I agree Terry, when we have our next true Star we have to let the World know about it. The appropriately named Poster Boy may have filled those shoes but a mishap more or less straight after a MM win has not seen his return for nearly 12 months now
Printable View
I agree Terry, when we have our next true Star we have to let the World know about it. The appropriately named Poster Boy may have filled those shoes but a mishap more or less straight after a MM win has not seen his return for nearly 12 months now
Poster Boy trialled at Ballarat this week. Led and won as he liked (only a field of 3). Last half: 55.9 last quarter 26.6 . Loved his day out and pulled up well. We went to the Stables the day prior to the trial, he looks magnificent and appreciated his sugar cubes. Unfortunately the timing of his race return is under a cloud because of Covid19.
There have been enquiries about a stud career : he is bred on the same cross as Captain Treacherous out of a mare who has twice been Victorian Broodmare of the a Year and last years Australian Broodmare if the Year.
Thanks Kevin, I mentioned standing starts in my previous post, expressing why I liked them. Does harness still have standing starts?Quote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
They are exciting still to me.
Also maybe now the timimg is perfect for putting Harness on TV because channel 7 is playing old afl games .. channel 7 are better to play something live.. they played an old afl game last night. Harness needs a real energy driven CEO who mixes with tv executives. A special event could be organised with the best pacers Australia wide in a free for all one week, then a miracle mile the next week. Then it could also I show the public some of the best runs from the past as a lead up,. eg Halwes ( of course), Maoris Idol , Popular Alm etc , Satinover, An event could also have a 5 yr old event etc
It is tough but harness at night .. there is a window on free to air right now .. that window will close ... It is worth pushing hard now but the CEO and it’s board of H racing must work hard, full of passion .. A chat to Bruce Mcavaney is essential .. I could help
Pls read my post here earlier. free to air is showing old afl games at prime time at night. Let’s try to get Poster Boy when fitter on free to air with a free for all and a miracle mile at Melton. Timing is perfect .. yes no crowd but try anything at the moment ..the public love champions.. and when Corona disappears , people will go (;new people) to see him live. Yes I’m optimistic. You know what drove American people during the depression... Sea Biscuit lifted them beyond imagination, Harness execs need supreme passion to drive this with energyQuote:
Originally Posted by Bonnie
Love the passion and ideas! Agree we need a better presence on TV.Quote:
Originally Posted by Halwes
At the current time though I think we are best off not being on TV. Hairdressers and baristas copped it during the week from the general public, I think the less people that know racing is continuing during this crisis the better.
Yes the situation is complex, but it was complex and demoralising during the depression in the US, everywhere. The found a saviour, a saviour that took their mind away, it did, I’m certain that Sea Biscuit saved lives, totally captured people, you only had to look at the footage to see that. Poster Boy needs to be even better than Halwes ( ha ha) but if he is a brilliant sprinter, and can sustain it under great pressure ( that might be an issue as top flight pacers who could test him, might not be around. In other words he must be a super horse. You know something, Halwes was very very lightly raced, had dicky legs, but when he returned to racing he starred, he really starred, he was a big boy with superlative strength, superlative sprinting three wide etc etc and still winning. . wow. He loved winnng like Sea Biscuit. Of course , Poster B right now couldn’t have the fitness yet etc etc and the owners probably don’t want to push him .Quote:
Originally Posted by aussiebreno
Im talking about resurrecting Harness. You have to crash thru, forget the weeds and press on . The current situation definitely gives us a window of opportunity .
Cant Poster Boy connections get on the blower to Bruce Mc at channel 7 ?
We only have Standing Starts for the trotters not the pacers nowadays Terry.
I think the only reason the Trotters got to keep them is that people know trotters can break anyway
I think I am right in saying the death of the standing start came about due to one of the NZers who was favourite for the Hunter Cup (I think) breaking and the punters never really got a run for their money so everybody jumped on the 'all mobile' bandwagon
I don't actually follow the trotters to the extent that I follow the pacers but I love a trotting stand start where the backmarker (favourite?) is giving away a big start as I want to see if he/she can make up the handicap
It is also one of the points of excitement in pro running, where the backmarker might be giving up the best part of a lap in a 4 lap/mile race. I am a big athletics fan and the greatest run I ever saw from Cathy Freeman was not the Sydney Olympics but at Stawell where she overcame a huge handicap in a 400m (no Stawell this year :()
There are plenty who would like to see the return of standing starts for the pacers to recreate the excitement of the old Showgrounds days Terry
Yes standing starts look great and fewer pacers than trotters actually break in standing starts , yet they have retained standing starts for trotters. Makes no sense. Years ago when trotters did not have mobiles, they broke a helluva lot.Quote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
You know all I have said here appears to fall on deaf ears. I was hoping Bonnie would have said something. The footy, the AFL won’t return till end May at earliest, but more like end of June at earliest. So the window for free to air is now till end of June (probably later) for live harness racing on Saturday night on tv free to air.
If Poster Boy raced on Saturday night live in a ffa and 2 weeks later in a miracle mile, it would be great .. you might only have 5 races so you get quality.. We know THAT RACING HAS RESUMED
Just do away with trotters. Majestuoso would have just got punters banned from the pub for smashing the TV and yelling profanities (if pubs were open). Odds on and hits the front with 20m to go and gallops. Not doing us any favour in battle for punting dollar.
Most of them would be drunk at the pub and not even realise until they scan their ticket. Cant blame everyday person for not wanting to spend another dollar on harness racing if that happens to them.
It would be up to our authorities to hatch a plan to get harness on TV in the Coronavirus interim Terry. One of the biggest problems would be that the Racing/gallops code would object and expect to be given first consideration. They can race at night as much as us nowadays and they already have their own Ch78 channel which is not going to standby and let us use 7, 7Two or 7Mate before them. Both codes would have to convince programmers that they would out-rate an old footy game or an old movieQuote:
Originally Posted by Halwes
Hey Brenno, if racing is closed down again do you think there is a chance they would show those cartoon races that you see in the pubs (cannot think of their correct name) for people to gamble on on the racing channels LOLQuote:
Originally Posted by aussiebreno
What was that rule they brought in about a horse galloping across the line - he kept the race!
Just checked and he did in fact lose the race. Relegated to 3rd. I was about to have an aneurysm about! Despite not agreeing with the rule due to situations like this it is the rule.Quote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
You can see why I was confusedQuote:
Originally Posted by aussiebreno
I understand but CEOs and Boards in general have a terrible record of being reactionary when it comes to ‘ management” and planning .. look at banks as one example .. They collect big money and wait for things to occur, then blame their staff .. money laundering by criminals was one of them . They are not innovative . I think the CEO and Board of Harness have an opportunity..there is enough thoroughbred horse racing on tv already ... i dont think they’d try. It’s a shame when we have this great opportunity to try very hard to get harness live late April till end of May say, or later . Do you know any execs or Board members at Harness Racing?Quote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
How do we incorporate pace makers?
Admittedly Gp1s but I have watched every single race on Sky today and the best two races all day were Verry Ellegant in the Tancred at Rosehill and the Gold Crown.
Dancetaria made a mid race move and set a hot pace in the Tancred, and Mach Dan softened up Lochinvar Chief at Bathurst. We don't see it much because Danceteria folded like a pack of cards and Lochinvar got beat (and Mach Dan probably wouldn't have run a place either even if it didn't gallop). It doesn't happen because it screws the pacemaker up.
Thinking aloud, have pacemakers with stopwatch depending on grade of race and track/track condition run within certain time standards until the 800m when they peel off. Instead of barrier draw just start them in racing pattern - eg peg horses and running line horses already in an order based on PBD. Have pacemakers lead up both lines. Cant overtake pacemakers only come 3+ wide up to the gig beside them to the 800m. Can have PBD and the pacemaker in the running line could even be made to go slower than the pacemaker on the inside so the outside horses have to give them 20m at the 800m.
Do lose some of the excitement off the gate and its gets a bit messy with making sure the pacemaker sets the right pace, and visually probably not great seeing them peel off.
If not maybe actually set the time for slow sectionals so they actually are quick sectionals. And it shouldn't just be the leader who gets fined, its the drivers letting the leader get away with it that should be fined.
I don't know any Terry, I'm just a fan, but I do know that our last couple of HRV CEO's have been willing to answer emails you send them. (Go for it)Quote:
Originally Posted by Halwes
You will see that there have been pages of ideas on this forum (not just in this thread) but I am not sure we the posters have ever had any influence, although I do remember the previous CEO saying he was going to taken the printed pages of one thread to a meeting.
Once upon a time we used to have HRV and HRNSW post on this forum but I don't know that they even read us anymore - for a while after we fell out of favour, I think they monitored us for a while and told some of our 'liscensed' posters to be careful
We are not as strong a forum as we once were but it does seem to me that they are missing out on an opportunity and that a few minutes a week would go a long way as a public relations exercise
Our current CEO in Vic, Dayle Brown, has said that everything is on the table and that he wants to hear BIG ideas - I sent him a link to some relevant forum threads in December, which he thanked me for and said he would 'take a look'. He is still completing, what is a very lengthy round of consulting the public meeting (all around the state) but they have been deferred due to them being gatherings and due to the workload that the virus would have produced
OK Kevin, here is my email ( cut and paste of my text) that I sent to the Marketing Director Andrew English of HR, but I fear that it may be the wrong email address. I’d be eternally grateful if you could ask one of you contacts the correct email address. I emailed : andrewenglish@gmail.comQuote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
I’d be pleased to get your opinion of what I wrote, I won’t lose any marks for lack of passion eh! You know something, I can honestly say to you, it truly is driven by the passion I had for Halwes, that passion is still there as it always was .
Hi Andrew
I’ll go straight to the point here, and maybe the stars are lining up.
My name is Terry, a great fan of harness racing.
Halwes is the best horse I have ever seen, just a superstar; when everything was needed, Halwes shone. As driver Kevin Newman said, Horses ‘can go’ once, good horses can go twice, but super horses like Halwes, could go three times. If you ever want to market a horse, Halwes was it. Others were great, Halwes was on his own.
Aub Wesley refused a 300 k offer from the American Yonkers Raceway pros so many years ago, worth millions today. He made us so happy to watch the wonders of Halwes, however short his career was.
Andrew, I went on the Harness Racing Forum to express my views about how to improve HR. Everybody loves a champion. In Australia we have had some great champions. In the old days the Trotting Boards had no idea, no skills in marketing etc these champions, even though the trots were on 7 every Saturday night. HR fell by the wayside, and is shadow of itself today.
We know what Sea Biscuit did for the Americans in the Great Depression. He was a saviour, a genuine saviour, saving lives because the people hit by misery needed a saviour, someone to hang onto, Sea Biscuit was it. You only had to see the black and white footage to get some idea of it, it was unimaginable how much they embraced a champion. It gave everyone great relief, and a sense of belongingness.
We have in the world a similar cauldron, the gathering of, no, in fact the immediate effect of a another Great Depression that may have a long time to go. The only difference in terms of horse racing is the very very sad fact we can't have crowds at racing events, but we can watch them.
What I am saying is that there is a window of opportunity at the moment on free to air TV, on 7 now that the AFL aren’t telecasting footy, to make a massive move to televise harness racing on 7. This window will close when the footy restarts no earlier than the end June this year you think. 7 are showing replays of AFL from some years ago, or older films.
By chance, when I was on the HR Forums Site, I was praising the wonders of Halwes saying we needed another superstar pacer to revive HR.
As it turned out, Kevin O’Donahough, agreed with that stating that when we do, we (HR) need to tell the world about it. He said Poster Boy could be that horse. I have not seen Poster Boy. No sooner had he said that when the breeder/owner said on the forum that Poster Boy had resumed from a long lay out and trialled very well this week at Ballarat.
There is the opportunity Andrew to get Poster Boy on free to air 7 during the window when AFL is not on the TV. A window from probably late April to late June where we could see HR on free to air again.
It would have to be special, a free for all one week with Poster Boy the centre of attention, a miracle mile before or after the ffa, probably before the ffa, followed by another ffa a fortnight later, perhaps in NSW, etc. In other words, a big splash of the best HR we can gather together.
I don’t know whether the connections would risk Poster Boy early in his preparation, but I can tell you this, and it’s on the record. Halwes was a very, very, very, lightly raced horse, with dicky legs yet when he resumed from an eighteen months spell, he decimated top flight opposition in all heats of the 1968 NZ Interdominion, only to be scratched 1 hour before the final due to mild lameness.
He returned 1 or 2 weeks later and starred, really starred. Poster Boy may not be as stout, as brilliant or able to sustain sprints for such long intervals as Halwes could do, and no horse was as good as Halwes over 3000 metres, but he is a worthy, very worthy horse to promote to the public in the circumstances we have now.
I contend that HR will never have a ’Sea Biscuit opportunity’ like this ever again.
I implore you to approach the Board and Channel 7 immediately and begin planning a big resurrection of HR, it is worth it.
Bruce McAveney knows how good Halwes was, he will agree with me that this idea is a great one. He is driven by emotions too, so he is the person to pull this off at 7. When every business is suffering, Bruce understands that this is a precious moment to grab, there won’t be others.
Of course, I don’t have access to the Owners of Poster Boy, and these people are the first to approach because they may not be interested at all in what I propose. They may be concerned that he is not ready either etc etc.
Yes there are existing races scheduled in coming months, and what I propose requires that this be addressed but you look at the big picture.
HR wanted big ideas, I’m giving you one. The Poster Boy story is of course part of the tale to be told, but he could go on to NSW, Qld, WA etc and HR is back in town.
Yours sincerely
Terry Meehan (Tezza)
0412382780
Hi Terry, I happened to email HRV CEO Dayle Brown, asking why Vic is not going down the regionalization road like NSW as a means of possibly avoiding a statewide shut down the next time somebody is suspected of having coronavirus
I put a PS on the bottom about your Ch7 suggestion as a Big Idea
He has already replied to me
Saying there will be announcement this afternoon about regional racing and
"I like the free-to-air approach for TV, we launched on SEN 1116 last night with new shows and coverage of our product more to come."
Which race are you referring to Breno, I have been trying to work it out but :confused:Quote:
Originally Posted by aussiebreno
ANSWER: Working my way through the Bathurst replays and it was the next race you meant Ideal Dan
Thanks .. did you read my last post where I sent a lengthy email to their marketing director, but it is not the right address.Quote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
CAN U PLS GIVE ME DAYLE BROWN EMAIL ADDRESS
Did you like my email.
Ah yep Ideal Dan oopsQuote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
I should have called Lochinvar Chief 'Lochinvar Art' to really confuse everybody.
Pity I didn't get messed up between Perfect Stride and Focus Stride and back Focus Stride!
Yeah, you don't find all these 'tagged' names in the Brilliant Names thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by Halwes
Re my post here, as I said earlier in that email, can you please give me Dayle Brown’s email address at HRV [/B][/B]
I’m not sure what he said on SEN, but seems rather co-incidental that he was making a statement on SEN rather than a press release.
I’d be interested in your opinion on the lengthy email I prepared .
We are in totally unprecedented times. Unprecedented times call for big decisions, unprecedented actions, bold presence. it is the right time to passionately work to do something with paradigm change, with conviction, with purpose.
I might be new to the forum but I have been told i have great ideas, and genuine passion.
Terry
Hi Kevin
I mucked up replying to a couple of posts, but I need Dayle Brown’s email address please.
Thanks Kevin
Kindly give me Dayle email address at HRV
Thanks
Terry
Dayle’s email is
Dbrown@hrv.org.au
Cheers
Terry, I am not on the forum ALL the time. I read everything eventually and would have given you Dayle's email tonight sometime - you do not need to repeat post although I must admit I had not seen your first request straight away
As far as your email goes, it reads well but I believe the world favours succinct sometimes and after starting with the first line that you did, I feel you could have just gone with:
I’ll go straight to the point here, and maybe the stars are lining up.
What I am saying is that there is a window of opportunity at the moment on free to air TV, on 7 now that the AFL aren’t telecasting footy, to make a massive move to televise harness racing on 7.
HR wanted big ideas, I’m giving you one.
Thanks YabbieQuote:
Originally Posted by Yabbie
Thanks for that Kevin, I fully accept your advice and apologise for pressing you. I need to temper my enthusiasm.Quote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
I have emailed Dayle Brown. BTW, I saw a video of Ignatius winning a mile race.. in a word , breathtaking
No, it was lucky you repeated it as I had missed your request between my question to Breno and his reply
People think I am on the forum more than I actually am, you see I stay logged on (and computer on) even when I am not at my desk for hours sometimes
How do we not incorporate pacemakers - Gloucester Park last Friday night.Quote:
Originally Posted by aussiebreno
Sky Racing own the tv rights to harness racing. They hate HR and probably wouldn't allow it on free to air even though the TAB would benefit from the extra turnover .
It's a great idea, hope it happens.
We hear “ we’re all in this together” “ We’ll get through ”. It’s crap.Quote:
Originally Posted by gutwagon
I’d like to eyeball Skye and put that to them and ask them if they’d agree to allowing HRV to get some free to air.. They would not be “in it together”
If they won’t let HRV to get some free-to-air.
We are “all in it together” would be demonstrated goodwill, a willingness to do something for someone else, that’s what it means.
We have not lived in a time of such disarray and collapse (wars excluded of course).
It is precisely because of Corona and the decimation of employment which has occurred so quickly, that good will, and demonstration of it, can be contagious.
I wrote to Dayle Brown but I am not confident about getting a reply. We’ll see whether he is true to his word.
The window for exposing HRV can be short, but everybody promoting the money are not fair dinkum trying for the times we are in. Sometimes I wish I was the CEO of harness.
If HRV gets say six weeks of top Harness Racing, it would lift its profile. Its a crying shame we can’t attend, but it’s something, it’s worth it.
I had a very quick look at the talent around. Poster Boy on the way back, and the video I saw of Ignatius winning a mile race blew me away. He screamed away from the leader in the last 300 metres cruising to the line even though in the death seat for the journey. Ignatius is a very very smart horse.
So free-for all’s, miles, and hopefully free to air in Sydney, etc might be possible, even if this is a splash. After all, 7 is only showing old AFL games in prime time on Saturdays at present, or a movie. Gee pretty boring rather than live sport.
7 in particular, should have a fair bit of cash at the moment as the 10 mill per game that it gives the AFL for broadcast rights isn’t a debit from their account at present. So money should not be a blocker. The blockers are the ones who think HR isn’t worth it. They can tune in to Netflix. I’d say to them, just watch say a mile race with Ignatius and Poster Boy, and others, or a cracking free-for-all
I think Bruce McAvenay is the key ally HRV need. He loves champions, he loved Halwes, he loved Popular Alm. Bruce is driven by emotions, passion, and circumstance. All this might be enough.
Only as I understand it, HRV had been in talks with crocmedia, a combined racing segment/broadcast via SEN, started last Saturday. https://www.thetrots.com.au/news/art...-new-audience/
A whisper, could be more than a whisper -crocmedia - Craig Hutchison - 7 suite - fill a sports/footy program void.
Which race?Quote:
Originally Posted by arlington
three breno
SENTrack, what? seems like a croc ( pardon the pun) of shite to me, in the dregs, in the weeds.Quote:
Originally Posted by arlington
I’ll stick to what I said, we have a great opportunity to give to our country what we are used to, what we all had when we grew up .. Free to Air. And more 7 channels to enrich with something other than food shows.. aren’t we over those completely.
Harness Racing Free to Air could last all of 2020, but perhaps there might be only 4 races live, and one standing start for pacers.. they are a good look with handicaps.. it’s all happening when you watch them. We have to shake things up.
We need fresh approaches like mine.
As I said, Bruce Mcavaney is the mover and shaker, and 7 is flush with cash with nothing going to the AFL now due to Corona
I have to tell you Terry that people have be asking for free to air trots for as long as they have been missing so it is not exactly 'fresh'
Even on this forum alone you find dozens of posts calling for it dating back yonks
You seem to have fallen in love with the trots again just of late - you have missed out on a lot that has been happening
I would love for it to happen to help us find some new fans
At present although it is a 'no frills' production, people who do not have Foxtel or Kayo, can watch Victorian harness races on Trots Vision on their phone, tablet, computer or smart Tv
Most punters (I am not one) get video through whom ever they bet with
https://www.thetrots.com.au/racing/live-trots-vision/
Just trying to eloquently pass on what I'd heard Terry. As you're probably aware, crocmedia, CEO Craig Hutch, produce a fair bit of footy content and pretty sure they were behind the big greyhound races shown on 7 and pretty sure the greyhound show on 7mate(?) that still(?) runs weekly.
JeepersQuote:
Originally Posted by arlington