POOR STAKES SEND ANOTHER CHAMP AWAY

It was theire for all to see,JJ the Jet Plane destroying anything that came close to her,shatering the records book,leaving the trainer and owners in tears,as they had to say goodbye to the peoples champion.The roar and cheers from the crowd waiting as the awards were being presented,magic moments for all concerned.However Lucky with a lump in his throat said it all,let the others do the talking,as he dissapeared behind LAFFERTY,knowing as an up and coming trainer,getting up at ridiculous hours to train this beautiful FREAK, he has to say goodbye.Sadly for SA racing another one of our major events THE MERCURY SPRINT worth R500000 pathetic to feature race standards is departing our shores looking for greener pastures.Unless something is done about our way below par in stakes SA horseracing will remain in tatters.JJ a winner of 7 out of 10 races, of which 5 are feature races has earned around the 2 million mark only.

With respect Zoro i think an increase in stakes would still not keep JJ here - the horse has no local peers and needs to be tested against the best in the world. I do however think that stakes need to be upped or we stand to lose smaller owners - i think that Maiden Novice and Graduation races need the most attention - Graded races are important but i feel that stakes increases in this department should come from sponsorship ie find race sponsors for these big events while Phumelela and GC should concentrate on stakes increases for bread and butter owners that may have horses that win one race and run a few places - a Maiden win should be equal to year's keep in my opinion -

Didnt see the post race interview (not sure when they showed it).
Was it 'live' or delayed ?

I saw it on the replays,obvioussly recorded.

MR Hawaidont you think our aim should be to attract,the best horses in the world like Dubai night,our horses have shown that we have the ability,so instead of acting like a 2nd grade country shouldnt the Phumelelas and big brass start getting a wake up call,or does Ngong excite you.Surelly SAB,ABI,and a few bigger names should be approached to sponsor these million rand events,or should we carry on and head 'ON THE ROAD TO NOWHERE'.

There is no way we could attract the big horses in the world Zoro - realistically how could we ever put on a Royal Ascot (also the danger of african horse sickness would stop most foreign racers) How could we ever fund such an event - never happen so our top horses will always have to compete overseas - as stated stakes increases in graded races should be funded by sponsors - remember if we lose small owners who will the champs beat in the Maidens - We must start at the bottom and work our way to the top - an example is the top golfers we produce - they make their mark locally then take on the rest of the world - we have yet to have a golf tournament that compares to any of the Majors but yet we produce golfers that win majors

How many world class horses remain in their own country to race....we mustnt only focus on SA as that is being unfair.Lets travel and take on the best in the world,we have proved already that we can.
Our pathetic currency doesnt help the cause either.....
Re maiden races just remeber how many maidens there are annually..even if you add on 10k per race it becomes millions that just isnt there at the moment.

valued input puffin from someone that's been there before

Sponsors want a return on their investment, and rightly so.
What exposure do Phumelela/GC give racing ? Almost bugger-all !
Hardly any national media coverage (outside their domain) aint going to excite or entice too many sponsors.
You got to spend money to induce sponsors and we know they are reluctant to do so.

Cuckoo sometimes i think racing will really battle to regain mainstream support again - just too many other things for people to spend their time on - just think of all the guys you see on weekends using quads etc - people have changed focus - very difficult to get them back but obviously we want them back but how?

Its not just about getting more people to the track, mr h, its about racing being promoted and given proper exposure on National Radio, TV (SABC, E-TV), Press etc.
We cant even praise our trainers, horses, owners winning big races locally or internationally, we cant even see the post-race interviews and euphoria of a Grade 1 race as we cross over to Borrowdale or Ngong.
It cant happen overnight but if we dont start somewhere/sometime soon we are toast.

i agree but sometimes i have no idea where to start