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A Boutique South Island Trainer Looking For Horses Needing A Change Of Scenery
NOTICE TO BOAY'ers: Major Update Coming

Riccarton All Weather Track - Q & A Forum 16 September 2020 - PLEASE READ.

Pitman

By Pitman
in Galloping Chat

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curious Grand Master

curious

Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, Freda said:

Not to mention the  difficulty of getting permission to take as much water as is needed...and Chief mentioned 28 deg temperatures here in Canterbury...we have week after week of more that 30 in the summer ffs...how does the water permit look then?

And the surface will blow away in the nor' wester if they don't keep it damp. You may end up with some mulching your garden Freda.

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Reefton
Reefton

Fair comment. Yesterday I was thinking to myself how I would summarize racing's ills in a sentance Run by a bunch of people who vastly over-rate their own ability, vastly over-rate their own

Reefton
Reefton

Thats always been my attitude.  Utter waste of time.  Very rarely if ever have I attended one nor their monthly dial in BS sessions. And as for a free beer and a sausage roll - well that is one of the

Reefton
Reefton

I think you are being a bit tough on Hoki there Michael (1) they did NOT accumulate that money through racing activities - it came from the sale of land up the hill behind the racecourse.  Land t

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Chief Stipe Grand Master

Chief Stipe

Posted
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Just now, curious said:

They'll need a slick new irrigation system to be able to water it evenly in the summer nor'wests. How much will that cost and is that factored in?

Yeah na - they'll just hire Addington's water truck.  That aside I notice that Pakenham only allows trackwork between 4-9am each day on the Polytrack.

If they have a raceday what will be the watering and grooming rules during the day?  Punters nightmare!

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Reefton Veteran

Reefton

Posted
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28 minutes ago, Freda said:

I also understand, that the then Housing Minister, Nick Smith, who was also the Minister of Conservation,  was only able to swing the sale of the portion referred to by ensuring that Ngai Tahu were in the frame first...and that housing as opposed to commercial developments were specified.  National needed housing.

Of course,  Ngai Tahu are under no such constraints, with the on-sale to Ryman Healthcare of a nice chunk of the property.

Ngai Tahu, under their treaty settlement, have first dibs on any crown land that comes up for sale.  Clearly in this case the land was considered crown land.  Nick Smith would not have swung anything it would just be Ngai Tahu exercising their right.

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Reefton Veteran

Reefton

Posted
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4 minutes ago, Reefton said:

What I mean is they should have approached the Trustees years ago with a view to 'buying' the land and therefore having the freehold title for themselves. 

For instance Greymouth's land was, I understand, held in a Community Trust but the Club took steps to buy it off the crown(long before Treaty Settlements of course and given its habit of being covered in six feet plus of water Ngai Tahu might not have wanted it anyway)

 

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curious Grand Master

curious

Posted
Posted
7 minutes ago, Reefton said:

What I mean is they should have approached the Trustees years ago with a view to 'buying' the land and therefore having the freehold title for themselves. 

There may have been a window for that at some stage but the CJC are in the racing business, not the land spec/development business, so why would they?

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Chief Stipe Grand Master

Chief Stipe

Posted
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I'll ask again - what would the value of the land that Riccarton is on be worth?

Contrary to Pitty's view I'm not negative and delusional I just think that if the industry is going to survive it needs to think outside the square.  The current Riccarton site cannot provide a modern training and racing facility that "makes us a world leader"!

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Freda Grand Master

Freda

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23 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

I'll ask again - what would the value of the land that Riccarton is on be worth?

Contrary to Pitty's view I'm not negative and delusional I just think that if the industry is going to survive it needs to think outside the square.  The current Riccarton site cannot provide a modern training and racing facility that "makes us a world leader"!

I'm not negative either,  nor against AWT's.

But the cost, both initially and ongoing, the requirements of manpower,  expertise and machinery and the reduction and/or elimination of pretty fair training facilities as they stand, is hard to justify against a background of dropping revenues and interest with absolutely no indication that returns will be increased significantly - as well a loading extra costs onto trainers/owners.   

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Chief Stipe Grand Master

Chief Stipe

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3 minutes ago, Freda said:

dropping revenues

That's the key.  AWT's are not going to increase revenues as punters don't like them.  Especially when it's the same horses running week in week out.

If you look at Harness 77 race meetings at Addington for the year is going to kill the punter interest AND the enthusiast.

What's the bet that Sunday's meeting on the grass at Methven will cream Friday nights Addington meeting in terms of revenue?

 

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Reefton

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43 minutes ago, curious said:

There may have been a window for that at some stage but the CJC are in the racing business, not the land spec/development business, so why would they?

Did Foxton always own its own land?  It just strikes me a as way to secure your future to own the ground you walk on that's all.  I was not suggesting they should have brought it to develop or subdivide(at the time when racing was booming and they probably had money in the bank there probably was not the demand for housing in the area) but just to secure their future on the property.  Not doing now leaves them in a very susceptible position if they were to choose to do the common sense thing and relocate. 

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curious Grand Master

curious

Posted
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2 minutes ago, Reefton said:

Did Foxton always own its own land?  It just strikes me a as way to secure your future to own the ground you walk on that's all.  I was not suggesting they should have brought it to develop or subdivide(at the time when racing was booming and they probably had money in the bank there probably was not the demand for housing in the area) but just to secure their future on the property.  Not doing now leaves them in a very susceptible position if they were to choose to do the common sense thing and relocate. 

No Foxton is similar. Crown land. http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/provincial/1869/0003/latest/whole.html

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Chief Stipe Grand Master

Chief Stipe

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4 minutes ago, curious said:

No. It apparently doesn't make sense to race there anymore. Just send 180 horses round at the trials this week and probably similar in a couple of weeks time. I wonder where all those horses will actually race.

Great course - good surface - history - new facilities - yeah na we need to run them round on the poly at palmy!

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