Hi - Perhaps I should stay out of this - but here goes!!
I enjoyed you Lesson Gil ---- I think we need to move on and I'm
looking forward to see what the ARC new racing programme does for
racing. I think we have clinged on far too long to past icons and
you're right some are failing for us -- the example of Wellington
winter racing is bang on - yet nothing can better summer racing at
Trentham.
I don't think it really means anything outside of NZ if you have won
an Auckland Cup and our NZ cup at Riccarton doesn't deserve its Group
classification.
I'm afraid for the future of the Kelt Capital. I think it was
originally put on the calendar to give NZ horses a good race just
before travelling to Oz to lift the Melbourne Cup. Well nowadays if
you aren't in Victoria early in the spring you aint in the Melbourne
Cup - that's the effect the Northern Hemisphere horses have had on
entries.
The Hawkes Bay club have done wonders with the race and it is now the
most important spring race in NZ. But what does it really do for
racing here. We get NZs best horses racing on winter tracks to get
ready for a $million race in October. And then the whole scene goes
quite for 2 months. Some top horses have won this race but I'm not
sure that will continue. This years race would have been
uninteresting if it hadn't been for Starcraft and his stay in the Bay.
And I can't see other Oz owners bringing horses of the quality of
Starcraft that often in the spring - the risks are too high - with
similar races (of only slightly less value) available at home.
You're only got to look at the quality of Oz horses (apart from
Recurring) that crossed the Tasman for our summer carnival (What is
so disppointing for NZ racing is that some of them did pretty well
here)
Our best WFA races should be on summer tracks - we shouldn't try to
compete with the OZ spring races. Let our spring horses go to Oz
where they can prepare for the Victorian meetings and save our best
prize money for the summer months. A better time would be the
January 1st date or the Cup meeting in April (although April is too
close to the Sydney carnival)
I think we should put our efforts into the summer - Oz has two racing
seasons - spring and autumn - we can fit into the gap with our summer
racing and encourage them to send the better type of horse by
boosting stakes in quality races eg WFA middle distance or miles(can
you tell I'm a fan for WFA).
Thanks for the opportunity to hear your views - it's great.
Regards
Trevor
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