Penrith's off...again.

[mango]

Nah, only Penrith. I understand that Fairfield and Bankstown pay rent to the assembled Vultures at their respective local 'Show Societies'.
The land at Eastern Creek is in the bag for nicks if they could all manage to get their heads out of the backsides and see the bigger picture.

Hey Triple

If that is the case and Penrith decided to sell and relocate wouldn't they be better off going it alone as they will be the one's with the money.

[triplev123]

What class of races do they run on Monday and Tuesday's at Menangle battler races for the most part if they were only going to run races for the better class horses you might get a meeting once a week for these horses at present as i said the battler's keep the sport going and in saying that you also have to place your horse properly where it is most suited to perform

Good point Greg. It's all about the handicapping & prizemoney. It's the be all & end all.
Credit where it is due...the programming at Menangle is getting better all the time IMO. The Monday meetings at Menangle have slightly less prizemoney and race conditions written obviously with the lesser performed/lesser lights in mind.
This week there's a 2 x 2C0's, there's a C0 4yo+ mares, a 3C0 PDLTW, 2 x C1-C2-4yo+ winners of no more than $4,000 last 5 and there's a C3-C4 4yo+ winners of no more than $4,000 last 5. Very simply but astutely written conditions.
The Tuesday prizemoney is better than Monday and the conditions are aimed at the next step up, better horses/more in form horses than those of Monday so in some respects they're little more open and the Saturday prizemoney and conditions are of course, the best/the Metro's etc.
This system, though it should be noted that it is by no means perfect, allows horses to basically find their own level of competitiveness and that's why I disagree with Paul's ideas (as they have been explained to me 2nd hand) about Penrith and a passing lane for Menangle. I'll make a point of asking him about them next time I see him. Always better to hear it from 1st hand. There's got to be a bit more to it than is being portrayed at the present time.

[triplev123]

Hey Triple

If that is the case and Penrith decided to sell and relocate wouldn't they be better off going it alone as they will be the one's with the money.

It doesn't quite work that way. I'm only reading the tea leaves here but knowing the way State Governments & Local Councils do business I would say that any existing land holdings only get rezoned and any suitable sites for relocation only become available under some circumstances and not others.

[Greg Hando]

Thanks triple about the furphy wasn't sure as we don't hear much west of Penrith

[triplev123]

Thanks triple about the furphy wasn't sure as we don't hear much west of Penrith

You're welcome.
Not hearing about things just because over the mountains is something that needs to change for starters. The basic disconnect between Harness Racing in the city & the country has been allowed to continue for far too long. Hey Greg, on that score, what do you fellas think of the NSWHRC's Regional Heats culminating in Menangle Finals concept?

[Greg Hando]

I think it is a good idea if you've got the right horse to run at Menangle the only thing is i think if your going to go in a race for a final at Menangle i reckon you should give your horse a run there first to see how it goes before nominating for a heat. The heat and final is a good idea as will help spread a bit more money around in the bush it will help if you don't have a Metropolitan raceable horse to race for some good money other than hoping your horse stacks up to metro class to race for nice money

[smithy]

i think they are very very lucky to have been given those heats personally... menangle/harold park could have gone the usual way and said you suffer and we'll help ourselves... and i think it can only lead to more similar programs to spread some money around

[triplev123]

What I like about it the most is that the Central West, the Riverina, the Hunter Valley & the Southern Highlands/Goulburn have traditionally been Harness Racing strongholds and so by restricting these races to horses trained in those & other country areas they're making sure that nobody is going to be left out.
The other thing is that it doesn't neccessarily require a horse that is a Metro grader...as I believe that these Heat & Final races will be conducted across all grades, C0's & upwards. I believe the Heats will be penalty free and the Final will only attract a 'C' mark. In theory a non-winning 4yo+ could win a C0 Series Heat (8k) & Final (20k) and become a C1 but with $17,250 or thereabouts banked for its time & efforts. That's set to make a huge difference to the pockets of quite a few owners.

[David Summers]

That's set to make a huge difference to the pockets of quite a few owners.

Yay!!! I'm already counting the dollars :-)

[triplev123]

...and I neglected to mention that it will significantly improve the lot of many Country based trainers & drivers.
Incidentally, I think I might have gotten that Penalty Free aspect a bit arse about. I just got a call from a mate and he told me his understanding of it was that the Heats will carry a 'C' Penalty as will the Final...even though the Final is for Metro $ (2.5x the money of the Heats.) Buggered if I can find the original release from Rex. Maybe someone else can confirm?