by Brian de Lore
Published 19 September 2019
The object of The Optimist as a weekly blog is to try and keep the truth flowing and the participants in the thoroughbred world informed on various important aspects of racing and breeding.
It gets harder when some administrators close ranks and won’t talk, but funnily enough, it then becomes more intriguing. Over the past few years, I have developed a network of informers and supporters who are reliable and more than willing to help for one reason only – they love the game and want desperately to see it recover and achieve sustainability. They are racing people who possess passion; they know and live racing.
Had it not been for them, I may long ago have curtailed this campaign of disseminating facts from the fiction and calling for justice on behalf of people at the coal-face of racing. They encourage me weekly and that’s what drives the blog. I merely write it but rest assured, it’s a collaborative effort which is mostly driven by a few die-hards who also refuse to allow racing to go down without a fight.
Communication is everything, and almost everyone I speak to sorely misses The Informant. So many people relied upon it, and I don’t believe NZRB had any understanding of how valuable its form guide has been for TAB turnover. Directly from a TAB outlet this past week I’m told the retail side of the TAB is $1 million a week down on last year’s figures which were also down on the previous year’s numbers.
It makes you wonder why the TAB denied The Informant free access to the form which necessitated the form’s purchase from Australia at an annual cost of $100,000. That was the main reason The Informant fell over, and the day it did, a spy communicated that TAB employees were high-fiving in the halls of the NZRB at Petone.
That’s how sick these people are – all in the misguided belief the TAB’s money-losing publication known as Best Bets had scored a victory and would benefit with increased sales – perhaps my continual justified criticism of NZRB may also have been a factor.
The circulation of Best Bets declined considerably under NZRB’s management; the unconfirmed talk is that it went from 3,500 down to 1,500 after NZRB reputedly purchased it for $250,000 when it was losing money and was effectively worth nothing. It continued to lose money and is yet another example of their fiscal irresponsibility.
So, I’ve written seven paragraphs and haven’t mentioned the name of John Allen (until now). By this time everyone will know Allen resigned on Monday morning and officially will depart in December. However, it will not be surprising if gardening duty becomes his main activity between now and Christmas – perhaps only punctuated by questions from RITA arising from his decision making over the past four and a half years.
It is no coincidence Allen’s resignation comes soon after RITA’s receipt of the Performance and Efficiency Audit from Grant-Thornton and the financial year 2018-19 audit by Price Waterhouse Cooper. They will be telling documents that will eventually become industry knowledge as we near the RITA AGM before the end of the year.
Much of the content in Allen’s resignation statement to the media can be disregarded. The quotes were typical of an agreement between two parties when someone is getting the shove. They always say beautiful things when the letter writer is ushered through the door.
And while I’m doing acronyms, it’s worth mentioning BBA which is a well-known one in the thoroughbred world – British Bloodstock Agency which has been a big player in the sale and purchase of horses worldwide for more than 100 years.
But BBA in New Zealand could be construed as Brown, Bayliss, and Allen. They are the all-in-a-row last three CEO’s of NZRB. History will record them as a trifecta of characters who have left the horse industry with a legacy of unmitigated disasters – I can confirm that will be recorded in history because I’m currently in the process of writing the book.
What can’t be allowed to happen is that the powers-that-be go for the First4. The cycle must be broken, and the criteria for the next appointment changed. The BBA common denominator of high academic qualifications, no skin in the racing game and no previous knowledge of the racing industry is a losing combo.
V’landys type people are rare commodities, but if RITA could come up with someone half as good it would be a vast improvement on the BBA. Allen’s departure is a positive move forward, and while it will open the door for further inroads into cost-saving, it is only the first of a thousand steps.
Below is a welcome letter of support received this week from NZ Trainers’ Association:
Hi Brian,
The Trainers’ Association wishes to record its support for the recent articles dated 5th and 13th September, you wrote and included on the blog, The Optimist. The Executive share your concerns regarding the perceived lack of progress in regards to the reforms as outlined in the John Messara Report.
It is understood that the legislation has proceeded as planned with a focus on new revenue streams. However, there does not appear to be any urgency in the actual collection of this revenue, nor addressing the reduction of overhead costs at RITA.
Dean McKenzie and Anna Stove attended the National AGM of the Trainers’ Association in August. The notes from the meeting follow this email for your information. Many of the concerns raised echo the views expressed in your blogs.
The Trainers Association is very aware of the need for urgent action as the situation is so dire. There are many trainers very close to being unable to continue as their livelihoods are at risk due to the current state of the industry.
Regards,
Wendy Cooper
Executive Officer
NZ Trainers’ Association Inc
