always going to be a downturn but these administrators exacerbated it into a downward spiral and few new customers were attracted.  Short term cost cutting policies were introduced (cut phone betting, close TABs etc.  Note I found out in a recent visit into Wellington City that the Brandon St TAB had been shut leaving the inner city office worker who used to flock to these TABs in their lunchtime etc without one - only Courtenay Place a plastic TAB with screens etc and no paper and Newtown in the capital city) which have a long term effect.  THOSE CUSTOMERS ARE NOT COMING BACK

[nomates]

8 hours ago, Delta Bro said:

Auckland Racing Club set up a tablet PC with a ring of LED's around it to provide extra light, on a pole outside the member's stand. They employed a young bloke to explain to the "A listers and Posers" how to take selfies using this set up. It proved to be extremely popular.

This epitomizes everything that is wrong with racing . I wonder how many of the selfie takers had a bet . Probably didn't help turnover to any great extent . A complete snapshot of where we are as a sport . But our demise is being hoisted on the back of the smaller "hugely" under performing  clubs that are a major drain on the financial resources of NZTR . Perhaps if we charge the posers to take a snap we can turn around our fortunes .

[Murray Fish]

1 hour ago, nomates said:

I wonder how many of the selfie takers had a bet . Probably didn't help turnover to any great extent .

perhaps they spend via 'catering' and $ to get into 'that $pace!'?

 

9 hours ago, Delta Bro said:

Auckland Racing Club set up a tablet PC with a ring of LED's around it to provide extra light, on a pole outside the member's stand. They employed a young bloke to explain to the "A listers and Posers" how to take selfies using this set up. It proved to be extremely popular.

ummmm.... Not to sure it's that great a idea to be throwing to much shit there way!!!  are they not actually 'the presence into the future'?

 

ps. having said all that, as the ''sunset industry' historical part more and more takes hold! more money will be thrown at the 'core of the industry', be it The G1 Clubs! or the core training areas!   That's what the M Report was/is all about...

[nomates]

1 hour ago, Murray Fish said:

perhaps they spend via 'catering' and $ to get into 'that $pace!'?

 

No doubt they do spend their $$$$ on these things , but does this help the industry or 1 club , a club that continually under performs on return for industry investment as do most of the big clubs . But i know , we'll sell the little clubs who apparently are sucking the industry dry but regularly out perform the larger ones , so clubs like the ARC can to continue to come up with such novel ideas that that are the going to right the sinking ship . A bit like the where "fashions in the fields" prizes at the big meetings used to regularly be bigger than the majority of stakes on a race race . Used to do my head in , someone dressing up was up for 50k in prizes and my horse was up for a share of a  25k stake , priorities . The people in charge have the wrong priorities .

[mumbles]

Interesting to note that Te Akau didn't have a runner in the cup.Not worth targeting if you want to increase the value of a stallion prospect. or mare

[Huey]

2 hours ago, mumbles said:

Interesting to note that Te Akau didn't have a runner in the cup.Not worth targeting if you want to increase the value of a stallion prospect. or mare

They had Leaderboard and TA Cailaburn I think it was called, perhaps their model isn't suited to producing stayers i.e. buy up all the NZ 2yos and any Aus ones you can get your hands on and give the locals a good hiding. I wonder if the owners they attract are the type willing to wait to produce staying types also?

[Tonkatime!]

13 hours ago, Mark D said:

For many decades "new people" to the administration of racing, particularly the TAB, have wanted to get rid of the NZ punter stereotype white male, Best Bets in back pocket, smoking a roll your own in a smokey back alley TAB or on course leaning against the bar drinking a watered down beer with a whisky chaser.  Nothing wrong with that, it needed updating and to move with the times.  However in doing so they alienated a whole generation of people and did away with various traditions and methods by which these people enjoyed a punt and a day at the races which they used to drag their kids and friends to and thereby bring new customers into the game.  There was always going to be a downturn but these administrators exacerbated it into a downward spiral and few new customers were attracted.  Short term cost cutting policies were introduced (cut phone betting, close TABs etc.  Note I found out in a recent visit into Wellington City that the Brandon St TAB had been shut leaving the inner city office worker who used to flock to these TABs in their lunchtime etc without one - only Courtenay Place a plastic TAB with screens etc and no paper and Newtown in the capital city) which have a long term effect.  THOSE CUSTOMERS ARE NOT COMING BACK

There’s a self service machine about 2mins walk from where the Brandon street tab was and a full service tab about a five minute walk away from there.

There’s also another bar with a terminal and self service machines much closer than Courtney place. 

 

[All The Aces]

5 hours ago, mumbles said:

Interesting to note that Te Akau didn't have a runner in the cup.Not worth targeting if you want to increase the value of a stallion prospect. or mare

I think that the last runner they lined up in an Auckland Cup was Minqar Qaim in the 2010 Auckland Cup when Mark Walker was here training. 

[Mark D]

11 hours ago, Tonkatime! said:

There’s a self service machine about 2mins walk from where the Brandon street tab was and a full service tab about a five minute walk away from there.

There’s also another bar with a terminal and self service machines much closer than Courtney place. 

 

Big deal.  A shadow of it's former self.

[Tonkatime!]

11 hours ago, Mark D said:

Big deal.  A shadow of it's former self.

I use to go into Brandon St a fair bit, it was busy from about 12:00-2:00pm Monday to Friday. The rest of the time it was deserted.

I imagine the rent was horrendous and they did try things like cutting the opening hours back to reduce costs. 

I think you can fault them for plenty of decision but I’m not sure that is one of them especially given there are a few other options within 10 mins of the Brandon St site but each to their own. 

[Mark D]

Thanks Tonka but my post was really about a wider issue the Brandon St TAB was supposed to be an aside but I went on a bit too long on that.  There will always be cost issues but it is how you react to them and what other factors you take into account in developing your long term plan is the issue.  The big factor, I believe, in the Brandon St closure was that the landlord (Bobby Jones) wouldn't allow the pokies to be in the building, and because this has become a prime if not the main consideration as to whether the TAB have branches or PubTabs, they couldn't justify it.  That is also due to the fact that they have ignored, and in some cases treated with disdain, their existing customer base for the past 20 years because they wanted to be seen as modern, hip etc rather than focused on the long term viability of their business.  That is,they have thrown the baby out with the bath water.

[Tonkatime!]

16 hours ago, Mark D said:

Thanks Tonka but my post was really about a wider issue the Brandon St TAB was supposed to be an aside but I went on a bit too long on that.  There will always be cost issues but it is how you react to them and what other factors you take into account in developing your long term plan is the issue.  The big factor, I believe, in the Brandon St closure was that the landlord (Bobby Jones) wouldn't allow the pokies to be in the building, and because this has become a prime if not the main consideration as to whether the TAB have branches or PubTabs, they couldn't justify it.  That is also due to the fact that they have ignored, and in some cases treated with disdain, their existing customer base for the past 20 years because they wanted to be seen as modern, hip etc rather than focused on the long term viability of their business.  That is,they have thrown the baby out with the bath water.

Yip agree with what you say.