The fact is, my friend, they're here to stay. If you spent a minute considering my point, it's thus. Six furlong races shouldn't be on metro cards. Should we assign one meeting every fortnight or so to showcase these 'kitsch' events, they live & exist in their own world. End of. https://t.co/sDgNNSQCx1
— Jason Bonnington (@JasonBonnington) May 13, 2023
Not long ago Jason Bonnington was spruiking the virtues of 1200m races on Saturday nights, and claiming that they were the way of the future and the path to harness racing riches.
Now all of a sudden he has changed his mind, and like a climate change denier is protesting that what he wrote never happened.
That is untrue.
At no stage in his article extolling the benefits of the mad arse sprints that punters avoid like the plague did Bonnington ever say that these type of races should be held at the midweeks.
C’mon my friend, you can’t have it both ways.
And you are making it up as you go.
I’d hate to have Bonno in my trench.
You’d find yourself waking up to the sound of mortal shells, and suddenly all alone.
——————————————–
If you haven’t been watching closely, here’s a newsflash.
Harness Racing Victoria is quite enamoured with their recent development of six-furlong races and there’s many more to come.
For the first time in this scribe’s memory, Melton will stage not one, but two competitive contests over the once reviled and now emphatically embraced 1200m trip.
And as we witness the growth and evolution of this sleeping giant concept, one early oddity stands out above all others.
Back in the days of the once annual Stampede – which was also staged over harness racing’s extreme short-course journey – those wishing to compete were blazing beginners with sizzling speed to burn.
Tonight’s two contests over 1200m symbolize either a philosophical revolution or a subtle shift in how trainers plan to pillage their riches.
Let’s start with the earlier, and stronger, of this evening’s six-furlong spectacles.
Only one of the eight likely starters, Ghost Of Time, is known for his early brilliance and passion for leading at all costs.
Ignoring former Kiwi commodity, Winegum, given gate speed in New Zealand bears little resemblance to our own, the remaining seven runners have – cumulatively – led just eight times in their 87 starts on Australian soil.
Essentially, all are suited to sit-sprint racing patterns by their very nature.
Now, for the second, and weaker, 1200m event of the evening; the programme’s final contest.
The aggregate statistic here tells us that of the eight pacers engaged, leading has been the ultimate outcome in just 13 of their past 160 outings.
What all of this means is anyone’s guess.
One thing, however, seems certain.
Whatever you thought these mad dashes were, there’s every chance you were wrong.
And what they’ll become is even more perplexing again.
https://www.thetrots.com.au/news/the-forum/bonnington/bonnington-how-do-we-solve-these-1200m-dashes/