Where's my money?

[Flashing Red]

Is that true Red? Wow! That was the whole case. Clear pre race and the horse was 'nobbled'. Positive and Lance is/was guilty. If this is the case, then the NZ stewards and ruling body needs to be cleaned out. I suppose the time they took to get rid of Geoff Small is indicitive of their system.

Taken from Harnesslink....

Justice has always maintained his innocence, and his case was given a significant boost from the crown prosecutor Chris Lange, acting on behalf of Harness Racing New Zealand.

"It is not alleged Lance Justice is complicit in any way, there is no evidence to support that," he told the hearing.

Smoken Up was however, allegedly presented to race with a prohibited substance in his system, forcing a legal question of absolute liability. NZ Racing Laboratory tests of one sample revealed a DMSO reading of 25.8mg per litre of urine, the limit is 15mg. Thomas put forward the possibility of sample contamination and a suggestion of an outside source immediately after the race as likely reasons as to how it got there. DMSO is easily absorbed through the skin and can be applied in liniment form.

A cross-examination of HRNZ chief veterinarian Andrew Grierson, who collected the post-race urine sample, and New Zealand Racing Laboratory analyst Craig Gardner, who tested them, revealed a pre-race blood sample taken from Smoken Up before the race to test for TCO2 (elevated bicarbonate levels), was later destroyed and never tested for DMSO, in accordance with normal procedure.

Squire and Hall became involved in the Gardner cross-examination, which drew the revelation there was potential for contamination due to "instrumental carry-over".
Squire: "Are you suggesting that the trace levels (of DMSO) may have got there as a result of the testing process?"
Gardner: "That's a possibility."

.....

Yesterday's evidence centred on the discarding of a crucial pre-race blood sample that could have proven Smoken Up was presented to race in the final free of DMSO for which he tested positive from a post-race urine sample. The defence's star witness, Kentucky-based veterinary science professor Thomas Tobin, testified via video link that urine was a "highly flawed forensic sample" when it came to DMSO in standardbred horses.

"A far superior sample is provided via the blood," Tobin said. Which made the destruction of the pre-race blood sample taken from Smoken Up just over one hour before the final, even more baffling to Mary-Jane Thomas, defense lawyer for the connections of Smoken Up.

Thomas questioned Racing Integrity Unit head Cameron George over the blood sample and the security of horses at Alexandra Park.


"Would it not seem obvious to you that a blood test would be important?" she asked.
George said retrospective samples from Smoken Up were requested on May 13. By then the NZRL had destroyed the blood sample.

[aussiebreno]

Brendan!!!!! Stop trying to wind me up! :P :P :P :P :P Now your playing semantics which I can too hehehe. :P IMTQ didn't cross the line first because the horse that did, SU, was a better horse (on the night). You put the win only bet on ITMQ because you thought he would cross the line first in the Inter dominion. He crossed the line second and you lost your money. This is not opinion, this is also fact

Moral of the story? Don't bet!! I'll tell you a funny story... I put my first bet on in like 3 years (I probably only bet about 5 times in my life) the other day and I was so anxious about it all day I came out in hives (ask Fred H, lmao!). Red blotches all over me!! The horse won in the end, but I am certainly not cut out to be a punter in any capacity that is for sure. I was thinking more about loosing $100 than what I would win if the horse was first past the post!! :P Then I couldn't sleep that night because I was high with the buzz of it all. Don't know how you guys do it!!

My formguide didn't tell me Smoken Up had DMSO in his system.
And what about protests 2nd V 1st getting upheld! They pay on the 2nd horse past the post. This is a very similar case to that only the disqualification/relegation of the 1st horse happened 6months later not 6 minutes later.

You must have been bloody confident before putting the bet on for a 5 time punter to put on a $100! Next time you have a punt shoot us a PM!

For the record I actually don't care about the $10 I lost or the $40 that could have been; its the principle of the thing.

[aussiebreno]

[VVV]...and so we arrive at the very crux of the matter Breno, that being the significant difference that exists between a substance that does not enhance ability but rather affords horses the opportunity to be at & to maintain their best form, or more simply...the case in favour of Maintenance/Therapeutics & against Performance Enhancers.

The fact is that currently, in the absence of a common sense approach to establishing thresholds for various substances, Australian & NZ drug rules serve to work in direct opposition to the very thing that the Industry...that the Stewards try to ensure each & every day and that the TAB & the Punters so strongly desire...that being handicappable, consistent and as much as is humanly possible predictable Form.

Until such time as the Industry grows up a little and gets over its hangups as far as the use of therapeutics is concerned, we will continue to row without both of our oars in the water. That we continue to struggle with TCO2 testing does not fill me with a whole lot of hope for an open debate on anything beyond that, however.

PS. Just as an example...lets say a horse that has a few little aches & pains is given Bute on a Friday night after it races. 12 hours or so later, in the early hours of Saturday morning, that dose of Bute is now of little or no pain relieving benefit to the horse at all and most certainly well within 24hrs it is all over bar the shouting, no effect whatsoever.
Nevertheless, the following Friday the same horse, not having had any Bute for 7 days, drops in to race, is swabbed, duly returns a positive to Bute EVEN THOUGH the level is so minute as to be absurd & EVEN THOUGH pharmacologically it is having absolutely ZERO,ZIP, NADA, BUGGER-ALL effect on the horse at all...yet the Trainer duly cops time on the sidelines & maybe a fine to go with it. How could that be even remotely thought of as being resonable, sensible or fair?

I don't set the rules. I just want them to be adhered to. Hey I might disagree with murder being a crime (I don't - its hypothetical) but I can't just go out on a killing spree can I.

Also; I'm actually with you on what you just wrote. Shit I wouldn't care if you were allowed to put fireworks up a horses rear end (as long as it was ethical to the horse lol) slingshot it forward in the same manner as pulling the plugs - just more explosive. But while it isn't allowed trainer's can't go breaking rules just because they disagree with the rule.

[Flashing Red]

You must have been bloody confident before putting the bet on for a 5 time punter to put on a $100! Next time you have a punt shoot us a PM!

The law of averages dictates my next bet will probably be in 2 years time! Hehehe! I'll PM you the story!!