Rusty

Cam Jones is just another individual in this great game of ours, that makes me bloody sick. And as for asking for a 12 month penalty, the bloody cheek of it! The Flexadin tin... that may have been the label on the tin. But what was actually in the thing? Gee, it's times like this I can't help but wonder what kind of penalty the HKJC would have handed out.

Pretty sure it was the Auckland starter, Mr Phelan saying "Riiiiiiiggght" last night. He soon got the hang of the speed of the mobile, and by all accounts they weren't going the wrong way (the Auckland way) round the track. Good stuff.

Race 7, 1980m start, a bit lighter on the gas, and the start was perfect.

To my untrained eye the mobile is going a bit faster than normal immediately prior to the release point at the 1980m, making it very difficult for the outside horses to be up on the arm at the start.

Race 6 start is also interesting.

Sorry Karrots, I can't answer the questions you have posed. I don't know the correct answers, for the first two questions, and with the third, I don't really wish to share my opinion on that, and not knowing the full details, I couldn't offer a fully informed opinion anyway, so it's pointless.

Promo now extended, and t & c's amended. Bets to be placed prior to 31 July.

Oh and how could you not mention the reparation at $25 per week?! I feel so sorry for the victims.

Good observation Karrots. Simply the greatest ever horseman/person to put a bridle onto a horse, C Ferguson. What a fantastic strike rate indeed. Like you say, really positive stuff. I stand to be corrected, but I think he looked after Bensons Mate at Winton last year (when he won by 7 lengths), on behalf of Cam Jones.

Hey Karrots, good to have you check back in. Look forward to seeing your posts again. Happy and I are all over it, like fat kids in a bakery!

He sent photos of some fictitious horse to the owner. Now he is working as an apprentice photographer. Couldn't make this sh!t up. Lucky not to have been sent to the big house.

Got off very light.

This sounds like a good promo from the TAB. "Place a Futures Winner bet through your TAB Account and if your runner does not start in the final field we'll refund your bet/s (up to $50) as a Bonus Bet*!" I've placed a few bets on the Cox Plate, Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup with this promo in mind. I was about to place some more bets on these races, but thought I would read up on the fine print first. Despite the promo being advertised today, one of the conditions reads: "Promotion available on Qualifying Bets placed prior to 30 April 2022." Does anyone know if this promo has been extended? TIA

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New Friday night Harness TV Channel 18 May 2022 A channel broadcasting harness racing, and only harness racing, will be launched this Friday. For every Friday night for the next six weeks Trot Night will be broadcast on Sky Channel 83 from 5.30pm to 10.30pm. It's a trial its backers hope will become permanent. This week it will feature the two meetings at Alexandra Park and Addington, with all races broadcast live. "Your Friday nights won't be the same," says Jamie MacKinnon, the Auckland Trotting Club president who's behind the new show, "there'll be no greyhound racing or racing from unknown parts of the world. It will be wall-to-wall harness for five hours." MacKinnon's been working on the concept since 2019. "Ideally we want every Friday night to have a live harness race every 15 minutes just like the thoroughbreds have on a Saturday afternoon." Trot Night will feature co-hosts, Karen Teague and Jason Teaz backed up by reporters Jo Stevens at Alexandra Park and Nigel Armstrong at Addington. The TAB have agreed to allow the show to tap into Craig The Whale’s preview of every race, as well as broadcast each domestic race live (complete with dividends). The show will also be available on Facebook and Youtube. Trackside will broadcast the two meetings as per usual. The new show will be funded by the ATC, HRNZ and sponsors Woodlands Stud and Stonewall Stud. At the end of the six-week trial an in-depth review will be conducted with the clubs involved, HRNZ and the TAB. “If we are successful in attracting and growing the audience expectations are that Trot Night will become a regular Friday night event,” says MacKinnon, "but we realise that six weeks is not long to build an audience." The next 6 weeks looks like this on Sky Channel 83 from 5.30pm - 10.30 pm. May 20 – Alexandra Park and Addington May 27 – Alexandra Park and Addington June 3 – Cambridge June 10 – Alexandra Park June 17 – Addington June 24 – Addington

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Bloody sad. My first thoughts are with the horse's connections. Anyone that has lost a horse knows what it's like. Sure makes for a long, lonely, sad journey, pulling an empty horse float home from the racecourse. Two days holiday for B Orange hmmmm. I can't help but think if a different driver was in the sulky, what the penalty would have been. What would Colleen Negus get? Or Sam Thornley? Or how about Colin DeFilippi? The rules of racing are the same for all participants. But how they are enforced and the penalties imposed, are in my opinion quite different, depending upon the individual that breaks the rules. The stipes report makes mention that Orange is NZ's busiest driver. So 2 days holiday is going to be a greater number of driving opportunities than most other drivers. Orange made a mistake, and either directly, or indirectly, resulted in a horse dying. Noone is perfect, and we all make mistakes. But Orange got off light. But in this jurisdiction, under the current regime no one is surprised, and unfortunately, Happy, it appears noone on this platform anyway, gives enough of a toss to pass comment on it. "That's racing." Is the phrase that comes to mind. Well if "that's racing" they can indeed shove it where the sun doesn't shine. R.I.P Ready I Am.

Next year the meeting is to be held on a Friday night.

I couldn't care less if you agree or disagree, you are fully entitled to your own opinion. I'm reminded of a quote from William G McAdoo; "It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument." So I shan't bother engaging further. I have said my piece.

Clueless.

So one of the key take-away messages from that news article is the same as what I have been saying since the early 90's; Not all illegal performace enhancing drugs are (a) tested for, and (b) detectable when a horse is swabbed. Too many naive followers of the sport (usually casual observers, or punters, and not those actually working in the sport), simply believe that because swab testing is not revealing positive results, then all is hunky dory and there is nothing to see here, and you can't dare even remotely suggest otherewise, as "you have no evidence." Well I do. I just elect not to share it in a public forum. Performance enhancing drugs that are not detectable with swabbing practices (at the time) have been occuring in NZ since as long as I can remember, and there is no reason to think it has changed now. The authorities in this country, and every country I suspect, do the best job they possibly can, within the limitations of their available resources at their disposal. "Garage chemists" as the aforementioned article describes them, have been around for decades, and will continue to be, for so long as there is stakemoney in racing, with inadequate testing facilities.

No volcanoes Karrots. Personally, I think there is greater chance of an earthquake that gives a specific region a short, sharp jolt when they are least expecting it. The shockwaves will however be felt far and wide. When it occurs however, is anyone's guess. But it's just a matter of time. It's not if, but when. Remember the old EQC slogan back in the day? "Fix. Fasten. Forget." In Christchurch noone really took earthquakes too seriously, until it was too late. My point being the same thing will happen with this hushed up MOU between MPI, SPCA and the RIB. They are just getting their ducks in a row now, and one day the earth will come crashing down for some.

The penalties (jail time and/or fines) are clearly there in the Act. Lets just hope the Judges in the courts have the moral courage to utilize the penalties available. I am more hopeful than confident, but time will tell.