THIS web-site continues to listen to what our readers have to say and has introduced a ‘Wednesday Whinge’ where you can express your feelings on racing industry issues of the past week. Try to keep them objective. Just e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
THE e-mail box this week covers a multitude of topics across the country from the emergence of the new Kevin Dixon Board at Racing Queensland, to claims this web site has let the racing industry down in Queensland, queries concerning whip use and if that aided the win by Niwot in the Sydney Cup, questions over how Americain is going for trainer David Hayes, a bagging for officialdom of the closeness of the Black Caviar and More Joyous races and questions over whether More Joyous is a genuine 2000m horse.
Here is this week’s selection with apologies to the few who missed out:
HOW LONG BEFORE THESE OTHER TWO BENTLEY BOARD MEMBERS ARE SHOWN THE DOOR?
‘NOW that we have four long overdue new directors of the Racing Queensland Board how long will it be before they show the two still left from the Bentley era the door?
The industry doesn’t want Wayne Milner or Bradley Ryan on the Board and the LNP promised before the election that the entire Bentley Board would be sacked.
Well three down and two to go isn’t good enough especially when we were told it would happen the Monday after they were elected.
I know these two have no influence with the four newcomers holding the balance of power but they were there when some ridiculous decisions were made – like the payout of these contracts to the four executives – and the industry does not want them to stay.
Surely now that there are four newcomers and greyhound racing once again has a voice on the Board they can vote these two off and get some new blood in sooner rather than later.
Wayne Milner is almost as disliked as Bob Bentley in the eyes of many in the industry these days who feel let down by him and we don’t want him hanging around too long and trying to hold down a position on the new Board. ’ - Al Jacobs, Toowoomba.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Kevin Dixon has commended Wayne Milner and Brad Ryan for being prepared to remain so that when he joined the RQ Board there were sufficient numbers to form a quorum when the resignation of Messrs Bentley, Hanmer and Ludwig took effect. Without that the three new members of the Board could not have been appointed. That only occurred on Tuesday. In fairness the other two could not be expected to be pushed overboard immediately. I am confident that the wishes of the LNP and the industry will be fulfilled and that before long Milner and Ryan will be replaced by two new directors.
THE NEW DIRECTORS ON THE RQ BOARD HAS NOT PLEASED ALL IN RACING
‘THREE replacements to the new Board of Racing Queensland and already there is evidence of control returning to the ‘old boys’ network.’
Grey Hallam, the Local Government CEO, fits the bill perfectly through his association with the old brigade of the Queensland Turf Club.
Then we have Warwick Stansfield, the former chairman of Albion Park Harness Racing Club, who would no doubt have been endorsed for the Board role by his good mate, Kevin Seymour.
It goes without saying that John Falvey, the greyhound representative, fits into the same category as he has also had an association with harness racing as an owner.
So we now have the deck at RQ loaded with Kevin Dixon, the former Brisbane Racing Club chairman; Grey Hallam, who could arguably be described as having close links with the old brigade at the QTC (he races horses with David Laing) and the two Seymour recruits, Stansfield and Falvey.
What surprises do they have in store for us when the appointment process is completed for the two other new faces on the Board – one will be a National Party hack from the bush no doubt and the other will be someone who fits the bill as a Liberal from the city?
When can we expect the new Board to announce the closure of Ipswich gallops and work to begin on a new multi-million dollar state-of-the-art harness complex at Albion Park and God help the industry when they decide on who will run the restructured Integrity Department?
Here’s hoping a lot of rumors doing the rounds are incorrect, especially the one about a current steward making a surprise reincarnation from the back blocks.’ – Gary Anderson, Ipswich.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Gary – if that’s what your name is – times have changed. We have a new Government. Harness racing and greyhounds are entitled to a representative on the Board and the umbrella body that eventually over-sees the three codes. As for Greg Hallam you won’t win too many arguments questioning his credentials. I would go as far as saying that the knowledge of racing that he possesses in his little toe would be more than one high profile member of the Bentley Board had in his entire body. All that is needed now is a country racing voice on the Board. I would like to see the other position filled by a woman with a passion for racing and marketing skills who can appeal to the younger generation. And Gary I would be very surprised if the new Board did not embrace the contribution that Ipswich racing makes to the industry especially as this once Labor stronghold is unbelievably now LNP territory.
WEBSITE DID NOT REFUSE TO RUN A STORY CRITICAL OF THE DIXON BOARD
‘WHAT is going on at letsgohorseracing? We are told you were asked to run a story critical of the new Kevin Dixon hierarchy and that you refused.
Weren’t you the ones that were going to ‘keep the bastards honest?’ They didn’t even get their feet under the desk and you had joined the mainstream media in making your alley good with the new regime.
The story goes that the Beaudesert Race Club chairman telephoned you and that you promised to run a story about how funding had been withdrawn for the redevelopment of that track along with the withdrawal of promised TAB meetings for next season.
This sort of story was never going to see the light of day with The Courier-Mail. That is why your website was asked to help. Instead those concerned were virtually stabbed in the back.
Even Terry Butts, a known Bentley hater, ran a column item stating:
‘THERE is a disturbing rumor doing the rounds about the promised funding for other tracks.
Not all tracks are going to get the funding promised by the previous RQL Board according to rumor emanating from south-east Queensland.
It will be a major blow for Townsville and Cairns if the money is not made available as both plan major works to begin in September.’
Would you care to explain why letsgohorseracing has let the industry down when it comes to an opportunity to fire an early shot across the bows Kevin Dixon and the new boys in town to keep them on their toes?’ – As I am an official of a race club I would ask that my name is not used. I don’t want to jeopardize their chance with the new Board
EDITOR’S NOTE: Without revealing the source of this e-mail I am extremely surprised that you would show so little faith in me as Editor of this web site. You would know that wherever possible I have always gone out of my way to help you and your club. I have to say I am disappointed as this is a storm in a tea-cup and there isn’t a great deal to explain.
I got a telephone call from the president of the Beaudesert Race Club (Royce Ahrens) who I did not know. He had been told to contact me by an RQ staffer and ask if I was interested in running a story about a predicament that his club was in.
Mr Ahrens explained that he had been contacted by (in-coming RQ Chairman) Kevin Dixon who told him that the $8.2 million upgrade promised by the Labor Government at Beaudesert would not proceed nor would the allocation of 18 TAB dates for the club.
He was understandably pretty stressed out by the situation and disappointed that efforts to raise the matter with new Racing Minister Steve Dickson had apparently ‘fallen on deaf ears.’
Mr Ahrens said a protest had been lodged on behalf of the club. Beaudesert MP John Krause had taken the matter up with Tim Nicholls and Scenic Rim Mayor John Brent had spoken to Premier Campbell Newman.
The multi-million upgrade at Beaudesert was to involve a new racetrack and flood mitigation works. Work was to have started in March but there were hold-ups. This forced the first of 18 TAB meetings allocated to the club to be delayed until December 29.
I suggested to Mr Ahrens that his best option was to fight the decision politically and that if he did not feel confident that Tim Nicholls or Kevin Dixon would help then he should see if John Brent could influence his good friend Campbell Newman to intervene on the club’s behalf.
Before publishing the story I told Mr Ahrens that I would seek a response from Mr Dixon which I did. He explained that the LNP Government had frozen all Racing Infrastructure Projects approved by Labor pending an audit of RQL finances.
He agreed to talk with Mr Ahrens about the concerns of the Beaudesert Race Club but pointed out that until the new Board was appointed his hands were tied but did add that funding in future would be determined on the merit of all projects.
I felt it was in the best interests of all concerned to let the matter lie for a few days until I saw what happened once the Dixon Board got up and running and how they handled it.
It was certainly not a case of ignoring concerns of an industry that believes it will be denied a voice by the mainstream media nor was it going back on the original promise of keeping the new hierarchy on their toes.
DID MISUSE OF THE WHIP GIVE NIWOT AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE IN SYDNEY CUP FINISH?
‘WHETHER it was a case of Dwayne Dunn only hitting the winner Niwot twice more than he should have the question has to be asked did it make the difference between winning and losing the Sydney Cup?
If the stewards saw fit to fine Dunn $400 what would they have done if the connections of Efficient had fired in a protest claiming Niwot gained an unfair advantage in his long neck win?
The reason this doesn’t happen is because correct weight is declared before rivals realize that rules may have been bent or broken.
Perhaps then if stewards see this they should be advising connections of the runner-up that the rider of the winner over-used his whip before correct weight is declared.
The trouble in the whip rules, as your correspondent Terry Butts pointed out, is that the approach from stewards in various states is very different.
South Australia is a good example. The Tourneur flogging of the winner My Ex Mate at Morphettville on Saturday was nothing new. It happens all the time in Adelaide and the stewards either don’t care or are asleep at the wheel.’ – Gary Chisholm, Sydney.
EDITOR’S NOTE: One could argue whether a $400 fine for over-use of the whip is a deterrent in a race worth $500. Having said that it would have been unfair to take this Group 1 away from Niwot considering what the horse has been through. The approach of stewards to whip rules is consistent on the east coast. When it comes to South Australia well I’m sorry to say the panel over there aren’t in the same league – but nor is the racing. Here’s what Terry Butts wrote on the top in his ‘Silks & Saddles’ column for the North Queensland Register.
NOTICE the betting choices offered on Saturday by some of the corporate bookies working on the Black Caviar race in Adelaide included: “Will jockey use the whip.”
That left it wide opens for some interpretation and/or debate.
Is a slap or two down the shoulder, something Nolen has always done, constitute using the whip?
THEN we had the case of Dwayne Dunn being fined $300 for hitting cup winner Niwot twice more than he should have before the final 100m in the Sydney Cup.
And then there was the flogging jockey Dominic Tourneur gave to his winning mount My Ex Mate in the third at Morphettville. It wasn’t a pretty site. Little wonder people call for the whip ban.
NOT CONVINCED ABOUT MORE JOYOUS OVER 2000m AFTER WAY QUEEN ELIZABETH WAS RUN
‘PLENTY of water has flowed under the bridge since More Joyous failed in the Cox Plate of 2010 but I still had some doubts about her running out the distance against Saturday’s good field in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
She may have beaten the likes of Manighar, Americain, Jimmy Choux and company but I am yet to be convinced that she is a strong 2000m horse.
Let’s face it, that race on Saturday just turned into a sprint from the 600m mark. They handed the Group 1 to Nash Rawiller on a platter. She got home in 34.55, which says it all, none of those better stayers were going to concede a start and run over the top of her in that sort of sectional.
I agree with Ken Callander that More Joyous is a star but some of the top jockeys who rode her rivals at the weekend should have been hauled before the stewards.
The racing media was very keen to crucify Gerald Mosse after his ride on Americain in The BMW but what about Craig Williams on the horse on Saturday. For top jockeys there were some awfully dumb rides in the Queen Elizabeth.’ – Dave Edwards, Sydney.
EDITOR’S NOTE: We will no doubt find out just how strong More Joyous is at 2000m when the Cox Plate is run later this year as owner John Singleton believes he has a point to prove. Here is the Ken Callander column item from the Sydney Telegraph this week that the above e-mail refers to:
‘THERE is no rule in racing that says all other horses have to fall into a conga line behind Gai Waterhouse's runners and let them bowl along in front at their leisure like More Joyous did in her Queen Elizabeth Stakes win on Saturday.
Let's take nothing away from More Joyous, she is an out and out champion, but Craig Williams, Damien Oliver, Jonathan Riddell, Hugh Bowman, Dwayne Dunn, Kathy O'Hara and Brenton Avdulla all rode like boofheads.
Let's not hear any more criticism of Gerald Mosse's ride on Americain in the BMW after what we saw on Saturday.
It is easy to say, if you were one of the beaten riders, that you would have been a sitting shot for something else if you took off.
What is the difference? They were sitting shots for More Joyous by sitting back twiddling their thumbs and doing nothing.
Nash Rawiller took the champion mare through the first 800m of the 2000m race in 53.78 seconds. You could kick your hat along in front of you and run quicker than that.
The only hope the imported stayers Americain and Manighar had of beating More Joyous, and they were the second and third favourites, was by taking off with 1000m to go and making the race a staying test. Good luck to More Joyous and good luck to Gai. They are two great champions and they have everyone else bluffed.
SHOULD WE BE BLAMING NEW TRAINER DAVID HAYES FOR THE AMERICAIN FAILURES?
‘LET’S cut to the chase and declare the real reason that Americian is going poorly instead of blaming circumstances of the races that he has contested this campaign.
My mates and I believe the blame rests squarely at the feet of his new trainer, David Hayes, who has just failed to get the best out of the one-time Melbourne Cup winner.
Three runs this time in for Hayes and in each one the critics have blamed the jockeys. It was Steve Arnold’s fault in the Australian Cup; admittedly Gerald Mosse did do a slaughter job in The BMW; and Craig Williams copped the blame for the poor performance in the Queen Elizabeth.
Quite frankly we don’t believe Americain is going anywhere near his best since Hayes took him over.
Maybe the owners should bite the bullet, spell the horse and send him to Peter Moody to prepare for the spring. Just look at the difference he has made to Manighar.’ – Oscar Jackson, Melbourne.
EDITOR’S NOTE: I still haven’t given up on Americain. The horse has simply had no luck at his last two starts the way the races have been run. I was disappointed that Craig Williams didn’t press forward as expected on Saturday and had he enjoyed a nice run just off the pace I believe Americain would have run a place behind More Joyous. Let’s not be too critical of David Hayes just yet.
HAVING THESE TWO FEATURE RACES SCHEDULED SO CLOSE WAS JUST PLAIN DUMB
‘THOSE officials who allowed only eight minutes between the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick and the Adelaide appearance of Black Caviar should hang their heads in shame.
Two great opportunities to showcase the best racehorses in the land and they all but over-lapped. It prevented justice from being done to both feature races in the television coverage.
I wanted to watch and lap up the atmosphere as Black Caviar prepared to race at Morphettville but I was equally attracted to the coverage of the Queen Elizaberth.
The virtual clash of both meant viewers missed the exciting build up and the aftermath of the best two races in the land on Saturday. How dumb was that?
We’ve come to expect stupid scheduling decisions from those air-heads at SKY Channel but surely race officials should be responsible for signing off on the timing of races before they are set in stone.
It was just another monumental marketing blunder for racing in this country, regardless of who was responsible. Come on guys, we have the best racing in the world on the track. It’s time those off the track caught up.’ – Brad Norman, Gold Coast.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Just when we were led to believe that someone was looking over the shoulder of those dills at SKY Channel when it came to the scheduling of races we have this monumental marketing blunder which Brad so rightly describes it. I thought SKYWORLD was introduced to showcase big race days but that is not what is happening. Rather than get really annoyed and give SKY another pasting here’s what Ken Callander had to say on the subject in the Sydney Telegraph:
‘THE Queen Elizabeth Stakes, the best weight-for-age race in Sydney for 20 years, was run at 4.15pm on Saturday. The Sportingbet Classic, the race featuring superstar mare Black Caviar was timed to start in Adelaide just over five minutes after More Joyous hit the line, at 4.23pm.
Whoever let this happen is a dope. The theatre and excitement of More Joyous' greatest moment was missed to a large extent by people rushing off to find a TV to watch Black Caviar.
Please don't tell me that the TAB or SKY Channel or somebody else is responsible for setting the times. The ATC owns the product and as soon as it saw the time of Black Caviar's race it should have changed the time of the Queen Elizabeth. No ifs, no maybes.’
TAB HOLDS AT TOOWOMBA ON ANZAC DAY AN EMBARRASSMENT FOR RACING IN QUEENSLAND
‘THE TAB holds for Toowoomba on Anzac Day when compared to Flemington and Randwick were an embarrassment for racing in Queensland.
Little wonder no-one wants to bet on this goat track that Clifford Park has been turned into. But how an official body could allow this venue to be used on a public holiday meeting like Anzac Day is unbelievable.
Whatever happened to public holiday meetings being run at Eagle Farm and Doomben? The Anzac Day fixture at the Farm was once an integral and popular part of the annual calendar.
Here’s hoping the new Racing Board of Kevin Dixon moves to correct this situation next year to ensure Queensland is not embarrassed again by a race meeting at a venue that not only can’t attract quality horses but struggles to gain even passing interest from punters when there are better meetings to bet on.’ – Roy Milton, Brisbane.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The holds were an absolute disaster but the problem does not only rest with the control body – regardless of who is running the show. The bigger clubs are reluctant to run meetings on public holidays because of the wages bill they face. But there has to be something done to overcome this situation – like the establishment of a special award for race day staff. Toowoomba on Anzac Day should never be repeated.
COMPLAINT CONCERNING LACK OF EARLY FIXED ODDS MARKETS FOR EAGLE FARM
‘I am hoping you can check that the fellows who put up markets on mid-week gallops meetings in Brisbane haven't been caught up with the celebrations to mark the end of the Bentley era.
I have just been down to the local TAB. As of around 4pm Tuesday there are markets available for just TWO races for Eagle Farm tomorrow. There are NINE races scheduled and the fields have been known for about 30 hours!
What a pathetic effort from Tattsbet. They demand exclusive rights to pre-post fixed odds markets in Queensland yet fail miserably when they should be delivering a service to punters keen to wager on Brisbane races.
OK, the races might be tough for the assessors. That's no excuse for not putting up a market - even if it is a bit their way. If they aren't going to meet their obligations then maybe Mr Gallagher or Mr Turner should be given the opportunity.’ – Ian M, Brisbane.
EDITOR’S NOTE: As of 4.30pm Tuesday even TABSPORTSBET in Victoria were only offering fixed odds betting on three races at the Warrnambool Wangoom meeting, five at Canterbury and two at Eagle Farm so it wasn’t unique to Tattsbet. The situation was the same with the corporate agencies. With all due respects to Messrs Gallagher and Turner I doubt they would have posted Fixed Odds markets on all nine races at an Eagle Farm midweek meetings this far ahead either.
PLENTY OF SUPPORT FOR APPEAL BY ‘NIPPY’ SEYMOUR AGAINST PENALTY IN FATAL FALL
‘GOOD to see that ‘Nippy’ Seymour plans to fight this ludicrous six month ban over the fall at Julia Creek that unfortunately caused the death of jockey Corey Gilby.
To even try and connect ‘Nippy’ to such a tragic event is a slur on a wonderful old trainer who already is struggling to live with what was nothing more than a tragic accident.
Racing Queensland stewards should hang their heads in shame trying to make ‘Nippy’ a scapegoat for this. Bandages come loose on a regular basis and more times than not only attract a fine, if that, for the trainers.
Here’s hoping that ‘Nippy’ wins on appeal because if he doesn’t it creates a terrible precedent and who knows what will happen in the civil arena.’ – from Mates of Nippy and there are a legion of us.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This was a farcical and inconsistent decision by stewards in my opinion and just another example of why Racing Queensland needs some common sense and legal expertise to emanate from the Integrity Department in future. Here’s a story from the North West Star in Mount Isa on the Seymour situation:
THE legal team representing embattled Hughenden horse trainer Arthur "Nippy" Seymour says it believes an appeal will be successful in quashing his six-month suspension.
Mr Seymour was given the penalty - effective from April 16 - after Racing Queensland stewards found him guilty of neglect under Australian Rule of Racing 140A in relation to the incident that led to the death of jockey Corey Gilbey last year.
During trackwork on November 2, a bandage on the leg of gelding Under Construction unravelled, causing the horse to fall and throw Gilby, resulting in injuries that led to his death.
While stewards believe Mr Seymour was negligent by "failing to secure the bandages with stitching or electrical tape as required by the Nationally Approved Gear Register" and that there is a causal link between his actions and Under Construction falling, one of Mr Seymour's solicitors said he believed Racing Queensland will have trouble establishing the link.
Michael Spearman from Emanate Legal, the Townsville-based firm representing Mr Seymour, said he didn't believe Racing Queensland could actually establish the link.
He confirmed an appeal had been lodged on Mr Seymour's behalf on April 19 and that it would be heard by the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
The suspension has set a precendent for breaching AR140A, but there is confusion as to how the six-month timeframe imposed on Mr Seymour was calculated.
Trainer Ben Williams was fined just $100 for breaching the same rule on April 7 - three days before Mr Seymour's penalty was handed down - after failing to stitch the bandages on mare Celebrates before it raced in Charters Towers.
Racing Queensland chief steward Wade Birch had previously told The North West Star the difference in penalties imposed were because of the vastly different outcomes the breaches caused.
In a show of solidarity from the racing community, letters in support of the much-loved trainer are flowing in from across North West Queensland and beyond.
DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in the above e-mails should not be interpreted as those of JOHN LINGARD, the owner of the letsgohorseracing web-site. That is why he has added an ‘EDITOR’S NOTE’. Every endeavor is made to verify the authenticity of contributors. We welcome any reasonable and constructive responses from parties or individuals.
