What tracks have you been to?

[scanman]

Originally Posted by my miss storm cat

Three things...

1. Your list is astounding but I'm wondering why none of the tracks in NZ are on it (yet?).

2. I can't access any of the links you posted!

3. Would love to hear about the tracks in Belgium some day!

1 - New Zealand is at the top of my short list of countries that I haven't visited yet, but it's just not cost effective at this time. Primarily because it's difficult to put a lot of tracks together in the 3-4 week period of time that I would visit. During my last trip to Australia, I was able to visit 22 tracks in 27 days. Not so easy traveling throughout New Zealand because they bounce back an forth between the North and South Island.

2- I must have copied the links incorrectly. I doubled checked them this time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmh8...ature=youtu.be
https://www.racingvictoria.net.au/ne...g_odyssey.aspx
http://www.osoyoostimes.com/florida-...his-done-list/

3 - Belgium racing appears to be trying to make a bit of a resurgence with the re-opening of Oostende this year.. Groenendaal (very nice) and Sterrebeek (just okay) are now closed. Oostende is their nicest venue. The other is Ghlin. Apart from those two, Waregem gets one day a year when they run the Grand Steeple-Chase des Flandres.

[my miss storm cat]

Originally Posted by scanman

For some reason, the links won't post as I typed them. However, they did work the second time I posted them. If you still have trouble, let me know and I'll PM them to you.

Originally Posted by scanman

1 - New Zealand is at the top of my short list of countries that I haven't visited yet, but it's just not cost effective at this time. Primarily because it's difficult to put a lot of tracks together in the 3-4 week period of time that I would visit. During my last trip to Australia, I was able to visit 22 tracks in 27 days. Not so easy traveling throughout New Zealand because they bounce back an forth between the North and South Island.

2- I must have copied the links incorrectly. I doubled checked them this time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmh8...ature=youtu.be
https://www.racingvictoria.net.au/ne...g_odyssey.aspx
http://www.osoyoostimes.com/florida-...his-done-list/

3 - Belgium racing appears to be trying to make a bit of a resurgence with the re-opening of Oostende this year.. Groenendaal (very nice) and Sterrebeek (just okay) are now closed. Oostende is their nicest venue. The other is Ghlin. Apart from those two, Waregem gets one day a year when they run the Grand Steeple-Chase des Flandres.

First off thanks so much for the rundown on the tracks in Belgium! I really appreciate it.

LOVED the video and enjoyed reading the links....am so happy to hear you'll be doing a book (I hope you will be kind enough to sign a copy!),

You have a nice, easy going and likeable manner on camera... maybe after the book is completed you should think about pitching an idea (documentary) or raising funds and doing it yourself.

Just a thought!

Lastly whenever you do decide to go to NZ ed is the nicest guy... he's an owner and just got a job with The informant... I'm sure he'd be more than happy to answer any questions, etc. (You don't mind if I volunteer you, do you ed? ).

Thank you again.

[scanman]

Originally Posted by my miss storm cat

First off thanks so much for the rundown on the tracks in Belgium! I really appreciate it.

LOVED the video and enjoyed reading the links....am so happy to hear you'll be doing a book (I hope you will be kind enough to sign a copy!),

You have a nice, easy going and likeable manner on camera... maybe after the book is completed you should think about pitching an idea (documentary) or raising funds and doing it yourself.

Just a thought!

Lastly whenever you do decide to go to NZ ed is the nicest guy... he's an owner and just got a job with The informant... I'm sure he'd be more than happy to answer any questions, etc. (You don't mind if I volunteer you, do you ed? ).

Thank you again.

I lived in Belgium for 4 1/2 years and really enjoyed going racing there. The track in Ghlin opened about a year after I returned to the US. I lived in Ghlin and it would have been about a 15 minute walk to the track. Fortunately, I was able to visit it on a subsequent trip back to attend a wedding.

Glad you enjoyed the video and thanks for taking the time to read the articles. The interviews are a lot of fun. I also did a 10 minute segment with TVN (Victoria racing) the night I visited Cranbourne (unfortunately no link for that). I really enjoyed doing the TV spots and sharing my racing experiences. Last year, I was contacted by someone with NBC Sports about doing a segment with them. To date it hasn't worked out yet, but they are still interested and the stories and number of tracks continue to grow. Who knows, maybe Kasept (Steve) will put me on the air one of these days.

During my entire visit to Victoria and South Australia, the racing community was fantastic. I met/talked with the entire spectrum of industry personnel; racecourse executives, race callers, chart writers, photo finish judges, racecourse superintendents, starters, trainers, jockeys, and stewards. All were very accommodating and went out of their way to ensure that I had access to whatever I wanted to do at the racecourse. I can't wait to return for another visit!!!

Thank you for referring me to Ed. I've read his posts about racing in New Zealand. I do plan to visit there someday and will contact him prior to.

One of the great things about this forum and others are the people I've been able to meet and share track visits with. On this forum, Gate Dancer was an exceptional host when I visited Great Falls last year. On another occasion, I met up with someone from another forum at Assiniboia Downs and likewise, he/his family were outstanding hosts.