KEY POINTS:
There's an old saying that you can't pull your socks up if you ain't got any.
New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing is ensuring the embattled jumping game in this country has socks, but it's demanding they're pulled up the right way.
That was spelled out at a meeting between NZTR and interested parties at Taupo on Monday.
It was nearly the shortest meeting of the year, but after a shaky start the dust settled on a clear understanding of what was required for NZTR to continue throwing financial resources at jumping.
Jumping has been subsidised for the past three years and with that agreement about to come to an end, NZTR earlier this year guidelines indicating where it saw the future of jumping.
NZTR chief executive Paul Bittar said the guidelines were just that, and it was hoped a blueprint would be determined, after several workshops, by NZTR's board meeting in November.
That does not mean there is a lack of resolve by NZTR to put jumping in this country on a more structured base.
"There has to be structure," Bittar said.
"Up to now jumping has existed by individual clubs programming jumping races.
"That is not the way to run it, it has to be run from a blueprint."
One of the unknowns is how much, if any, cash from the racing surplus of the 2006-2007 season would be coming NZTR's way from the Racing Board.
"We are waiting to see what that will be. Any additional funding will be used to drive not only this, but a raft of other initiatives we have planned.
"We're looking for a clear framework and structure from the jumping fraternity," said Bittar.
"One of the things we are proposing is a jumps racing co-ordinator to look after programming, the flow of racing, sponsorship and such. We don't see it as a full-time position."
Bittar said NZTR is well aware of the long lead-in time for decision making in jumping.
"For that reason we'll give a commitment that it won't be a year-by-year proposal that we come up with. It will be three years or more."
The push, he said, was to drive up participation numbers in steeplechasing. "A lot has been made of the fact that betting on steeplechasing has not been great.
"While we see betting as one guide to the health of jumping, we don't see it as necessarily the key driver.
"Our drive is to push up participation numbers.
"If we can do that then three years from now people will be looking at jumping and steeplechasing differently."
Bittar was pleased with the Taupo meeting. "I'm sure no one left it thinking that they could continue on with what they've been doing and that we'd continue giving them more money to do it."
In its guidelines the NZTR:
* Does not support a separate funding model for jumping outside the proposed NZTR funding model.
* Does not support providing more money without any evidence of significant structural change, specifically to steeplechasing.
* Supports a budget outside of stakes to provide support for jumping initiatives including training, overseas riders, sponsorship and marketing opportunities etc.
* Supports the budget for initiatives being managed by NZTR working with the Jumping Advisory Committee or similar body.
* Supports centralised management and funding of jumping, including the management and implementation of resources, standard protocols for jumps and industry policies.
* Supports working with Racing Victoria to consider the structural changes it made.
* Acknowledges a key issue is the dates and programmes process and will work with the clusters. * Supports providing a commitment to jumping of more than a year to ensure that appropriate investment and training decisions can be made.
* Supports a "tiered" system of jumping races, with the major focus being on a small number of select days.
