Good night harness racing south of australia

Is the end nigh for harness racing in SA?

After discounting the SA Pacing Cup by $40k, Harness Racing SA are now dumping trials in an effort to save another $40k even though it's a service that encourages participation. (one of their strategic objectives)

"The reality is that while trials are a popular mechanism, utilised by owners and trainers to prepare their horses to race, the costs borne by HRSA in funding these trials meetings has becoming increasingly prohibitive"

What's this going to do to stakeholder / customer participation?

This short term financial benefit will quickly affect breeding, ownership etc. and ultimately revenue.

There must be better solutions to than to simply stop trials.

Where is the leadership?

See HRSA's 4 yr strategic review. It's 13 pages with big spaces and images. These 13 pages actually only amount to less than 1500 words. i.e. 2.5 normal pages in a word document. It's a joke. The board members present at that time apparently published it.
"In February 2016, the Board of Harness Racing SA Ltd (HRSA) developed a new draft Strategic Plan for the next five years."

Current board members who were present at the time incl; Chris Hartwig, John Levy, Roland Roccioletti, Luciana Larkin and Lauren Giorgio. Some are doctors, accountants, solicitors and apparently business leaders and thinkers. They appear to be well credentialed and would have strong networks. They need to do better or resign.
http://www.saharnessracing.com/site/...rsa/our-staff/

The website is a dogs breakfast. See http://www.saharnessracing.com/site/. It needs to be better.

They need new strategy, leadership etc. and lots of help before it's too late.

http://www.harness.org.au/media-room...?news_id=37397
http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/...6a451391a4fdbf
http://www.harness.org.au/news/uploa..._FINAL2016.pdf

We need BIG ideas people in every state (although WA may be going OK - I wouldn't know)
SA does only have a population of 1.7m but Tassie only has 0.5m

Ray Chaplin had told me a few years ago about the goings on in SA and warned the board at the time that moving to current location of Globe Derby Park would be a disaster, I’ve lost contact with Ray but if you can track him down Kev, I’m sure that he’ll have a bit to add to this

Well it's been a disaster 45 years in the making then Richard, cause that's how long ago they moved. Time hasn't stood still and Globe Derby is no longer a remote location north of the city but under pressure from residential development. The SA government struck a very poor deal when they sold the TAB and that is the crux of the revenue problems in the state. There are problems in SA between HRSA and the SAHRC which owns Globe Derby Park, and I understand the club have committed to sell the majority of the site to pay down debt. In the article it says that fortnightly trials are continuing at Gawler, and I think in time the Gawler club and track will be the new home of SA harness.

I see your point Dot, I think Ray was employed by them at the time in some capacity, Gawler had a pretty decent track down there but I believe that they sold part of it off for a few million dollars and the land was rezoned for Industrial, I haven’t seen what it looks like now but there were quite a few people around there on large properties with horses and the real estate people were knocking their doors down as the demand for housing is on the increase there also

No doubt there is population growth around Gawler as well Richard. The Gawler track was resumed by government around 10 years ago for a freeway extension. Although it took much longer then anticipated a new track at Gawler has recently been opened and has been used for trials for only a few months. I believe it is a 1000m track but not up to racing standard as yet and short of support infrastructure also still.

Yes I had a look on Google Earth, It certainly has potential

They ran a race meet at Gawler a couple of months ago

Further news out of South Australia today from well known journalist/photographer Graham Fischer - posted on his Twitter account


"Times are definitely tough in SA Harness racing. No more Sunday morning trials at GDP. Now, highly respected form analyst Ben Harding and myself have been told our services no longer required after the end of the month. Where will cuts end?"

Media release re SA harness racing

http://www.harness.org.au/media-room...?news_id=37492

"The Cunningham Report was commissioned in late 2016 and completed and released in April 2017 for industry scrutiny and consultation. In the interests of transparency the HRSA Board have decided to advise the industry of the current status of this Report."

http://www.harness.org.au/media-room...?news_id=37585

"SACHRCA unanimously supported the Report, and like HRSA, have been keen to implement the key recommendations. However, despite a positive show of hands at a members meeting, the SA Harness Racing Club have advised that they do not agree with the key governance recommendations from the Report."

No Wayville this year due financial position

From today's Advertiser

Harness Racing SA has lambasted the idea of building housing at Globe Derby Park, saying it could spell the end of the sport in South Australia.
....... as the two were "fundamentally incompatible"

A can see no problems with people building houses in the surrounding area, Strange comment from the Chairman who is also a realestate man, Maybe the housing would attract a few new people into the game there

I don't know Rich, not that I know the plans or the proximity we are talking about but I think some of his fears could be real

Adelaide has Morphettville racecourse in Adelaide, which is only a few kilometres from the actual CBD and is surrounded by suburbia. Numerous horse stabling establishments are in neighbouring suburbs of Morphetville, with many trainers keeping their horses at these establishments. Albion park in QLD is also located in suburbia in QLD, and isn't far from the CBD, though i don't know whether that too has stables nearby. It is not beyond the realm of possibility, and may actually be used to our advantage, if we have suburbia at the doorstep of our tracks. Admittedly, the issue of bright lights may pose challenges, but I also see numerous opportunities to expose our sport to people who have NO IDEA that it actually still exists in SA. And I am talking about people in their 40s and 50s, who I work with who think that harness racing no longer exists in SA. Many young people don't even know what harness racing actually even is, which is much worse. I also lived in Yatala Vale as a kid, where we had our stabling and agistment complex. Did the Golden Grove housing development which started 25 years back get rid of the stables - no it did not! 30 years on and it is still one of the safest places to ride your horses alongside the road, with horses and stables still coexisting with suburbia almost completely surrounding it...
The issues with Globe Derby Park are probably secondary to the health of the sport in SA.
The fact that people aren't breeding is also completely misunderstood. People wrongly believe that the problem of breeding lies with less people doing it. The problem is that people wont breed if they cannot sell them - we don't have enough buyers who are willing to pay the costs involved. The sale of MOST does not even cover the service fee - and I am talking about horses by the most commercial stallions. I had a SBSW mare out of a Western hanover mare and from a very, very good American family - she sold for $14,000 at the APG as a yearling. Why would you bother breeding when you are highly unlikely to even recover the service fee, let alone the other costs involved? People aren't idiots.
As far as the Annual report, I've critiqued 3 years of reports a couple of years back - those reports certainly did not demonstrate anything resembling a good annual report that makes findings against its strategic plan. However, I do believe that the SA Board have a great deal of work ahead of them, and an extremely difficult pathway to navigate when it is very much limited with what it can really do. For one, I would actually stop trying to compete with the other states by 'lifting' the quality of our horses - we just cannot afford to fund the races those horses need in this state ($7,000 minimum per race). We need to agree on our niche market. I reckon that SA MUST embrace that it is the location where we take horses that have limited ability or are at the end of their career, and we offer those horses a career on the track. There are plenty of those horses who are no longer competitive interstate, but will make a career here. If we marketed SA like that, we pitched ourselves that way, and we offered race programs for those sorts of horses, I think we would have a better chance at filling our race fields.

In all honesty, I believe the challenges facing harness racing are a national issue, and we need a national body that has powers and funds to make decisions for the whole of the industry - the national body is virtually powerless. We have an antiquated governance system, which results in states competing with each other, and when you compete, there are always the winners and the losers. SA and QLD are now the losers.

Harness racing needs an identity, needs national leadership, and needs to be marketed in the modern world. Furthermore, though I know SA is in a difficult positions, I really believe, it needs to decide what it really is for SA participants (I reckon we are the 'not so good' horses and horses at the end of their career) and then go with that.

Having experienced first hand the intentional hostility on the roads towards the horses exhibited by largely gen y that bought homes in Bankstown as the stables precinct succumbed to development I can tell you that horses and housing developments do not peacefully exist if the same streets need to be used by both. In another era when life was slower paced and the population have grown up with knowledge of horses and people had patience it may have worked, and may still work in some places, but rarely would it work now.

I get what you are saying Dot - many people (not just gen Y) are completely out of touch when it comes to livestock and horses. I get frustrated myself with the lack of understanding, but there are areas such as Fairview Park and surrounding areas, Morphettville and surrounding areas, where horses have been there for quite some time and they continue to co-exist rather effectively despite suburbia. People still ride their horses alongside the road around Yatala Vale, and do so safely.

I can well understand the concerns, however, because when we had our agistment property at Yatala Vale, we were extremely concerned about the Golden Grove development and the changes that could be more rigidly enforced by Council. It's not a choice, anyone wants to have to make - we all prefer suburbia to be well away from our horse keeping areas.

Regardless of the arguments one way or another: I am not that sure GDP is really worth saving. The track is in a terrible state, and a new one is needed. The overall infrastructure at GDP is very, very tired and probably would be shut down if WHS inspected the facilities. Perhaps it is in the best interest of the sport to commence a transition to other nearby tracks, and to prepare stakeholders for these changes...

I am guessing this is going to impact on harness racing too

https://www.racenet.com.au/news/tony...181223?isAmp=1

"The SA government has cut $5.25 million from its funding to racing and, unlike Victoria, NSW and Queensland, has not allocated any income from the Point of Consumption tax to the industry."

Further Developments in the future of SA harness racing

http://www.harnesslink.com/Australia...confidence-in-

In consequence, HRSA has requested that the current SAHRC Committee resign, to be replaced by a new interim Committee to HRSA’s satisfaction. In the event that the current Committee refuse to resign by the close of business on Friday 5th April 2019, HRSA will suspend racing at the venue indefinitely, effective Tuesday 9th April 2019.

http://www.harnesslink.com/Australia...be-Derby-Park-

What a shambles.

https://nationaltrotguide.com.au/har...ember-resigns/

How much did Chris Hartwig cost for 7 years of his service where his biggest achievement was his contribution to a report? He was one of the members highlighted at the start of this thread.

if HRV took over it would be one solution

According to Trotguide the SA govt have allocated $24m to the 3 codes over the next 4yrs
Harness is to get $800k a year
That is only $3.2m of the $24m
as the thread title says
"Goodnight Harness Racing South Australia"

https://nationaltrotguide.com.au/mor...roubled-state/

This story celebrating Tinted Cloud standing in SA this season is pretty sad IMO
He is 24yo and has only served 30 mares in total in the last 5yrs
Wishing White Star Lodge success just the same

http://www.harness.org.au/media-room...?news_id=41609

As for Our El Fuego, Mildura C4 class pacers are not your typical stallion success but stranger things have happened

One of our posters sent me an email about how good the Wayville meeting was but added

taken out to Globe Derby. If you get chance go onto that google maps thing and look at the overhead pic of houses nearby. Every house has stables and yards in backyard. But theres no horses! Told was 1300 around there not that long ago... now 130. Not enough to make up 1 meeting. Don't need own track... just walk them down road and work at Globe Derby (2 tracks). Horse swimming pool there but not used anymore. Unused stables and facilities.... where did it all go wrong? Govt sold TAB and new owners give little back to racing. Drove people away with political bullshit that still goes on between SAHRC & HRSA. No govt assistance. All a bit sad and depressing.