NZ Metro TC 29 January 2021 – R 1 – Chair, Mr R McKenzie
ID: JCA14397
Meet Title:
NZ Metro TC - 29 January 2021
Meet Chair:
RMcKenzie
Meet Committee Member 1:
OJarvis
Race Date:
2021/01/29
Race Number:
R1
Decision:
Mr Houghton having admitted the breach, it was found proved.
Penalty:
Mr Houghton is fined the sum of $500.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 1, SBSR – Diamond Creek 2YO Prelude 10 April Mobile Pace, an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr S P Renault, against Licensed Open Driver, Mr R L Houghton, alleging that, as the driver of EXECUTIVE BANNER in the race, he “used his whip in an unapproved manner in the early stages of the run home before using it free of the rein with more than a wrist flicking motion”.
Mr Houghton had signed the Statement by the Respondent on the Information form indicating that he admitted the breach. He confirmed this at the hearing at which he was present.
The Whip and Rein Regulations provide as follows:
3.1 A driver may only apply the whip in a wrist only flicking motion whilst holding a rein in each hand with the tip of the whip pointed forward in an action which does not engage the shoulder.
3.2 For the purposes of clause 3.1, “wrist only flicking motion” means:
3.2.1 Ensuring no force is generated by the use of the elbow or shoulder when applying the whip.
3.2.2 The forearm is not raised beyond forty-five degrees relative to the racing surface.
3.2.3 Not applying the whip with overt force.
3.3 A driver shall not use a whip in an unapproved manner.
3.4 For the purposes of Clause 3.3 a driver shall be deemed to have used the whip in an unapproved manner in the following circumstances which are not exclusive:
3.4.1 If the whip is applied other than as permitted in clause 3.1.
Mr Renault showed video replays of the final 200-300 metres of the race. He pointed out EXECUTIVE BANNER, driven by Mr Houghton, racing outside the leader as the field entered the final straight. He then pointed out, on the head-on replay, that Mr Houghton had briefly dropped the whip from his left hand. Upon regathering it, he struck the horse once with the handle end of the whip, which was using it in an unapproved manner. He then used the whip on a further occasion free of the rein, before using his whip in more than a wrist flicking motion over the final stages, Mr Renault said.
Mr Houghton said that everything was happening “pretty quick”. When he turned his whip around, to activate the deafeners, it flicked out of his grip. When he grabbed it, he said, it came forward with him and he was more focussed on retrieving it. He did not strike the horse in that manner intentionally, he said. As far as using his whip in more than a wrist flicking motion, he said that his whip is a “floppy” one and was more conspicuous than the whips of other drivers. When he used it, he said, it flicked back. His actions looked worse on the head-on than on the side-on replay, he submitted. Mr Renault had earlier acknowledged this.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Renault told the Committee that Mr Houghton has had 29 drives to date this season and, last season, had 42 drives. His record is clear.
Stewards considered that the breach was in the mid-range for which the starting point is a $500 fine. He submitted that a fine of that amount would be an appropriate penalty.
Mr Houghton, when asked by the Committee if he would like it to consider a term of suspension rather than a fine, stated that he would prefer a fine.
Reasons for Penalty:
There are three elements to this charge against Mr Houghton. Just after the turn for home, Mr Houghton briefly dropped his whip from his left hand and, in the process of retrieving it, he grasped it by the shaft and struck the horse once with the handle of the whip. This clearly amounted to a breach of clause 3.1 of the Regulations in that the tip of the whip was not pointed forward. However, the Committee accepts Mr Houghton’s explanation that it was not intentional but rather inadvertent, done as it was in the process of retrieving his whip and we have not included this part of the alleged breach in considering penalty.
However, Mr Houghton has admitted that he then used his whip on one occasion free of the rein and then in more than a flicking motion in breach of the Regulations. He persisted in this for some distance, in excess of 50 metres, which places the breach in the “medium-level” as defined in the HRNZ Whip Penalty Guide.
The HRNZ Whip Penalty Guide (effective 1 October 2020) provides as follows:
For a medium-level breach, the starting point would either be a fine ($500) or short period of suspension (2 days). Mid-level offending is defined as when a driver inadvertently reverts to the old style (freehand, loose reining and/or more than a flicking motion) and continues to drive in this manner for some distance (50 metres) before taking corrective steps to return to a compliant style of driving.
That provision provides for a fine of $500 for a mid-level breach. Mr Houghton was asked if he wished the Committee to consider a term of suspension but he expressed preference for a fine.
There are no relevant aggravating or mitigating factors. The fact that Mr Houghton went on to win the race could, arguably, be an aggravating factor. However, looking at the circumstances of the breach in totality, a fine of $500 is, in our view, an adequate penalty.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
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Data from these fields should be mapped appropriately to display amongst the standard fields above; please make note of any values below that are missing in the above standard fields but should be there.
hearingid: 7e070d1fe4b07f3d6c07573917dcee03
informantnumber: A12398
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Using Whip in Unapproved Manner
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 02/02/2021
hearing_title: NZ Metro TC 29 January 2021 - R 1 - Chair, Mr R McKenzie
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 1, SBSR – Diamond Creek 2YO Prelude 10 April Mobile Pace, an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr S P Renault, against Licensed Open Driver, Mr R L Houghton, alleging that, as the driver of EXECUTIVE BANNER in the race, he “used his whip in an unapproved manner in the early stages of the run home before using it free of the rein with more than a wrist flicking motion”.
Mr Houghton had signed the Statement by the Respondent on the Information form indicating that he admitted the breach. He confirmed this at the hearing at which he was present.
The Whip and Rein Regulations provide as follows:
3.1 A driver may only apply the whip in a wrist only flicking motion whilst holding a rein in each hand with the tip of the whip pointed forward in an action which does not engage the shoulder.
3.2 For the purposes of clause 3.1, “wrist only flicking motion” means:
3.2.1 Ensuring no force is generated by the use of the elbow or shoulder when applying the whip.
3.2.2 The forearm is not raised beyond forty-five degrees relative to the racing surface.
3.2.3 Not applying the whip with overt force.
3.3 A driver shall not use a whip in an unapproved manner.
3.4 For the purposes of Clause 3.3 a driver shall be deemed to have used the whip in an unapproved manner in the following circumstances which are not exclusive:
3.4.1 If the whip is applied other than as permitted in clause 3.1.
Mr Renault showed video replays of the final 200-300 metres of the race. He pointed out EXECUTIVE BANNER, driven by Mr Houghton, racing outside the leader as the field entered the final straight. He then pointed out, on the head-on replay, that Mr Houghton had briefly dropped the whip from his left hand. Upon regathering it, he struck the horse once with the handle end of the whip, which was using it in an unapproved manner. He then used the whip on a further occasion free of the rein, before using his whip in more than a wrist flicking motion over the final stages, Mr Renault said.
Mr Houghton said that everything was happening “pretty quick”. When he turned his whip around, to activate the deafeners, it flicked out of his grip. When he grabbed it, he said, it came forward with him and he was more focussed on retrieving it. He did not strike the horse in that manner intentionally, he said. As far as using his whip in more than a wrist flicking motion, he said that his whip is a “floppy” one and was more conspicuous than the whips of other drivers. When he used it, he said, it flicked back. His actions looked worse on the head-on than on the side-on replay, he submitted. Mr Renault had earlier acknowledged this.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
Mr Houghton having admitted the breach, it was found proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Renault told the Committee that Mr Houghton has had 29 drives to date this season and, last season, had 42 drives. His record is clear.
Stewards considered that the breach was in the mid-range for which the starting point is a $500 fine. He submitted that a fine of that amount would be an appropriate penalty.
Mr Houghton, when asked by the Committee if he would like it to consider a term of suspension rather than a fine, stated that he would prefer a fine.
reasonsforpenalty:
There are three elements to this charge against Mr Houghton. Just after the turn for home, Mr Houghton briefly dropped his whip from his left hand and, in the process of retrieving it, he grasped it by the shaft and struck the horse once with the handle of the whip. This clearly amounted to a breach of clause 3.1 of the Regulations in that the tip of the whip was not pointed forward. However, the Committee accepts Mr Houghton’s explanation that it was not intentional but rather inadvertent, done as it was in the process of retrieving his whip and we have not included this part of the alleged breach in considering penalty.
However, Mr Houghton has admitted that he then used his whip on one occasion free of the rein and then in more than a flicking motion in breach of the Regulations. He persisted in this for some distance, in excess of 50 metres, which places the breach in the “medium-level” as defined in the HRNZ Whip Penalty Guide.
The HRNZ Whip Penalty Guide (effective 1 October 2020) provides as follows:
For a medium-level breach, the starting point would either be a fine ($500) or short period of suspension (2 days). Mid-level offending is defined as when a driver inadvertently reverts to the old style (freehand, loose reining and/or more than a flicking motion) and continues to drive in this manner for some distance (50 metres) before taking corrective steps to return to a compliant style of driving.
That provision provides for a fine of $500 for a mid-level breach. Mr Houghton was asked if he wished the Committee to consider a term of suspension but he expressed preference for a fine.
There are no relevant aggravating or mitigating factors. The fact that Mr Houghton went on to win the race could, arguably, be an aggravating factor. However, looking at the circumstances of the breach in totality, a fine of $500 is, in our view, an adequate penalty.
penalty:
Mr Houghton is fined the sum of $500.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869(2)& Whip & Rein Regulations
Informant: S P Renault, Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: R L Houghton, Licensed Open Driver
Otherperson:
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: 364fa95e0010bf5a26c11eacbc3a5616
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R1
submittochair:
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meetid: 2c03deb5cbd58285d506b7b5c8d96f58
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meetdate: 29/01/2021
meet_title: NZ Metro TC - 29 January 2021
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: nz-metro-tc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: RMcKenzie
meet_pm1: OJarvis
meet_pm2: none
name: NZ Metro TC