KEY POINTS:
The fight to remove Christchurch lawyer Brian Kinley from the board of New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing has turned legal.
Kinley was the chairman of the sub-committee that turned around the Darci Brahma-Wahid decision for champion Three-Year-Old of the Year.
Not because of that, but for his subsequent conduct and behaviour, NZTR has asked for Kinley's resignation from the board.
That was reiterated at an NZTR board meeting in Wellington on Tuesday.
Instead of a resolution, thoroughbred racing's governing body received legal threats.
NZTR's chief executive Paul Bittar said yesterday: "All I can say is that the matter has been placed in the hands of lawyers, which clearly means that Kinley has no intention of walking and will seek legal recourse if he's forced."
Questions need to be asked:
1. Why on earth would Kinley want to continue after such a bitter public spat that has lowered everyone's credibility?
2. How can Kinley function as a respected NZTR board member?
3. Why should NZTR waste valuable time and money and suffer such embarrassment when the solution is so obvious?
4. How will the racing industry view its governing body if Kinley continues to serve on the board and there is no disciplinary action over the Wahid-Darci Brahma case, which should never have been allowed to escalate to the headlines it received?
It needs to be made very clear that this issue is no longer about the Wahid-Darci Brahma award, it's about the fallout from it.
That said, how will Wahid's connections feel if Kinley remains?
The answer to that is clear.
It is understood a number of board members have expressed doubts about the board's ability to properly function if Kinley remains.
Kinley is an affable, well-met individual, which is probably part of the reason the NZTR board has received letters of support for him from fellow racing Cantabrians.
But if the Christchurch lawyer was interested in a more balanced and objective opinion he might like to attend a few upcoming North Island race meetings.
The hit to the racing body's credibility cannot be overstated.
From a management perspective it's a nightmare, which is tragic with so many other positives around.
The bleeding has to stop.
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On a brighter note, NZTR has engaged Racing Victoria Ltd to manage the proposal for the introduction of all-weather racing and training tracks.
The feasibility study will begin immediately, the assessment being due in June.
"I'm delighted with the appointment," said Bittar.
"RVL's management team is experienced in successfully managing all-weather tracks in climates similar to New Zealand - like the one installed at Canberra.
The study will identify the desired regions, which will clearly be close to the horse population.
The final element of the report will be viability of cost, estimated at around $5 million for a racing track to accommodate 13-14 horses.
It could be that one or more tracks could be for training only.
"We'll be looking at what the various identified regions can contribute financially," said Bittar.
"Purely as a hypothetical case, if Riccarton was identified as a venue then we'd be looking at what other clubs in the district could contribute like selling off a track and bringing the proceeds to the table.
"It might mean Riccarton could run, say, another 12 meetings a year.
* * *
Last week Wellington owner Jim Barlow missed seeing Sharvasti winning the $150,000 Avondale Cup because he went instead to see Elton John.
If Mohammed can't get to the mountain ...
Okay, we're not going to get an Elton John concert on an Avondale Cup card, but the principle is there.
Last night Jordan Luck belted it out to the sound of the bright young set clinking champagne glasses at the Ellerslie twilight races and on Saturday balladeer John Rowles is providing two free stints at Te Rapa on Waikato Gold Cup day, one before the last and one after it.
Boney M set a Wellington Cup crowd alight metres from the Trentham winning post a few years ago.
If horse races are not enough on all but major racedays, add-ons are needed.
Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Raceday (Me).
