HRNZ Joins The Sweepstake Subsidisation Folly.

[Chief Stipe]

I'm surprised no one has noticed or commented on the $150,000 that HRNZ is directly giving the Sweepstake Race - The Grins.

Not to mentiom the additional top up from the Cambridge Club.

Aren't these types of races supposed to be self funding i.e.by those who buy slots?

Do they actually earn enough revenue from punters to fund the additional top ups?

[mikeynz]

39 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

 

Do they actually earn enough revenue from punters to fund the additional top ups?

Probably not but they do help the rich get richer.

[the galah]

Some claimed hrnz have only ever contributed next to nothing to the race.  $150,000 seems a bit more than next to nothing.

One area of increased funding which i think seems short sighted, is the $2 million one off payment entain have asked hrnz to put into 2yo racing.

We all know that only a handful of stables and their connections will benefit. It seems very out of touch with where the industry would most benefit from extra funding.

Also,when most had been assuming that hrnz was trying to encourage longevity in a racehorses career to compensate for the lack of numbers being bred,they are sending a contradicting message by prioritizing funding for2 year old racing. 

I know its easy to pick holes in these type of things,but to me the more you read where the funding has gone,the more you realise they are still trying to please everyone.

[Brodie]

3 hours ago, Chief Stipe said:

I'm surprised no one has noticed or commented on the $150,000 that HRNZ is directly giving the Sweepstake Race - The Grins.

Not to mentiom the additional top up from the Cambridge Club.

Aren't these types of races supposed to be self funding i.e.by those who buy slots?

Do they actually earn enough revenue from punters to fund the additional top ups?

To be fair “The Race” is overhyped for what it is for harness racing!

Does anyone know how much “ Grins” actually contributes .
Yes harness racing needs promotion big time and good to see it in action!

However as previously stated it is just a transfer of funds from one high flyer to another existing harness participant!

We need to be attracting new blood to the industry and one race at Cambridge that is over in well under 3 minutes, I doubt does this!

Harness racing oncourse was once very popular with many thousands bon course every Saturday night at Addington with a great atmosphere and food fare wasnt much more  than Stevies pies or custard squares!

For the industry to thrive we need new people oncourse in bucket loads and wasting $150k of industry money on one race for the elite is not going to achieve this!

 

Edited July 23, 2023 by Brodie

[mikeynz]

Bit like sex, overhyped and it's over in less time than that, must be immature ejeculation.

[Brodie]

54 minutes ago, mikeynz said:

Bit like sex, overhyped and it's over in less time than that, must be immature ejeculation.

You must still be very verile Mikey!

[mikeynz]

Extremely fertile...............imagination.

Gee if you pay by the hour you would feel a bit short changed lol.

[Rangatira]

1 hour ago, Brodie said:

Harness racing oncourse was once very popular with many thousands bon course every Saturday night at Addington with a great atmosphere and food fare wasnt much more  than Stevies pies or custard squares!

Hot Dog caravan at the foot of the stairs leading to the New Brighton Room.

[mikeynz]

It's almost a long long tradition, the old pie or pottle of chips as the main cuisine on race night or showday or whatever, probably ain't improved much.

What about MrWhippy, is he contracted to the TAB to do desert .?

Edited July 23, 2023 by mikeynz

[mikeynz]

Sometimes I get a bit off course , the Xtra stakes probably won't increase horse numbers or owners or whatever, I still am curious as to what Entain thinks they will get back, I doubt turnovers will change.

If the grins race has funded itself as it is then hrnz should just leave it alone.

[Chief Stipe]

6 hours ago, mikeynz said:

If the grins race has funded itself as it is then hrnz should just leave it alone.

It will be interesting to see the Cambridge annual accounts.

[Rangatira]

On 23/07/2023 at 2:42 PM, Brodie said:

custard squares!

I never saw them ☹️

I have racked my brain all day and have to conclude they were behind the tote.

[paleface adios]

1 hour ago, Rangatira said:

I never saw them ☹️

I have racked my brain all day and have to conclude they were behind the tote.

owners ticket for free feed in the stable area 

[Rangatira]

4 minutes ago, paleface adios said:

owners ticket for free feed in the stable area 

Ah the other place I never went

[Rangatira]

5 minutes ago, paleface adios said:

owners ticket for free feed in the stable area 

Jack Hammer the brodster meal ticket.

[the galah]

On 23/07/2023 at 1:25 PM, the galah said:

Some claimed hrnz have only ever contributed next to nothing to the race.  $150,000 seems a bit more than next to nothing.

One area of increased funding which i think seems short sighted, is the $2 million one off payment entain have asked hrnz to put into 2yo racing.

We all know that only a handful of stables and their connections will benefit. It seems very out of touch with where the industry would most benefit from extra funding.

Also,when most had been assuming that hrnz was trying to encourage longevity in a racehorses career to compensate for the lack of numbers being bred,they are sending a contradicting message by prioritizing funding for2 year old racing. 

I know its easy to pick holes in these type of things,but to me the more you read where the funding has gone,the more you realise they are still trying to please everyone.

I see a write up on the hrnz website says the connections of any 2year old winning its first race from next year will get $8,000 for its first win and the breeder will get $4,000.

Or put it another way. The owners and breeders of every horse aged 3 or over will receive $12,000 less when winning their first race,than the owners/breeders of a 2 year old winner.

There is your answer as to who HRNZ prioritize, and who they don't.

Once people wake up and realise this is the case, i predict it will cause division and disenchantment amongst those who don't race or win 2 year old races,in other words 95% of the owners and breeders out there.

I don't have much idea who it is that makes these decisions,but its pretty obvious whoever these people are,which trainers they are looking after and who they almost certainly would get to train a horse they owned.You don't have to be einstein to work that out.

Edited July 25, 2023 by the galah

[the galah]

26 minutes ago, the galah said:

I see a write up on the hrnz website says the connections of any 2year old winning its first race from next year will get $8,000 for its first win and the breeder will get $4,000.

Or put it another way. The owners and breeders of every horse aged 3 or over will receive $12,000 less when winning their first race,than the owners/breeders of a 2 year old winner.

There is your answer as to who HRNZ prioritize, and who they don't.

Once people wake up and realise this is the case, i predict it will cause division and disenchantment amongst those who don't race or win 2 year old races,in other words 95% of the owners and breeders out there.

I don't have much idea who it is that makes these decisions,but its pretty obvious whoever these people are,which trainers they are looking after and who they almost certainly would get to train a horse they owned.You don't have to be einstein to work that out.

The only thing that is a little unclear is the wording,mick guerins article says it applies to a 2 year olds first totalisator win,whereas hrnz says its for their first win in a 2yo totalisator race.From guerins article he is working on the assumption that should a non win race be programmed for 2 year olds and above,that it applies.Which seems a fair assumption.

Edited July 25, 2023 by the galah

[the galah]

Interesting how they have done the pyramid on the HRNZ website which shows $3.4 million of the extra $5 million in stakes paid next year is going into "base" races.So what is deemed a base race?

Well the only way i could get a figure of $3.4 million was to add the provincial low key,provincial standard,the provincial features(excluding the country cups),all the metro meetings and the $750k  2year old bonuses. That came to $3.4 million.

So it seems the only races not considered base races are the country cup races,11 or so premier meetings,the 2 nz cup week meetings,and the race(cambridge).So that means all except about 155 races run each are classified as a "base" race by hrnz. 

It appears the cut off for their description of a base race is any race where the stake is under $20,000(which is the aforementioned 155 races per year). A bit of smoke and mirrors happening?

The anomaly of the $20,000 cut off is that when they run a race programmed for 2 year olds,if the winner is having its first 2 year old win,then that would mean that races stake/bonus would be well over $20,000.Strangely, if that occurs in a standard  2 year old race on a metro night,that race would be paying out more money than any standard premier race run all year.

The way they did their pyramid diagram seems strange as it doesn't progress in  numerical size increases. Good thing they didn't design the actual pyramids.

Edited July 26, 2023 by the galah

[Nowornever]

On 26/07/2023 at 3:56 PM, the galah said:

Interesting how they have done the pyramid on the HRNZ website which shows $3.4 million of the extra $5 million in stakes paid next year is going into "base" races.So what is deemed a base race?

Well the only way i could get a figure of $3.4 million was to add the provincial low key,provincial standard,the provincial features(excluding the country cups),all the metro meetings and the $750k  2year old bonuses. That came to $3.4 million.

So it seems the only races not considered base races are the country cup races,11 or so premier meetings,the 2 nz cup week meetings,and the race(cambridge).So that means all except about 155 races run each are classified as a "base" race by hrnz. 

It appears the cut off for their description of a base race is any race where the stake is under $20,000(which is the aforementioned 155 races per year). A bit of smoke and mirrors happening?

The anomaly of the $20,000 cut off is that when they run a race programmed for 2 year olds,if the winner is having its first 2 year old win,then that would mean that races stake/bonus would be well over $20,000.Strangely, if that occurs in a standard  2 year old race on a metro night,that race would be paying out more money than any standard premier race run all year.

The way they did their pyramid diagram seems strange as it doesn't progress in  numerical size increases. Good thing they didn't design the actual pyramids.

Giving the Race For Grins $150,000 is crap. How is that helping the hobby trainers or increasing the horse numbers and field sizes? I think the trotters got a raw deal as well. Anyway in two years when Entain starts restricting anyone who wins $100 the horse racing in NZ will quickly go downhill if it isn't dead and buried before then.