REPORT ON THE NOVEMBER ABANDONMENTS AT AWAPUNI & RICCARTON

[Chief Stipe]

2 hours ago, Special Agent said:

I don't agree it isn't the Track Manager's decision to renovate or rest the track, unless he is Track Manager in name only.  Is it not his job to manage the track?

Pat Reardon managed the Riccarton course proper, training tracks and grounds for many years.  He came from a farming background.  He knew what he was doing.  I'd call him a Track Manager rather than the Caretaker title he had.

For a "Track Manager" to not know how to mow correctly I'd have to firstly question the recruiting process.  Secondly is the chain of command and relationship between track management and board flawed?  Thirdly, there is always advice and support available, never be too proud to use it.

But if the Track Manager doesn't have enough budget and the Clubs spare cash is spent on hospitality and stakes what can he do?  Other than resign?  The buck stops with the CEO and the Board.

[Special Agent]

The whole situation sounds like Hicksville. 

There should be no poor management at any track in New Zealand.  There are good people available to teach and assist.  Some who have landed a good racing job under false pretenses have become too big for their boots.  Who in their right mind employs an expert and then tells them what to do or restricts their responsibilities?

NZTR will always bail these poor performing larger clubs out.

[Freda]

6 hours ago, Special Agent said:

The whole situation sounds like Hicksville. 

There should be no poor management at any track in New Zealand.  There are good people available to teach and assist.  Some who have landed a good racing job under false pretenses have become too big for their boots.  Who in their right mind employs an expert and then tells them what to do or restricts their responsibilities?

NZTR will always bail these poor performing larger clubs out.

No accountability.        Same old chestnut.     Just wait until Riccarton - or Awapuni - have another wee drama.    We'll get another report, more advice, etc, etc, but NO ONE will step up and say, I fucked up again, here's my notice.

[Assange]

Where do I find this on the  Loveracing site?

[Freda]

On 9/03/2023 at 5:45 AM, Freda said:

No accountability.        Same old chestnut.     Just wait until Riccarton - or Awapuni - have another wee drama.    We'll get another report, more advice, etc, etc, but NO ONE will step up and say, I fucked up again, here's my notice.

As S.A has pointed out, there are people only too willing to step up and advise and assist.      And I'm not overly thrilled with the NZSTI help.  It wouldn't be cheap to have their input and I'm not convinced, on the results we have seen so far, that it is fit for purpose wrt race tracks.

At least Riccarton has produced two very good surfaces since the November situation.

[Chief Stipe]

2 hours ago, Freda said:

At least Riccarton has produced two very good surfaces since the November situation.

Two "very good surfaces" in four months?!

[Special Agent]

11 hours ago, Chief Stipe said:

Two "very good surfaces" in four months?!

As an industry we should expect nothing less.  I know we can't go back but for goodness sake how the hell the track got to the stage it got to, a stage where the races couldn't run on the club's "money" day, is beyond belief.

As for thinking it's all about throwing money at the problem, there are a lot of heads that need to be read.

Now there's a little bit of pressure off, those at fault are strutting about like peacocks.

[Freda]

I didn't personally see this, but was told there was reference on Trackside about the proposed work to be undertaken at Randwick immediately now the Championships are over.

Anyone aware of this?

And to Reefton - how goes the battle with the RIB ?

[Chief Stipe]

2 hours ago, Freda said:

I didn't personally see this, but was told there was reference on Trackside about the proposed work to be undertaken at Randwick immediately now the Championships are over.

Are you moving to NSW?

[Freda]

1 hour ago, Chief Stipe said:

Are you moving to NSW?

WTF does that have to do with a perfectly [ I thought ] sensible question?

[Chief Stipe]

15 minutes ago, Freda said:

WTF does that have to do with a perfectly [ I thought ] sensible question?

I thought it was more relevant to update us on the proposed Riccarton Turf renovations.  

[Freda]

3 hours ago, Chief Stipe said:

I thought it was more relevant to update us on the proposed Riccarton Turf renovations.  

I thought that was all done and dusted...or at least, I'm not aware of any other plans afoot.

Edited April 16, 2023 by Freda

[aquaman]

8 hours ago, Freda said:

I didn't personally see this, but was told there was reference on Trackside about the proposed work to be undertaken at Randwick immediately now the Championships are over.

Anyone aware of this?

And to Reefton - how goes the battle with the RIB ?

Yes, they made reference the track would be getting plenty of sand straight after the last, as a beginning to work on the track. Nice win yesterday, got 12's.

[Freda]

1 hour ago, aquaman said:

Yes, they made reference the track would be getting plenty of sand straight after the last, as a beginning to work on the track. Nice win yesterday, got 12's.

Well done !

[Reefton]

14 hours ago, Freda said:

I didn't personally see this, but was told there was reference on Trackside about the proposed work to be undertaken at Randwick immediately now the Championships are over.

Anyone aware of this?

And to Reefton - how goes the battle with the RIB ?

Well I got a reply on Friday but they are arse covering.  I complained to the Minister but he washed his hands of it too.  It's a bloody joke

It ain't over yet and I am itching to get it up on BOAY but I have one more shot to fire

[Freda]

7 hours ago, Reefton said:

Well I got a reply on Friday but they are arse covering.  I complained to the Minister but he washed his hands of it too.  It's a bloody joke

It ain't over yet and I am itching to get it up on BOAY but I have one more shot to fire

I'm not surprised the Minister wasn't more help.  Apart from a minefield of petty rules for him to wade through, as Minister for Local Govt, and in election year, a racing matter would have to be a very low priority in his view.

[Freda]

15 hours ago, aquaman said:

Yes, they made reference the track would be getting plenty of sand straight after the last, as a beginning to work on the track. 

I did see videos of work implemented at Flemington coming out of winter and getting ready for the spring racing, and leading up to the Cup carnival.     It would appear that this type of renovation is done at LEAST annually and possibly more often with their major tracks.

I know Te Rapa had sand applied a few years back but that wasn't considered to be appropriately applied according to the adverse comment after.   But it seems to be racing ok now.

So one would hope that Riccarton, at least, has an ongoing programme of maintenance and renovation, similar to that undertaken after the Cup meeting drama.

But I don't have any information pertaining to that.

[Reefton]

4 hours ago, Freda said:

I'm not surprised the Minister wasn't more help.  Apart from a minefield of petty rules for him to wade through, as Minister for Local Govt, and in election year, a racing matter would have to be a very low priority in his view.

Yeah I did expect he would have other things on his mind just now

[Chief Stipe]

3 hours ago, Freda said:

did see videos of work implemented at Flemington coming out of winter and getting ready for the spring racing, and leading up to the Cup carnival.     It would appear that this type of renovation is done at LEAST annually and possibly more often with their major tracks.

Yes it is done annually and then about every 4 or 5 years they do a major overall.  Although the annual work leaves what has been done on our tracks in 25 years for dead.  I posted videos, pictures and articles from Flemington many times on BOAY.

In my opinion track maintenance and mamagement in Victoria is light years ahead of NZ and is more advanced than NSW. 

I've been disappointed in the state of Randwick and Rosehill over the last few seasons particularly Rosehill.  That said they take a lot of racing and can't recall the surface being unsafe perhaps an unfair bias but not unsafe.

[Chief Stipe]

23 minutes ago, Reefton said:

Yeah I did expect he would have other things on his mind just now

It's no excuse.  He, like every other Cabinet Minister in this Government, has a horde of highly politicised minions working for him.  No excuse for not responding.

I suspect however that those minions and this Government are Anti-Racing.  They're letting it die slowly.

[Chief Stipe]

3 hours ago, Freda said:

So one would hope that Riccarton, at least, has an ongoing programme of maintenance and renovation, similar to that undertaken after the Cup meeting drama.

But I don't have any information pertaining to that.

What break the habits of 30 years?  How will they pay for it in any case?  They have an AWT to maintain and they're struggle to pay for that.

Which major metro race track in NZ has a regular maintenance program other than verti-draining and pouring more and more sand on the tracks?

[Reefton]

9 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

It's no excuse.  He, like every other Cabinet Minister in this Government, has a horde of highly politicised minions working for him.  No excuse for not responding.

I suspect however that those minions and this Government are Anti-Racing.  They're letting it die slowly.

He responded - just said it was the RIB's problem(despite my complaint being that RIB officers, including the Chief Stipendiary Steward of NZ and the CEO of the RIB, had committed serious offences under the Rules of Racing(Rule 801(1) and Rule 802) by lying to Club officials).  In the case of the RIB Chairperson she just turned the investigation over to the CEO himself.    When he is the subject of the complaint that is simply ASTONISHING!

The lies(well making up 'facts') of course coming when attempting to justify the decision to call the races off.

All they need to do is acknowledge there was a serious error of judgment on the part of the Officiating Stipes and advise what steps they will be taking to ensure this does not happen again.  Wishing for some monetary compensation is a pipe dream I guess.

As part of the complaint process I have had reason to think of every fatality on NZ racecourses this century.  I can think of all eight and, insofar as I know, not one was due to the state of the track(I have to admit the Lawson serious incident was but the others??  Not one as far as I know)

Not that there was any track issue on our day anyway.  That is the whole point!

 

[Chief Stipe]

43 minutes ago, Reefton said:

As part of the complaint process I have had reason to think of every fatality on NZ racecourses this century. 

That's a bit one dimensional.  What about injuries?  How many fatalities were apprentices?

[Reefton]

2 hours ago, Chief Stipe said:

That's a bit one dimensional.  What about injuries?  How many fatalities were apprentices?

What do you mean 'one dimensional'?  Clearly (and rightly so) at the time of our meeting the Ashburton tragedy was fresh in people's minds - mine included - so I can understand serious concerns about track conditions.

However when I thought of it the recent two were both interference, Hewy and Rebecca Peters were both hurdle incidents, my understanding is the Rebecca Black, Jo McGartland and Ashley Mundy calamities were getting on heels and the other one was the tragic Sam McRae case were his foot went through the iron.

I hate bringing those cases up lest someone close to one of those people is on BOAY so lets not dwell on them but the bottom line is track conditions did not cause any of them.

If I had the slightest doubt that that track was not safe to race on I would definitely pull the pin of my own volition.  The issue is that the track was unquestionably safe but these guys are clutching at straws trying to defend their stance that there was a safety issue.  They do not have one tiny tiny tiny piece of evidence that the track was unsafe.  What they do have is a video of a rider trying repeatedly to push his way out who's horse gets bumped back in and immediately appears to go offstride.  They(the Stipes) elected not to consider the possibility that there was a breach of riding standards but focused on track issues.  Despite being unable to find any evidence whatsoever of a slip or skid (and remember I was with them) they decided to abandon the meeting.  Several vastly experienced riders, trainers  and our Secretary an ex stipe himself all examined the area and not one  could find any evidence of a slip or skid.

And the BS they have made up in subsequent correspondence about the horse slipping more than once and there being multiple slips in the race......  How come none of that was reported in the initial stewards report?

This is an effing joke

 

 

 

 

[Special Agent]

Sounds like a witch hunt.