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Bit Of A Yarn

Save The West Coast Racing!


Newmarket

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14 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

I wasn't attacking the remaining tracks just pointing out the hypocrisy.

Hokitika has been OK since 1884.  Whey does it need to be changed?

 

Dead right, cant say hoki worse than kumara. 

A mate reminded me recently, that Kumara is the only racecourse that he had attended, and saw a rabbit and possum on the same day. Gotta go to the local zoo if your in town to see that. 

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47 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

One thing you have to remember Newmarket is that the West Coast is very territorial!  Note how Reefton called Hokitika "Westland"?

There are four or five "provinces" on the West Coast!!

 

Bit mischievous there CS.  'Westland' refers to the Westland Racing Club of course which runs out of Hokitika.  I am not particularly parochial hence living in Greymouth but being the President of the Reefton Jockey Club(which is the Buller District)

I've been Mr Popularity today though.  Two news papers and two radio stations asking for my views.  I hope Winston isn't of a sensitive disposition!

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Just now, Reefton said:

Bit mischievous there CS.  'Westland' refers to the Westland Racing Club of course which runs out of Hokitika.  I am not particularly parochial hence living in Greymouth but being the President of the Reefton Jockey Club(which is the Buller District)

I've been Mr Popularity today though.  Two news papers and two radio stations asking for my views.  I hope Winston isn't of a sensitive disposition!

All good Reefton.  ?

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1 hour ago, Newmarket said:

Been going to westport trots since mid 80s, never can remember gallops in that time. Someone a little older, or wiser may tell us

I remember Westport gallops, always popular.

Think from memory they were denied a licence by NZTR but stand to be corrected  .

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19 hours ago, Reefton said:

I thought something about the size of Cromwell - 1800m with chutes for 1200m, 1600m and maybe 2200m starts

Give you a good view of proceedings and down by the beach so it was free draining.  Good wide track with a trotting track inside

I am sure Te Rapa, Awapuni and Ellerslie are doing their best but they have a habit of getting 'experts' in  who cock everything up.  That is the problem in all facets of life - the minute a 'consultant' is hired there will be a balls up.

Anyway us attacking the remaining clubs will not do any good

 

Well said Reefer, everyone's moaning already, why not be like   KFE a.k.a KFC  and smell the roses and flowers and think lovely and positive all the time ?

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34 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

I wasn't attacking the remaining tracks just pointing out the hypocrisy.

Hokitika has been OK since 1884.  Whey does it need to be changed?

 

Well rather than try to put it in writing could I direct you to the NZTR website and the videos of the Hoki raceday from January 2017.  Have a look and then see if you can assess the issues with the Hokitika Racecourse.  Only thing I will say is there was not a lot of dust flying that day.

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Just now, Reefton said:

Well rather than try to put it in writing could I direct you to the NZTR website and the videos of the Hoki raceday from January 2017.  Have a look and then see if you can assess the issues with the Hokitika Racecourse.  Only thing I will say is there was not a lot of dust flying that day.

True.  But it has been like that since I was a kid helping Dad paint fences!  I used to run round the track - firm to the top of the hill and a deep bog all the way down to the top of the home straight.

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12 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

True.  But it has been like that since I was a kid helping Dad paint fences!  I used to run round the track - firm to the top of the hill and a deep bog all the way down to the top of the home straight.

And when you say deep bog we are talking serious serious depth! Like about 1.29 for a 1200m maiden depth

A heavy 38 rating

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Just now, Reefton said:

And when you say deep bog we are talking serious serious depth! Like about 1.29 for a 1200m maiden depth

A heavy 38 rating

Yep but everyone knew that!  No surprises!  

Which reminds me as a member of the local Harrier club we used to train round that course.  Plus my favourite cross country race of the year was the Omoto Steeplechase (for humans not horses!).  Colman Creagh (ex-raceday starter for gallopers!), Eddie Grey, Dave McKenzie all used to run that in their day.  16 fences a lap!

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1 minute ago, Reefton said:

And when you say deep bog we are talking serious serious depth! Like about 1.29 for a 1200m maiden depth

A heavy 38 rating

But thats what people expect from the coast, only time i go to the races with gumboots in the car. 

Thats why trainers go to the coast, hoping for a bog track to suit their nag.

This report does make me laugh a bit, every sat on trackside we are shown aus racing from coast like tracks? How come they are still going?

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Just now, Newmarket said:

But thats what people expect from the coast, only time i go to the races with gumboots in the car. 

Thats why trainers go to the coast, hoping for a bog track to suit their nag.

This report does make me laugh a bit, every sat on trackside we are shown aus racing from coast like tracks? How come they are still going?

Because we don't pay for the upkeep at some strange sounding name racecourse in the Aussie outback.  

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1 hour ago, Chief Stipe said:

Yep but everyone knew that!  No surprises!  

Which reminds me as a member of the local Harrier club we used to train round that course.  Plus my favourite cross country race of the year was the Omoto Steeplechase (for humans not horses!).  Colman Creagh (ex-raceday starter for gallopers!), Eddie Grey, Dave McKenzie all used to run that in their day.  16 fences a lap!

He was a good bit of stuff Dave McKenzie!  Good bloke too

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Greymouth deserves to go

Committee has always thought they were above everybody else with one exception JJ O'Donnell. Floods too often suspect track every other year

Kumara can't possibly be the best track absolutely no infrastructure for horses or people and not worth spending money on

Hokitika do try hard but track is probably worth more than all the other clubs put together locality, locality

That leaves Reefton both town and track  have good accomodation for human and equine possibly could become circuit with Blenheim

For mine Reefton should stay and other clubs should support them

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19 hours ago, Pitman said:

Greymouth deserves to go

Committee has always thought they were above everybody else with one exception JJ O'Donnell. Floods too often suspect track every other year

Kumara can't possibly be the best track absolutely no infrastructure for horses or people and not worth spending money on

Hokitika do try hard but track is probably worth more than all the other clubs put together locality, locality

That leaves Reefton both town and track  have good accomodation for human and equine possibly could become circuit with Blenheim

For mine Reefton should stay and other clubs should support them

Yeah, a 3-day carnival at Reefton in that 2nd or 3rd week of January.

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6 hours ago, Newmarket said:

Been going to westport trots since mid 80s, never can remember gallops in that time. Someone a little older, or wiser may tell us

Last meeting there was 1996, they tried many dates over the years, all to no avail, by far the best track on the coast as far as going drainage and a sandy base, did have the last two races abandoned  many years ago, then a nice horse called mutual belle came out straight after and done an exhibition gallop with no issues, may have been ridden by Jackie Jamison, was a long time ago, so stand to be corrected on the rider, Kumara would be the worst track to keep, pity they had fiddled with it some years ago, never had any abandonments before the upgrade, weather it was fine for a month  or rain, it never changed, was like a soft sponge. Westport trots are very successful, but like the galloping club they struggle outside of those Xmas dates, the March meeting taken up from greymouth trots, but I think they struggle with that meeting, in my opinion reefton track the next best, but nothing wrong with greymouth or hokitika. 

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3 minutes ago, Shad said:

Last meeting there was 1996, they tried many dates over the years, all to no avail, by far the best track on the coast as far as going drainage and a sandy base, did have the last two races abandoned  many years ago, then a nice horse called mutual belle came out straight after and done an exhibition gallop with no issues, may have been ridden by Jackie Jamison, was a long time ago, so stand to be corrected on the rider, Kumara would be the worst track to keep, pity they had fiddled with it some years ago, never had any abandonments before the upgrade, weather it was fine for a month  or rain, it never changed, was like a soft sponge. Westport trots are very successful, but like the galloping club they struggle outside of those Xmas dates, the March meeting taken up from greymouth trots, but I think they struggle with that meeting, in my opinion reefton track the next best, but nothing wrong with greymouth or hokitika. 

Yep, you're right re Kumara, the more it got  'improved'  the less reliable it became.

Definitely the worst track to keep....but worth stuff all so lip service can be seen to be paid to ' keep a racing presence in the district ' .....and flog off the most valuable, Hokitika.

Except the committee won't let that happen so I think we can forget racing on the Coast.

Kumara can't stand alone.

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20 minutes ago, Shad said:

Last meeting there was 1996, they tried many dates over the years, all to no avail, by far the best track on the coast as far as going drainage and a sandy base, did have the last two races abandoned  many years ago, then a nice horse called mutual belle came out straight after and done an exhibition gallop with no issues, may have been ridden by Jackie Jamison, was a long time ago, so stand to be corrected on the rider, Kumara would be the worst track to keep, pity they had fiddled with it some years ago, never had any abandonments before the upgrade, weather it was fine for a month  or rain, it never changed, was like a soft sponge. Westport trots are very successful, but like the galloping club they struggle outside of those Xmas dates, the March meeting taken up from greymouth trots, but I think they struggle with that meeting, in my opinion reefton track the next best, but nothing wrong with greymouth or hokitika. 

Wow, 

Mind you i did drink a bit in the 80s, ? only ever remember harness at westport

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