hesi Posted May 25, 2018 Share Posted May 25, 2018 With Counties off due to too much rain, perhaps time to start the debate on all weather tracks. Remember places like Hong Kong have all weather tracks, get many times more rainfall than most places in NZ, yet rarely abandon Some call them synthetic tracks, but the only thing synthetic about Strathayr, is the little squares of plastic mesh incorporated into the top turf layer. This article is well worth a read for anyone wanting to get up to speed. http://ua-rtip.org/sites/ua-rtip.org/files/casimaty.pdf 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curious Posted May 25, 2018 Share Posted May 25, 2018 That's a pretty old document and there have been a few cancellations on Strathayr's since. However, two of the main advantages are longevity and drainage. The longevity alone should make them cost effective as a replacement for existing tracks. The mesh resists compaction. The table on page 6 is telling. It suggests that the estimated life of a standard turf track is 10-15 years cf. 25-30 years for a Strathayr. How many major (or minor for that matter) NZ tracks have been relaid in the last 10-15 years? That is why they are all stuffed along with the rest of the game. Yet we are still wasting money, including reserves, on stakes and not re-investing a cent relaying tracks. Do that for 30 years and you end up with what you've paid for. Infrastructure that can no longer either produce the revenue for reasonable stakes, or that to maintain itself. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curious Posted May 25, 2018 Share Posted May 25, 2018 Eden Park can do it, FMG Stadium as well. And look where the turf is grown - Karaka! As Mehrts said last night about AMI Stadium as the Crusaders thrashed the Canes, 25 years ago in those conditions, the jerseys would be unrecognisable after 20 minutes play, yet there was hardly a spec of mud on them and traction was excellent throughout. Yet, we are still racing on 30+ year old turf technology. Motz Stabilised Turf This patented system has natural grass grown in a synthetic mat. The roots system develops extra stability as it is grown in a tough plastic mesh, backed by a biodegradable fabric. The stability increases as the roots of the grass entwine with the synthetic matrix and root-zone below. Turf for the playing field is grown in a nursery at a turf farm in Karaka, Auckland, before it is used on the field. Being a multisport playing field, the No. 1 field needs to be changed out for each different type of sport whether it is cricket, rugby, league or football. In the summer cricket season the field has a portable wicket tray and for all other sports this is wicket is replaced with a StrathAyr portable sand tray to be similar to the rest of the playing surface. FMG Stadium 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hesi Posted May 25, 2018 Author Share Posted May 25, 2018 The main reason I posted, was that people are referring to 'synthetic' tracks, when both Strathayr and Motz can hardly be described as synthetic. Still looks like good old turf, with the positive additions as you describe. As an aside and I realise it is not related, but brings back memories of Dick Motz, that great NZ cricketer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hesi Posted May 25, 2018 Author Share Posted May 25, 2018 4 hours ago, curious said: Eden Park can do it, FMG Stadium as well. And look where the turf is grown - Karaka! As Mehrts said last night about AMI Stadium as the Crusaders thrashed the Canes, 25 years ago in those conditions, the jerseys would be unrecognisable after 20 minutes play, yet there was hardly a spec of mud on them and traction was excellent throughout. Yet, we are still racing on 30+ year old turf technology. Actually it is a very good analogy, when was the last time we saw a top level rugby match played with the players covered in mud Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryb Posted May 25, 2018 Share Posted May 25, 2018 2 hours ago, hesi said: Actually it is a very good analogy, when was the last time we saw a top level rugby match played with the players covered in mud More to the point, who funds those facilities? Certainly isn't the Rugby union. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hesi Posted July 20, 2018 Author Share Posted July 20, 2018 (edited) With the announcement of 3 A/W tracks to be built, probably appropriate to bump up this thread. Strathayr tracks are used in Aus and Asia, so I presume they will go for the same here in NZ, to provide the punter with some level of standardization and confidence. After all that is one of the reasons why you would spend all this money on doing it, to increase exported turnover Edited July 20, 2018 by hesi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefton Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 (edited) Comparing racetracks to rugby fields and listening to what Andrew Mehrtens has to say in that regard is stupidity. Run those Crusaders horses round and round and round and round flat stick for a day and see how AMI stadium comes up. Strathayr migiht be the answer or some other form of AW track but it is pretty clear AW tracks are far for the be all and end all in world racing. As I said in another thread it is notable how much better the steeple courses are than the course proper and that is because invariably they have not been 'renovated'. They have had just as much rain as the course propers and probably far less attention from all these 'experts' and yet they are superior. Leave the tracks the way nature laid them down and you will find no where near the issues with the going. In my opinion (and to be fair this is more to do with business than turf tech or science) the bigger the 'expert' the more crap they talk. Witness the economists constantly predicting doom and gloom for the world. The only time they stop predicting it it happens. Edited July 20, 2018 by Reefton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freda Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 47 minutes ago, Reefton said: Comparing racetracks to rugby fields and listening to what Andrew Mehrtens has to say in that regard is stupidity. Run those Crusaders horses round and round and round and round flat stick for a day and see how AMI stadium comes up. Strathayr migiht be the answer or some other form of AW track but it is pretty clear AW tracks are far for the be all and end all in world racing. As I said in another thread it is notable how much better the steeple courses are than the course proper and that is because invariably they have not been 'renovated'. They have had just as much rain as the course propers and probably far less attention from all these 'experts' and yet they are superior ...they get far less use year-on-year too......but you are quite right nonetheless...esp. about the 'experts'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomass Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 1 hour ago, hesi said: With the announcement of 3 A/W tracks to be built, probably appropriate to bump up this thread. Strathayr tracks are used in Aus and Asia, so I presume they will go for the same here in NZ, to provide the punter with some level of standardization and confidence. After all that is one of the reasons why you would spend all this money on doing it, to increase exported turnover Thoroughbred racing's benevolent contributors...such as Sheik bin ich bin Bun..and other Sheikys like him...dish out their moolah for important industry big spends ...and NZ now has their own Sheik's...Sheike Kevin Hickman...who's cashed in his Ryman retirement prisons for 400M...and that plastics guy...for 900M Someone needs to get in their talangis...and ask them "would you like to race more often at HQ Ellerslie...ie through the winter...and use the best Steeple course in the world...12 months of the year...with the amount of money you're spending on young neddys...and their requirements not to race on shit hole tracks" that then maybe you could split 50/50 and get the Vella fella in as well... say 10M each...not much from the 1300M combined is it?? thanks guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poisoned Dwarf Posted July 21, 2018 Share Posted July 21, 2018 endless possibilities, Tom tit......lure them with naming rights for big money-----they have the Kenny Browne brush, why not the " Kevin Hickman false rail, " up the " Bevan Lindsay Rise.".....see if equestrian Toddy is interested----- they're cumming round the " Sir Mark Todd homo turn " 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefton Posted July 21, 2018 Share Posted July 21, 2018 5 hours ago, Freda said: ...they get far less use year-on-year too......but you are quite right nonetheless...esp. about the 'experts'. Far less use fair comment Pam. But far less attention on a daily basis as well I imagine. My point is every one of these tracks they do up has problems(maybe not permanent problems but major problems for a long long time) I reckon Riccarton is only coming right now 22 or so years later (mind you you as a trainer will know far more about that than I). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomass Posted July 21, 2018 Share Posted July 21, 2018 21 hours ago, Poisoned Dwarf said: endless possibilities, Tom tit......lure them with naming rights for big money-----they have the Kenny Browne brush, why not the " Kevin Hickman false rail, " up the " Bevan Lindsay Rise.".....see if equestrian Toddy is interested----- they're cumming round the " Sir Mark Todd homo turn " Excellent idea PD...massaging egos is where it's at when it comes to opening pockets... Brendon might have something to say about sponsoring someone else's 'rise' however... What about 'Todd's curly top Bush' to keep it seemly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hesi Posted July 21, 2018 Author Share Posted July 21, 2018 Worth a watch, a lot of ??? info being put forward I notice a very informed poster, La Zip, talking about "the nylon cushion/underlay doesn't respond well to NZ type conditions" Why would that be the case, what is so unique about NZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poisoned Dwarf Posted July 21, 2018 Share Posted July 21, 2018 20 hours ago, Thomass said: Excellent idea PD...massaging egos is where it's at when it comes to opening pockets... Brendon might have something to say about sponsoring someone else's 'rise' however... What about 'Todd's curly top Bush' to keep it seemly? Even PoundforPoundinghisheadonabrickwall----- when he's finished paying child support for 5 kids, he may have enough left over to sponsor the SICK BAY ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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