By Michael Guerin A hugely busy weekend in northern harness racing will go ahead largely uninterrupted by Cyclone Gabrielle. The Harness Million meeting at Cambridge on Friday night will be followed by the NZB Standardbred yearling sale at Karaka on Sunday and both are good to go. “We have had no damage apart from a few trees in the training area but nothing that will affect the public or horses on Friday,” says Cambridge chief executive David Branch. “It is going to be a really good meeting because the $200,000…
Author: NZHarnessNews
Manawatu fields transferred to second day on Thursday
It’s been confirmed that the fields for today’s abandoned meeting at Manawatu will be transferred to Thursday. With Cyclone Gabrielle causing chaos across the North Island a national state of emergency was declared this morning. That prompted the abandonment of the seven race programme which was due to start at 4.05pm. “That was the final straw really,” says Manawatu Harness Racing Club president Dan Lynch, “there is some uncertainty about what the weather will bring and we are erring on the side of caution.” “With floats coming from Taranaki and…
Good draws for Kiwis in Newcastle Mile
by Adam Hamilton It was a mixed bag of feature race barrier draws for the Kiwi raiders in NSW this weekend. Things couldn’t have played out better for B D Joe and Alta Wiseguy in Friday night’s $100,000 Newcastle Mile when they drew barriers one and two respectively. Both are trained by Steve and Amanda Telfer and Hayden Cullen. Even before the draw, their hopes were boosted by Team McCarthy’s decision not to run Bondi Lockdown in the race. Luke McCarthy will take the reins on Alta Wiseguy with Tim Williams…
Manawatu meeting today abandoned
As Cyclone Gabrielle causes chaos in the North Island, Manawatu’s race meeting today has been abandoned. Such has been the devastation that a national state of emergency was declared this morning. “That was the final straw really,” says Manawatu Harness Racing Club president Dan Lynch, “there is some uncertainty about what the weather will bring and we are erring on the side of caution.” The seven race programme was due to start at 4.05pm. “With floats coming from Taranaki and from up north and drivers coming in from the South…
Purdon announces change of focus at All Stars
By Michael Guerin Champion harness trainer Mark Purdon has revealed the extent of his thoroughbred training ambitions as his All Stars stable gets ready for its next evolution. Purdon is in the north this week preparing for the Harness Million meeting at Cambridge on Friday night and will have a small team based here through until Auckland Cup time in late May. After recently being joined in partnership by his son Nathan he says the most feared stable in harness racing continues to undergo changes as Purdon seeks new professional…
Devenport duo primed for Manawatu
By Joshua Smith, Harness News Desk Otaki trainer Wendy Devenport is hoping she can take home a couple of cheques when she heads to Manawatu Raceway on Tuesday. The Elite Athlete will have his fourth start for Devenport after joining her barn earlier this year where he has placed on two occasions, including last start at Hawera. The Betting Line gelding will be having his first start at the Palmerston North track in the Wenham Seeds Mobile Pace (2000m) and has drawn handy in gate two. “He has been quite…
Addington Raceway chuffed with their Coast to Coast debut
Having ticked off multisport’s biggest race, Addington Raceway’s Coast to Coast team insists this is just the start. For many, the energy sapping trudge from Kumara to New Brighton is a one-off. Not so for Addington’s three lycra wearing adventurers. They have already put their names forward for next year. “It was such a great experience,” says Addington Raceway’s Chief Executive Brian Thompson, who conquered the event along with Property and Facilities Manager John Denton and IT Manager Andy Ross. Their combined time for the 238 kilometres was 16 hours…
Team Teal cruises past $11,000
Harness Racing New Zealand’s Teal Pants campaign is going from strength to strength. The annual initiative started at the beginning of the month and already $11,000 has been raised, with all proceeds going towards ovarian cancer research. Yesterday’s Hororata Trotting Club meeting at Methven was a particularly good one. Seven female drivers won races for the cause, with Kirstin Green, one of five Team Teal ambassadors, adding to the tally at Invercargill. The Riverton Trotting Club at Ascot Park had a big emphasis on Team Teal yesterday, which will see…
Dunstan Battle of the Breeds returns to Cambridge Raceway
Dunstan Horsefeeds Battle of the Breeds is back at Cambridge Raceway on Sunday February 26, bigger and better than ever before. Cambridge Raceway have partnered with Love Racing to bring a whole lot of standardbred vs. thoroughbred fun to the Waikato-BOP Harness Racing club’s meeting. The Dunstan Horsefeeds Battle of the Breeds, a three-phase equestrian event held in the infield to showcase the equine heroes of both codes in life after racing, will kick off prior to race one with a host of familiar riders and horses entered. The ultimate…
Miracle Mile boost for B D Joe
By Adam Hamilton New Zealand’s main Miracle Mile contender B D Joe’s prospects have been boosted even before he heads to Saturday night’s Newcastle Mile. In a late and surprise move, Team McCarthy has opted to skip Newcastle and run Bondi Lockdown in the qualifying sprints at Menangle on Saturday week. Regardless of barrier draws, Bondi Lockdown would have been a clear favourite for Newcastle after two fantastic runs, including a Menangle win last Saturday, from two starts since joining Team McCarthy. The key to the Newcastle Mile is that…