Clairwood - Ag man what a shame..

Watching the racing surface at the Vaal today should be a warning of what happens if you sell your best!

rob faux Wrote:

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> Watching the racing surface at the Vaal today
> should be a warning of what happens if you sell
> your best!
(tu)

Exactly Rob

R F how come no one told me that Greyville had been sold? GC could have at least asked me! Titch you never said anything at Clairwood on Sunday either!:X

Greyville isn't "yours" to sell .............get with the programme.........................lol

I must be missing something but why does this huge amount that will be invested at Greyville seem similar to selling your house and using some of the proceeds to build a pool and tennis court at one you rent!

I think with the lease running for another 57+ years the new facilities have a long time to be utilized. Dont think there are many writing on this forum that will be around to see the end of that lease!

Craig Eudey Wrote:

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> I think with the lease running for another 57+
> years the new facilities have a long time to be
> utilized. Dont think there are many writing on
> this forum that will be around to see the end of
> that lease!


Are you joking ? Nobody will be alive so it's o.k.............

Craig Eudey Wrote:

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> I think with the lease running for another 57+
> years the new facilities have a long time to be
> utilized. Dont think there are many writing on
> this forum that will be around to see the end of
> that lease!


57 years may seem a long time to the shortsighted,but it is a relatively short time in the contexts of an entire industry

Interesting thought is that if somebody had suggested to me,on my first day at the races(1967), that in 45 years time racing will be in dire straights,I might have had the same attitude.......:

R F, I think the main reason is we could not keep going the way we were. We were going down a hole with no way out without money. I and many( most maybe) others believe that we now have the money to upgrade our no 1 track( not trying to be clever just stating a fact) as well as put down a top class all weather track. We also believe that when this is in place and we are racing as just Gold Circle KZN we will be making a healthy profit and racing will thrive here. We will have nearly everything we need to make it the no 1 racing jurisdiction in the country. At least we are giving ourselves a chance to do it. The old way we were all in huge trouble. Lets all hope it all comes out in a way that it is good for racing as a whole and GC Kzn and their Owners, Trainers and Punters especialy.

I can understand selling a property at ,say R20m an acre,and going to Pinetown and building 2 tracks on land at R1m an acre ,and after improvenents ,having R150m or so leftover for other investments..............great.
To invest money on a leased property of which the asset value to racing becomes a long term zero,sounds like a "P" type investment???
If the proceeds of Gosforth Park &/or Newmarket had been utilised as suggested(on owned tracks,at cheaper out of town prices) surely we wouldn't have this crappy Vaal problem.
Current attendances prove that racetracks don't have to be in expensive convenient locations as live racing is dead anyway,so beaming it in from cheaper locations makes huge sense, but not owning the asset, doesn't, IMO.

watching racing at durbanville today do we still have people who prefer greyhound tracks to proper racetracks where the best horse will win more times than not and luck in running is minimal?

First time that I have actually "watched" a Durbanville meeting and the scrimmaging for the bend over 1000m is terrible. Perhaps there is a need for a racecourse designer/landscaper to redesign the existing tracks? Maybe some undulations to slow the rush for the first corner at Durbanville?
Just some thoughts...