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Thread: Why are people walking away from harness racing?

  1. #21
    aussiebreno
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sofoulis View Post
    I have no interest in the horse (Our Orville) but did watch the replay of today's race and noted it hummed the gate and tried to lead... stuck in the breeze for the remainder of the race as #5 (horse: Norman Charles) wanted to hold the lead...

    Went past #5 down the backstraight and ended up winning in a smart time once again.

    Just for the record, the previous trainer (Dean Chapple) has said on FB that on Monday the horse was running "30 quarters all day" for him at Tamworth and in his reckoning, that approximates 29s quarters at Newcastle... adding that up... 1.56 mile rate... it then goes to the Tritton's stable, gets a few minor gear changes and a driver we all know adds a few lengths to them in front...... and backs it up the week later with a similar mile rate.......

    Just for the record too: the #5 horse was also in Our Orville's race last week and was beaten 40 odd metres (it was admitedly 3 wide for a duration). Today it went forward and held out a $1.30 favourite, the very same horse that beat it last week and went hard the whole race...........

    Maybe the tactics on that horse needs questioning because in my view it was not given every chance this week by holding out the $1.3 favourite........ (it finished last today beaten 35m... I guess the argument would be that it improved because it was 5 metres closer to the winner!?)
    One minor problem, he hadn't been running 30 quarters all day. 32.4 last quarter Sept 29 and plenty more examples where that came from.

  2. #22
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year Mighty Atom will become famous soon enough Mighty Atom's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Form Student View Post
    Just for the record, the previous trainer (Dean Chapple) has said on FB that on Monday the horse was running "30 quarters all day" for him at Tamworth and in his reckoning, that approximates 29s quarters at Newcastle... adding that up... 1.56 mile rate... it then goes to the Tritton's stable, gets a few minor gear changes and a driver we all know adds a few lengths to them in front...... and backs it up the week later with a similar mile rate.......

    Adam, I have read some of your comments in the past, and believe they have been an accurate portrayal of discussions on these posts...........BUT, I cannot have that this horse has not improved in the short period of time with it's new trainer/driver combo.......In it's last 12 or so runs in the past 18 months at Newcastle it is lucky to have broken 2 minutes!!! The horse was not hopeless with the previous trainer, but often had some bad luck in races with getting a check and gear problems etc, but in general, it had not performed to the 1:55-57 mile rate during an actual race. It has improved significantly, and is racing stronger to the line than previously! This has been just one of many improved horses, and I salute the trainer for his ability to do this!
    I think there will be a traffic jam outside his property tomorrow morning with horses being delivered from everywhere!
    I put Shane in the "Chris Waller" category of trainers, it is great to see this happening, I hope people get right behind him!
    I watched his interview on Trots TV with Dale Walker..... a great interview, and Shane was so honest I could not believe it.....he is obviously intelligent, but a good person to go with it!
    I have had enough of these so called super trainers improving horses out of sight. They are doing something that other trainers aren't, but so far it hasn't been revealed. There are a couple of glaring examples floating around Australia at the moment. Over the decades I've come across these trainers who were unbeatable and then inexplicably disappear.

  3. #23
    Member Filly allanjg will become famous soon enough
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    if he`s clean he will succeed,if he`s not they will get him....time will tell rod.

  4. #24
    Member Gelding Sofoulis will become famous soon enough
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    Equally Rod I have had enough of the people who consistently imply that my trainer is doing something untoward.

    It is not as though his success is overnight, he has been winning the training premiership at Newcastle for a number of years. Gradually he has honed his training style to better suit Menangle racing and been supported by a great team of drivers and a team of owners who have increasingly invested in him by giving him better and better horses, which of course leads to others doing the same thing...

    A long way to go until he reaches the likes of McCarthy / Hall, but he has a very supportive team backing him that hopes he can reach those heights (or better) and be in it for the long-hall without 'disappearing'....... because those trainers didn't.......

  5. #25
    Member Filly DRUIDRACING will become famous soon enough
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    Unfortunately the success comes with the stigma implying that the said trainer is doing something untoward and thats the way many perceive that. Granted this success does attract the better quality horses and we all want to make a buck (thats why people go with the winning trainers) and have fun along the way. However having seen trainers of sort come and go in the central west / south west and improve horses in the same way and where are they now ? disqualified yes. Having purchased one of these "improved" horses and we find our training methods dont produce the same performance in the same way thus questioning the actual performance of the horse previously. Having a data base of over 4000 horses, many of these improved horses rarely display the dynamic form as they did for the previous trainers and are not seen again after an average, I would say 6-8 starts for the new owners/trainers............This is why people are walking away from the industry. Adam I am sorry if people imply that but in recent years it has been proven correct.

  6. #26
    Member Filly Boydy will become famous soon enough
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    Sofoulis, unlike yourself I am actually an owner of the horse in question. To start with I take great exception in that this horse improved by 4 seconds as it is actually totally incorrect. The horse is a hard pulling horse that is better suited to mile racing and in his last 14 starts before going to Shane Tritton had 3 starts over the mile, with one retirement (Where the driver Nathan Carroll told the trainer he was bolting in a 59 first half before the runner behind him ruptured his tyre and got rapt around his wheel) one second (granted in slow time but with a 33 second quarter) and a 1:58 second by 2 metres around Tamworth. Considering the track record around Tamworth for a mile is 1:57.3, hardly a slack run. Everyone raving about the 32 last quarter the first mile was the equivalent to 1:59 do the maths yourself.

    Add to this to the fact there were a few gear changes and a few differences in the warm up etc. I really do not think it was a big improvement. Not to mention there is no doubt that a lot of horses do respond to change. I once owned a share in a horse called Tuscan Abbe. She ended up being infamous for different reasons as she was a little each way. We bought her on a Friday and she was entered for a race on Monday and despite she started in an almost identical race the week before and started 50-1, a change of gear did all the difference and she won the first start for us. Funny thing was she went off the boil was sold for a song and did exactly the same thing.

    The thing that is unique about Shane Tritton is the way the horses are driven. The horses are driven at times with out fear and I feel that even with Jaime Lee King are driven more like they are driven in America. Is it any wonder with the Australian reliance on American sires the maybe the horse respond to this. Maybe the problem is the tactics of most of the drivers to sit up and nothing more.

    As for any horses lining up outside Shane Trittons door, I can tell you that I still remain loyal to Dean Chapple and if the opportunity presents we may send a horse there but it will be a joint decision.

    The only obstacle to me buying any additional horses would be ridiculous situation of racing in NSW. To start with the export fee for horses is a disgrace. Unlike New Zealand were a large portion of the population live a semi rural life, this does not happen in Australia. I would love to have a couple of broodmares in the backyard but as per the sale of Harold Park is not likely to happen in inner west Sydney (Leichhardt). I grew up near Granville showground and there are no harness racing stables in this area, although the Caffyns were located in the street I grew up in. If HRA wants to encourage young people into the sport instant gratification is the best way and importing horses from New Zealand is the most effective way. Hong Kong racing is probably the premier thoroughbred market in the world and how many studs and breeders do they have? Putting on a $2200 fee for importing a horse is absolutely ridiculous.

    This situation is bad but the current grading system in NSW is by far the greatest blight on the sport in the last 20 years and I am including all the corruption and positive swabs. To think that someone could breed a horse of moderate ability and spend $20-$25k plus (Don't forget your $500 rebate) and then only have the opportunity to win a C0 worth $4000 is a joke. Under the old system you could win a R0 and C0 and collect your share of $8000 and still have a chance to sell your horse to another state for a return, but now it seems HRNSW want horses to rise in class so they are difficult to sell and basically reward mediocrity. It is a joke. It may not make a difference to people to racing at Menangle but it sure does to people racing outside of this area.

    To finish I am really sick of people bagging Shane especially people on social media that have been or are currently disqualified. I see Orville has been swabbed twice and pre blood tested once in his first 2 starts and I eagerly await another negative swab.

  7. #27
    Member Gelding Sofoulis will become famous soon enough
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    Quote Originally Posted by DRUIDRACING View Post
    Unfortunately the success comes with the stigma implying that the said trainer is doing something untoward and thats the way many perceive that. Granted this success does attract the better quality horses and we all want to make a buck (thats why people go with the winning trainers) and have fun along the way. However having seen trainers of sort come and go in the central west / south west and improve horses in the same way and where are they now ? disqualified yes. Having purchased one of these "improved" horses and we find our training methods dont produce the same performance in the same way thus questioning the actual performance of the horse previously. Having a data base of over 4000 horses, many of these improved horses rarely display the dynamic form as they did for the previous trainers and are not seen again after an average, I would say 6-8 starts for the new owners/trainers............This is why people are walking away from the industry. Adam I am sorry if people imply that but in recent years it has been proven correct.
    I also bought the same tennis racquet Andy Roddick uses... but my serve can't top 150km/h let alone the 220km/h he achieved........ there are 400,000 other people like me that bought his racquet (I don't have the database to back up that statement) and none of them can reach Roddick's service speed....... must be that he is doing something untoward... :P~

    I also bought a nice horse off a trainer from Victoria that I gave to Shane, the horse never managed to hit the track for me (despite having 50+ starts with its previous trainer) and we retired it... old trainer must have been doing something untoward.

    We keep talking about the need to positively push our sport and all I see being raised is questions over someone who is actually having success... We should be celebrating the fact that a trainer turned to another trainer to help iron out a few issues and together they turned it around...

  8. #28
    Senior Member Horse Of The Year The Form Student will become famous soon enough
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    Adam, Mr Sofoulis was not advocating the horse had improved by 4 seconds since being transferred, he was quoting Dean Chapple on Facebook saying that the horse could run 4 Quarters in 30 on Tamworth, and Dean stated that this probably equates to 1:56 on Newcastle. Dean was saying therefore there had not been much of an improvement since changing stables.....and Mr Sofoulis was plainly quoting him.
    He did run 1:55.5 at his first start for Shane.......Did you not think this time was an improvement?

  9. #29
    Member Filly DRUIDRACING will become famous soon enough
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    Adam. Thank you for your opinion. Yes we should be promoting winners success in this great industry but some of the people that were promoted were questionable. I find the owners are not promoted as much as they should be, With your success and horses you have you should be promoted alongside your trainer. TV and radio coverage rarely promotes ownership, its all down to trainers. and without owners the industry isnt an industry. I would like to know how many main stream successful trainers actually own shares in horses. Im glad you tried to improve your tennis with that racket................I could coach you sometime if you like ?

  10. #30
    Member Filly DRUIDRACING will become famous soon enough
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    After all of that all I was doing was expressing an opinion why people are leaving the industry and finished with tennis rackets ..................all good fun

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