The racing industry and punters have been left reeling by the abandonment of four race meetings over the long weekend that has thoroughbred bosses asking for explanations.
Three thoroughbred meetings were abandoned while Sunday's Hāwera harness racing meeting was also lost because of torrential rain.
Nobody could be blamed for the Tauherenikau and Hāwera meetings being called off, with both abandonments due to torrential rain. But those affected by the abandonment of the New Plymouth meeting on Saturday after just one race and Tauranga on Sunday before racing began, both because of slippery tracks, will not be quite so forgiving.
The Taranaki meeting was their biggest of the year with three black-type races but was called off quickly after Madam Sass slipped on the home bend in race 1 and dislodged Bridget Grylls, with neither injured.
The track had been rated a dead 5 in the morning before heavy rain fell and that rating would usually be enough to see any new rainfall absorbed into the track, rather than sitting on top and making the track slippery.