by Brian de Lore
Published 25 March 2022
Well-known publisher and multiple racehorse owner and breeder, Dame Wendy Edith Pye DNZM MBE, has lashed out at NZTR for failing to give racehorse owners the deserved consideration in light of this week’s government announcement to relax some COVID protocols.
Dame Wendy contacted The Optimist yesterday to highlight another unnecessary hurdle for ownership in New Zealand created by a belligerent and bureaucratic NZTR that seemingly discourages owners from attending race meetings.
Dame Wendy said: “As an owner of many horses in New Zealand, I felt very disappointed to receive the NZTR DIRECTIVE FOR THE COVID PROTECTION FRAMEWORK update and an invitation from the club to go racing to see Appellant race at Tauranga this Saturday.
“They have not applied the new rules. No consideration is given to the fact that we are still behind a wire fence, have no access to our horse, and more importantly, no picture at the end with the trainer, jockey, and horse, if the horse wins. Owners are special, and NZTR need to recognise that fact”
Govt says: no limits for outdoors. NZTR says: strictly no admittance to birdcage
The changes to the traffic light system from 11.59 pm Friday 25 March that Dame Wendy refers to says: ‘There will be no limits for outdoor activities, such as gatherings and events. You do not need to wear a face mask outdoors.’
After assessing those changes, NZTR sent a letter to owners the next day with a directive stating: ‘There is strictly NO admittance to the birdcage or any other official area.’ Why? The letter ended with the signature of Bernard Saundry.
When Dame Wendy talks about a wire fence, she only speaks euphemistically, but one may as well exist. The hypocrisy of this continued race day restriction is clear when you consider the owner is allowed to pick up the jockey and drive him/her to the races, drive them home and take them out to dinner. Additionally, no restriction applies to trial days where owners, trainers, and jockeys traditionally engage in close-up chats to evaluate performance.
Dame Wendy is incensed about it because she is passionate about racing and her horses. As an owner of numerous thoroughbreds, she is fully involved and delights in getting to the races whenever possible.
“Maybe they don’t need owners to continue racing,” lamented Dame Wendy. “We have put up with standing behind wire fences under Red. We are still under Red, but after Friday at midnight, we are allowed to be out in the open in large numbers without masks.
…to protect jockeys from getting COVID
“Also, when I queried this policy, on the phone, of no owners allowed in these places like the birdcage, I was told it was to protect jockeys from getting COVID. Sadly COVID will be with us for a long time. Does this mean the jockeys are not allowed to socialise with owners after the races?
“This ruling seems strange as health authorities tell us the best place is out in the open air. In fact, they say there is very little chance of contracting COVID outdoors. I don’t think owners often hug jockeys, but maybe that could be a rule. Sadly, as a committed owner who loves the industry, I see ownership dying.”
Dame Wendy concluded by saying: “I believe COVID will be with us for a long time. Why owners cannot at least be offered some joy from winning or even getting a placing is a mystery to me. It’s time for big and small owners to stand up against these subversive rulings and get racing in line with other jurisdictions, just as we’ve seen in Sydney and Melbourne on trackside.”
Owners today are subjected to decisions made by many people who have never owned anything larger than a cat or dog. Lack of empathy and increased government control is placing the racehorse owner closer to induction to the list of endangered species, with no serious planning underway to arrest the decline.
Australia keeps forging ahead
Several blogs ago, I identified total stakes offered in New Zealand had risen 2.5 percent over a 12-year period, compared to 73.3 percent in Australia for the same time.
Both TAB NZ and NZTR have retained money on deposit instead of increasing funding for increased stakes. Observers on the inside say some directors don’t believe growing stakes at the maiden and R65 level races will improve the industry enough to make a difference – what planet are they from?
High inflation is expected to go over seven percent this year, and sharply rising fuel costs to transport horses will go straight onto the owner’s bill and exacerbate the problem of sustainable racing as stakes money remains static.
Owners pay every single dollar to put racing on, and punters bet enough at present to provide the meagre stakes money for which owners race. Before the allocation of stakes, the administrative cost of running racing, the directors’ fees, and salaried executives are extracted. The latter figure is disproportionate to what’s left for stakes.
The entire problem can be fixed by partnering the TAB with a corporate such as Sportsbet, Entain, or Tabcorp. As a racing nation, we need to start thinking of ourselves as another state of Australia and join them. Partnering is a double-edged sword – increased income while cutting overheads.
What is the future in remaining independent and falling further and further behind Australia?
Tauranga has only 79 runners for eight races before Saturday morning scratchings
Look at the Tauranga meeting tomorrow. Only 79 runners for eight races before Saturday morning scratchings. Stake money is depleting the ranks of owners. Lately, the field sizes have fallen away. Two meetings ago at Trentham, only two of the eight races had fields of double-digit runners.
If we don’t partner the TAB, scale will beat us into obscurity. Sportsbet, for example, spent over $100 million on IT development last financial year. We spent about $5 million. How much ground will we lose annually? The platform is already out-of-date, and the product they offer is not competitive and hasn’t been for quite some time.
How many of the TAB board would fully understand that? They won’t be in favour of partnering, just as turkeys have never voted for Christmas.
Footnote
Apologies to those readers who complained about the extended time lapse between this blog and the previous one. I was looking for something positive to write about, and I’m still looking. Let me know if you hear of something.
Well if we owners unified and say your time is up and tell nztr you do as we want or we will not run OUR horses, nztr will be out on their respective backside . No owners – no racing.
Clubs just need someone to stand up to them
There is nothing , absolutely nothing, to write that is positive about Racing . Other than horses are incredible animals and that the people who look after them we are very grateful to.
WHEN WILL THE GOVERNMENT WHO HAVE NOW PROVED BEYOND DOUBT THAT THEY HAVE NO CLUE HOW TO RUN RACING. LEAVE IT TO THE PEOPLE WHO DO KNOW .JOHN MESSARA TOLD THEM WHAT WAS NEEDED THEY TOOK ABSOLUTELY NO NOTICE. WHERE IS THE MOST SUCCESSFUL RACING¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ AUSTRALIA
NZ owners, horsemen and women continue to turn out superior equine athletes year in and year out on a shoestring budget. NZTR do not comprehend what they have and certainly don’t appreciate the owners who are the backbone of the entire racing industry. As we watch the race field sizes decline, each season’s foal crop reduce and the mass exodus of quality horses and participants leave kiwi shores we can only wonder if we are indeed close to witnessing its permanent demise. Have some respect B Saundry.
I have said it before and I’ll say it again – where is the Racehorse Owners Association ? Their silence has been deafening since Messara – same applies to the trainers and breeders. Maybe the eminent ladies above can get something moving as we are drifting inexorably back towards the lack of competent management that has plagued us for so long. We need to take government (i.e. the Civil Service) and the Institute of Directors out of the equation.
Trainers association is at its lowest eb of all time, sadly so under performing!
As an owner of horses for many years ,here in the south .It is truely bleak ,we have large numbers of magnificent horses in the South Island. But those with influence appear to wish racing here gone, except one all weather track at Riccarton, logistically to move from Invercargill to Riccarton. Is huge so why would my trainer do that , surely he would move to Australia. And it appears some southerners are already contemplating that. If the rest of NZ is happy for southern racing to disappear so that one large owning syndicate can run racing so be it , but it is often the owners of horses that don’t win that keep the industry going, for every first second and third there are at least five horses getting no where, it is the owners of these horses who love the horse the industry etc .,you loose these at your peril. .
Sad, but true, Bronwen. Already the Taplins have signalled their intention to relocate to Qld – magnificent farm sold.
Kelvin Tyler is having a 3-month winter campaign over there too, I couldn’t see him disposing of his farming interests but who knows how he may think after his ‘holiday’?
I understand Terry Kennedy has had an offer on his property…housing developments are creeping ever closer to his perimeter…and as well, their daughter is in an apprenticeship over the ditch. He must be thinking hard.
The small fry don’t appear to be wanted, or even appreciated. Read the mission statement from NZTR about licencing matters..’ the high performance trainer will no longer have to compete against the lower cost model ‘…!
I could assume it was a badly written piece of drivel..but who authorised such rubbish to be exposed?
Many northern folk have a rather blinkered idea of how things work, a former T.A president has expressed the opinion that ‘ we need to get rid of the small tracks, they’re costing us money ‘ …I’m excusing contributor Chris Wood as he is one of the few who can both think, and consider the bigger picture!
Covid/lockdowns/ traffic light systems swept all aside to change; increasing adjustments to Digital age and online Zoom and then the further lesser of ‘real-time’ human interaction what perhaps has the real Intention.
Whether you follow or not these New World agenda’s, the social scene with the overreaching Covid policy in little ol’ NZ is incredibly damaging psychologically.
With (my) contacts to Brazil racing & breeding ownership – they’re also increasingly threatened via heritages or values changed thru the Digital economy. Similarly, numbers, buying power not at sales and further older generation on-liners ill-equipped or experienced to handle the devices.
Brazil friend messages me to Racing on You Tube ‘Live-to-Air’, horses to watch, breeding etc. and we chat a lot. He is incredibly knowledgeable, but the point is I am enthusiastic to theirs, love it, really exciting and passionate and genuine. In this sense I am ‘converted’ on-line.
– its seems here the increasing hierarchy corporate scene & seen to be ‘good’, ‘right’ and professional ‘woke’ to NZ structure defeats genuine purpose to the soul of horse-community.
The pain of it also to horse and its future.