Winton HRC 15 March 2014 – R11
ID: JCA17562
Meet Title:
Winton HRC - 15 March 2014
Meet Chair:
PKnowles
Meet Committee Member 1:
NSkelt
Race Date:
2014/03/15
Race Number:
R 11
Decision:
We find the charge proved.
Penalty:
Mr Ferguson is fined $300 and reminded of his obligations under the rules of HRNZ.
Facts:
Following the running of Race# 11 the Winton Business Cup Discretionary Handicap Pace, Stipendiary Steward Mr CJ Allison lodged and information alleging that Junior Horseman Mr CR Ferguson breached rule 869 (3) (b) careless driving. The information alleged that …after approximately 400 metres C Ferguson allowed The Wrath Of Robyn to strike the sulky wheel of Bettor’s Brigadier which resulted in the tube coming adrift.
Rule 869 (3) (b) provides for the following:
No horseman in any race shall drive:-
carelessly
Mr Ferguson, represented by Mr Williamson attended the hearing but did not admit the charge.
Submissions for Decision:
Mr Allison stated that MR Ferguson’s horse settled sixth in single file after 400m. Prior to the incident he observed Mr Ferguson looking behind him to runners further back in the field. This happened on several occasions. At one point The Wrath Of Robyn had been racing on the wheel of Bettor’s Brigadier before shifting inwards to its correct trailing position. Just prior to the incident he observed that the forward runners had gaps between them and when the pace eased they had not been unduly affected. He said the incident happened because Mr Ferguson was not taking more care in his driving of the horse and not the easing of the pace.
Mr Williamson said the incident was partly due to the manners of the horse, he wore a Murphy blind and pole on the near side (inside) and when the pace eased the horse had reacted to that gear and shifted outwards. He stated that the easing of the pace was subtle but a contributing factor to the incident. He said there were a lot of mitigating factors that contributed to the incident.
Mr Ferguson did not believe he had been careless. He said the horse had run away from the pole on its inside due to the pace easing and he did not believe he could have done any more.
Reasons for Decision:
The committee, after hearing the evidence and viewing the videos, was again satisfied that the incident was due to the driving of Mr Ferguson. Mr Ferguson was not paying attention to runners ahead of him and allowed his horse to strike the wheel of Bettor’s Brigadier.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Allison stated Mr Ferguson was a very busy Junior Horseman and had an excellent record and no previous charges under the rule. He had had 152 drives last season and 162 drives this season to date. The incident was at the lower end of the scale although as a result the outcome had been significant. A horse had lost its chances, and the betting public and connections of The Wrath Of Robyn had been affected. He was seeking a fine of between $250 and $300.
Mr Ferguson stated he had a clear record and was in his fourth season of driving as a Junior Horseman. He asked for a fine at the lower end of the scale.
Reasons for Penalty:
The committee believes the incident is in the mid to low range. We have given credit to Mr Ferguson for his excellent record and this is his first charge of any kind in four seasons as a Junior Horseman. However, we acknowledge that as a result of the incident the betting public and connections of The Wrath Of Robyn were affected by the outcome. A fine at the mid range is appropriate in this instance.
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: f21c1a6e73eec17fd2d074afb37386cc
informantnumber: A1728
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Careless driving
plea: denied
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 10/03/2014
hearing_title: Winton HRC 15 March 2014 - R11
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race# 11 the Winton Business Cup Discretionary Handicap Pace, Stipendiary Steward Mr CJ Allison lodged and information alleging that Junior Horseman Mr CR Ferguson breached rule 869 (3) (b) careless driving. The information alleged that …after approximately 400 metres C Ferguson allowed The Wrath Of Robyn to strike the sulky wheel of Bettor’s Brigadier which resulted in the tube coming adrift.
Rule 869 (3) (b) provides for the following:
No horseman in any race shall drive:-
carelessly
Mr Ferguson, represented by Mr Williamson attended the hearing but did not admit the charge.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
Mr Allison stated that MR Ferguson’s horse settled sixth in single file after 400m. Prior to the incident he observed Mr Ferguson looking behind him to runners further back in the field. This happened on several occasions. At one point The Wrath Of Robyn had been racing on the wheel of Bettor’s Brigadier before shifting inwards to its correct trailing position. Just prior to the incident he observed that the forward runners had gaps between them and when the pace eased they had not been unduly affected. He said the incident happened because Mr Ferguson was not taking more care in his driving of the horse and not the easing of the pace.
Mr Williamson said the incident was partly due to the manners of the horse, he wore a Murphy blind and pole on the near side (inside) and when the pace eased the horse had reacted to that gear and shifted outwards. He stated that the easing of the pace was subtle but a contributing factor to the incident. He said there were a lot of mitigating factors that contributed to the incident.
Mr Ferguson did not believe he had been careless. He said the horse had run away from the pole on its inside due to the pace easing and he did not believe he could have done any more.
reasonsfordecision:
The committee, after hearing the evidence and viewing the videos, was again satisfied that the incident was due to the driving of Mr Ferguson. Mr Ferguson was not paying attention to runners ahead of him and allowed his horse to strike the wheel of Bettor’s Brigadier.
Decision:
We find the charge proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Allison stated Mr Ferguson was a very busy Junior Horseman and had an excellent record and no previous charges under the rule. He had had 152 drives last season and 162 drives this season to date. The incident was at the lower end of the scale although as a result the outcome had been significant. A horse had lost its chances, and the betting public and connections of The Wrath Of Robyn had been affected. He was seeking a fine of between $250 and $300.
Mr Ferguson stated he had a clear record and was in his fourth season of driving as a Junior Horseman. He asked for a fine at the lower end of the scale.
reasonsforpenalty:
The committee believes the incident is in the mid to low range. We have given credit to Mr Ferguson for his excellent record and this is his first charge of any kind in four seasons as a Junior Horseman. However, we acknowledge that as a result of the incident the betting public and connections of The Wrath Of Robyn were affected by the outcome. A fine at the mid range is appropriate in this instance.
penalty:
Mr Ferguson is fined $300 and reminded of his obligations under the rules of HRNZ.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869 (3) (b)
Informant: Mr CJ Allison - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr CR Ferguson - Junior Horseman (The Wrath Of Robyn)
Otherperson: Mr NP Williamson - Assisting Mr Ferguson
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: 769323288066318201302322d42fc62c
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R 11
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: 4f1641ba43bddf01fd9486f4d6e2db2f
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 15/03/2014
meet_title: Winton HRC - 15 March 2014
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: winton-hrc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: PKnowles
meet_pm1: NSkelt
meet_pm2: none
name: Winton HRC