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

[Joe Bloggs]

6 hours ago, Freda said:

Don't forget this is the guy who had to ask ' do you gallop them every day ? '    ye gods...

And, for me [ self-interest foremost here ]   a huge concern is where we will work our horses, both during and after installation.

To be fair, that is not Saundry's job to work out, nor is it the mandate of the engineers, but the CJC must provide some idea going forward.

I gather the idea of an underpass to get access to the inside tracks without contaminating the AWT is considered too expensive, so the track layout will be, from outside in, course proper, allweather, another grass gallop,and the middle [which currently provides three smaller gallop grasses, a small sand, a reverse cinder track, a frost grass, as well as hurdle/steeple grasses ] .

The middle tracks are reported to be going, to guard against contamination.  Inside, will be created small lakes to hold the run-off from the water applied to the AWT, so, unless some innovative thinking comes about, there seems to be no provision for slow working horses other than on the allweather.

The excellent plough, big and small trial gallops and the big sand will be swallowed up by the AWT.

 

 

Any consultation with this? or was it just Mills and his glove puppet.....again.

[Joe Bloggs]

3 hours ago, Huey said:

You can't expect them to make a plan for the future Freda, I would suspect they will expect you to work your horses around the local cricket ground and up and down country roads while they put this amazing facility in.

Don't be silly, Freda needs somewhere to gallop them everyday, can't do that on country roads, maybe the cricket ground though, ask Bernie.

[curious]

8 hours ago, Freda said:

Don't forget this is the guy who had to ask ' do you gallop them every day ? '    ye gods...

He's the CEO. He would only need to have rocked up for trackwork anywhere in the country for one morning to know the answer to that question. It's insane.

 

[curious]

On 11/09/2020 at 3:24 PM, Freda said:

I'm afraid so.

  I'm staggered that road-shows up and down the country can be justified when there is nothing specific to say..?

If that doesn't ring alarm bells for those who attended.....oh dear.

They are a complete waste of time. Have been for years. They won't answer any questions with any hard data. You may get a free beer and a sausage roll but otherwise you'd be better off staying home and having a snooze on the couch.

[nomates]

The lack of detail that BS provides in the above interview which followed on from the roadshow suggests that they haven't done a proper feasibility study or costings on building and maintaining the A/W's . Which if true is just staggering , surely if they had done costings etc then they would be only too happy to provide them , it's not like it's sensitive information . The whole situation smacks of amateur hour .

[Chief Stipe]

4 minutes ago, nomates said:

The lack of detail that BS provides in the above interview which followed on from the roadshow suggests that they haven't done a proper feasibility study or costings on building and maintaining the A/W's . Which if true is just staggering , surely if they had done costings etc then they would be only too happy to provide them , it's not like it's sensitive information . The whole situation smacks of amateur hour .

I'm really surprised.  I was involved in formulating a proposal for funds from the PGF and it was a lengthy process requiring extraordinary detail in terms of costing, maintenance and benefits.

Either it wasn't done for the AWT's (which would have political implications) or Racing Administrators are not being transparent.

[Joe Bloggs]

25 minutes ago, nomates said:

The lack of detail that BS provides in the above interview which followed on from the roadshow suggests that they haven't done a proper feasibility study or costings on building and maintaining the A/W's . Which if true is just staggering , surely if they had done costings etc then they would be only too happy to provide them , it's not like it's sensitive information . The whole situation smacks of amateur hour .

Would you lend these lunatics money? ASB must have shit for brains, and as for the GOV handing over the dosh to people that have no business acumen at all........its more than a joke, it's bloody tragic, not to mention treacherous    ........

[nomates]

25 minutes ago, Joe Bloggs said:

Would you lend these lunatics money? ASB must have shit for brains, and as for the GOV handing over the dosh to people that have no business acumen at all........its more than a joke, it's bloody tragic, not to mention treacherous    ........

I've said it before , i wouldn't let them run a dairy . The PDF money was just Peters trying to buy the racing votes , but it wont work this time .

[Joe Bloggs]

Yep

[Reefton]

15 hours ago, curious said:

They are a complete waste of time. Have been for years. They won't answer any questions with any hard data. You may get a free beer and a sausage roll but otherwise you'd be better off staying home and having a snooze on the couch.

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 most irritating things of the lot.  They are spending industry funds on catering which is not required. The bloody meetings are only for two hours and they insist on lavish spreads???  Even when I travelled ten hours to Oamaru after the Messara report - for Gods sake I will buy my own pie and a drink if I want one.  They even insisted on catering when Bernard came to the Coast to meet us.

It is minor expenditure but it is the sense of entitlement that annoys me and again the spending of money willy nilly when the industry is in trouble.

[Reefton]

14 hours ago, Chief Stipe said:

I'm really surprised.  I was involved in formulating a proposal for funds from the PGF and it was a lengthy process requiring extraordinary detail in terms of costing, maintenance and benefits.

Either it wasn't done for the AWT's (which would have political implications) or Racing Administrators are not being transparent.

Ah you see - you guys didn't have the leader of the PGF party in your pocket to rubber stamp the application immediately.

No need for detail, full investigation or planning with Win on the team!

[curious]

15 hours ago, Chief Stipe said:

Either it wasn't done for the AWT's (which would have political implications) or Racing Administrators are not being transparent.

Probably both.

[Joe Bloggs]

3 hours ago, Reefton said:

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 most irritating things of the lot.  They are spending industry funds on catering which is not required. The bloody meetings are only for two hours and they insist on lavish spreads???  Even when I travelled ten hours to Oamaru after the Messara report - for Gods sake I will buy my own pie and a drink if I want one.  They even insisted on catering when Bernard came to the Coast to meet us.

It is minor expenditure but it is the sense of entitlement that annoys me and again the spending of money willy nilly when the industry is in trouble.

What a shame you don't have an investigative TV show like Sixty Minutes or Four Corners like we have, something meaty, something the general public could get right into, because sure as hell there is a story here, 10 years plus worth, the salaries, the results, the attitude and the ineptitude.......and apathy, did I mention apathy, yep apathy......the 10's of millions of dollars pissed up against the wall, by a long queue of hopeless ineffective and questionable salarymen and women who either didn't have a clue or didn't give a fukc........as long as the eagle crapped every month........it's never too late, just read peterprofit.com re the story of the so called 'man' who was in the motel room with the trainers wife when she died and ended up in South Australia running the Trots, or cheats on seats, whatever it is at Globe Derby now, ah for Wayville and the days of Cardigan Bay......anyway, Archie Butterfly didn't hold back, why there is not a national inquiry as to how the GOV had to bail out racing is a damnation, a blight on integrity.....my lawyer would love a commission from Jacinda to look into the machinations of the collapse of NZ racing, if I could get him out of the surf at Burleigh! apathetic bastard he is.

[Freda]

4 hours ago, Joe Bloggs said:

What a shame you don't have an investigative TV show like Sixty Minutes or Four Corners like we have, something meaty, something the general public could get right into, because sure as hell there is a story here, 10 years plus worth, the salaries, the results, the attitude and the ineptitude.......and apathy, did I mention apathy, yep apathy......the 10's of millions of dollars pissed up against the wall, by a long queue of hopeless ineffective and questionable salarymen and women who either didn't have a clue or didn't give a fukc........as long as the eagle crapped every month........it's never too late, just read peterprofit.com re the story of the so called 'man' who was in the motel room with the trainers wife when she died and ended up in South Australia running the Trots, or cheats on seats, whatever it is at Globe Derby now, ah for Wayville and the days of Cardigan Bay......anyway, Archie Butterfly didn't hold back, why there is not a national inquiry as to how the GOV had to bail out racing is a damnation, a blight on integrity.....my lawyer would love a commission from Jacinda to look into the machinations of the collapse of NZ racing, if I could get him out of the surf at Burleigh! apathetic bastard he is.

Don't forget Shreck and Compton's Mrs....or our own Head of ' Integrity' and his own motel acrobatics...as well as his henchman who helped him escape the scene....it goes on,  Clinton, Profumo, your next door neighbour;  and we do have 60 Minutes here too.

But the millions pissed up a wall would never rate a mention, too commonplace, no-one cares, or notices, Govts change but the Civil Service run the show, to the man in the street nothing alters.

[Joe Bloggs]

You know, you're right, any business would collapse with management like this, however, public companies with shareholders hold annual meetings, Ive been to a few, I bet you have too, you get to throw questions to the CEO from the floor, you can take the board to task, in person, and, if the floor ain't happy, you can move a no confidence motion and Volia, you see action before your very eyes......it's been wonderful to see the mayhem unfold, and CEO leave the stage with his tail between his legs.

As NZRB weren't a public company they got away with carnage, how a responsible government allowed the reformation in this form is disgraceful, you will end up back where you were before, it's going ok for some at the moment, but the train wreck is coming, once the debt rebuilds, and as it's only deferred, it will of course, come back to haunt everyone, all you stakeholders, but not the salaried elite who are answerable to the invisible man.......good luck to all of you, you're going to need it.

[Freda]

As a matter of interest,  I had a chat with one of the few trainers who attended the ' roadshow '  , he confirmed there was little information to share.

No financial plan, and according to him, no means to cover the extra costs and/ or maintenance. 

One interesting point he made, as informed by an owner of his whom I think would know, apparently PGF funding has to be repaid in some cases....it is advanced as an interest-free loan, not a gift.

[Pitman]

2 hours ago, Freda said:

As a matter of interest,  I had a chat with one of the few trainers who attended the ' roadshow '  , he confirmed there was little information to share.

No financial plan, and according to him, no means to cover the extra costs and/ or maintenance. 

One interesting point he made, as informed by an owner of his whom I think would know, apparently PGF funding has to be repaid in some cases....it is advanced as an interest-free loan, not a gift.

Only if it doesn’t go ahead, 

[Noodlum]

2 minutes ago, Pitman said:

Only if it doesn’t go ahead, 

But if it hasn't gone ahead it hasn't been spent.  I would assume that the money is sitting in Treasury's bank account and will be released as required.  I imagine there is a lot of planning and environmental consent hurdles to get over first.

[Freda]

2 hours ago, Noodlum said:

But if it hasn't gone ahead it hasn't been spent.  I would assume that the money is sitting in Treasury's bank account and will be released as required.  I imagine there is a lot of planning and environmental consent hurdles to get over first.

Yes, i think that would be the case.

[Pitman]

I understand the full amount is $10.5 million the $500,000 is for research, consents, etc.

 

[curious]

On 15/09/2020 at 11:03 AM, Pitman said:

I understand the full amount is $10.5 million the $500,000 is for research, consents, etc.

 

I heard that Tim reckoned the maintenance cost would be $50k a year. However Saundry is on record as saying there is a 250k cost every 3-5 years just to replenish the binding material. Did anyone make any sense of that?

[Pitman]

50 minutes ago, curious said:

I heard that Tim reckoned the maintenance cost would be $50k a year. However Saundry is on record as saying there is a 250k cost every 3-5 years just to replenish the binding material. Did anyone make any sense of that?

You are right maintenance is $50 to $60 k that’s an average wage for one person that’s all

don't think your other figures and time frame are correct

[curious]

3 minutes ago, Pitman said:

You are right maintenance is $50 to $60 k that’s an average wage for one person that’s all

don't think your other figures and time frame are correct

Well that's what he reportedly said:

Every three to five years synthetic tracks require major maintenance with the replenishment of polymer and fibres. This costs about $250,000.

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12096773

What has changed? That is excluding the need for full surface replacement every 8-10 years, day to day maintenance and irrigation so it doesn't blow away in the norwester etc.

[Chief Stipe]

13 minutes ago, Pitman said:

You are right maintenance is $50 to $60 k that’s an average wage for one person that’s all

don't think your other figures and time frame are correct

That's rubbish.

1.  Grooming twice a day x 7 days a week.  More effort on raceday;

2.  Cleaning at least once a day;

3.  Watering when required;

4.  Replacement of displaced poly "fill" weekly;

5.  Complete rehab every 5 years at a cost of $250k;

6.....

Geez did you have a mouth full of sausage rolls at question time?

 

[Chief Stipe]

Was there a PowerPoint presentation we can post on BOAY?