Auckland RC 30 May 2015 – R 4
ID: JCA18069
Code:
Thoroughbred
Meet Title:
Auckland RC - 30 May 2015
Meet Chair:
NMoffatt
Meet Committee Member 1:
ADooley
Race Date:
2015/05/30
Race Number:
R 4
Decision:
As Mr Colgan admitted the breach the charge was found to be proved.
Penalty:
Mr Colgan advised of commitments within the next seven days and admitted to riding only in the Northern region in the immediate future. Accordingly Mr Colgan is suspended from riding from the conclusion of racing on Saturday June 6th up to and including racing on Saturday June 13th. Race days included are:
10/6/15 Avondale
13/6/15 Ruakaka
Facts:
Mr Oatham lodged an information with the Judicial Committee alleging a breach of Rule 638 (3) (b) (ii) in that V Colgan used his whip excessively on his mount “FOXBURROW HILL”.
Mr Williamson started the video from near the 500 metres and identified Mr Colgan in second to last position in the middle of the track. From that point up until the 200m he hit his mount 18 times without the required six- stride respite. Mr Williamson said that although Mr Colgan clearly rode outside of the guidelines it was not a vigorous ride as he paused for two to three strides between strikes.
Mr Colgan said his horse was a big one-paced horse and he had to “keep at him” to keep going forward and get through the ground. He finished in fifth placing approximately six lengths from the winner.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Oatham said today’s breach of the whip rule came as a surprise to the Stewards. Mr Colgan had only breached this rule once in his long career (January 2015) where he was fined $450.00 following a charge in a Group 1 race at Trentham. In respect to the incident today Mr Oatham said while the number of strikes was well above the guidelines Mr Colgan did give a 3 stride respite between strikes.
The Chairman confirmed that both parties were familiar with the new JCA penalty guidelines which came into effect on May 1st 2015. The starting point for a repeat offender is a 3-5 days suspension recommended for second (or more) breaches of the whip rule that fall within a six month time frame.
Mr Oatham said although Mr Colgan falls into this time frame it was the opinion of the Stewards that his overall record should be given consideration. He said Mr Colgan’s record was excellent, the breach was out of character, and a more appropriate penalty was one of a fine somewhere in the region of $500.00. Any further breaches however and the Stewards would be seeking a period of suspension.
Mr Colgan was invited to make submissions on penalty and said that depending on the size of the fine a monetary penalty was appropriate. In case of suspension he advised the committee of commitments through until next Saturday and said he rode predominantly in the North.
Reasons for Penalty:
An updated JCA penalty guide came into effect on May 1st 2015. Where there is a second breach within 6 months for excessive use of the whip the starting point is a 3-5 day suspension. Following a clear 6 month period a rider’s record in respect to the whip rule will be reset.
The intention is obviously to deter repeat offenders. Mr Colgan’s situation is perhaps an anomaly whereby in a career spanning 25 years he has only breached the whip rule on two occasions but both of these breaches have occurred within the last 6 months. The committee gave consideration to the Stewards’ submission for a monetary penalty but it was our opinion that the new guidelines were put in place to send a clear message to riders that excessive whip use will not be tolerated. It is perhaps unfortunate for Mr Colgan that his only two breaches have fallen within the 6 month time frame in conjunction with the revised guidelines. His record prior to January was unblemished and we have adjusted the starting point downwards to reflect that. The only aggravating factor was the 18 times he used the whip, which is well over the guidelines, but this is mitigated somewhat by the frequency and severity of the strikes. Mr Colgan did not hit his horse in a continuous or relentless manner and he did not use the whip with vigour. We also note that Mr Colgan’s horse was responding and gaining ground. Taking into account all of the submissions it was our opinion that a two day suspension was an appropriate penalty on this occasion.
The Committee is aware that Mr Colgan has no recent history of riding in the Central Districts on industry days and this is reflected in penalty.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
Dmitry: This section contains all JCA fields migrated from the raw data.
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: e9ce5031468435ef33a42f613729563d
informantnumber: A6901
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Excessive use of whip
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 02/06/2015
hearing_title: Auckland RC 30 May 2015 - R 4
charge:
facts:
Mr Oatham lodged an information with the Judicial Committee alleging a breach of Rule 638 (3) (b) (ii) in that V Colgan used his whip excessively on his mount “FOXBURROW HILL”.
Mr Williamson started the video from near the 500 metres and identified Mr Colgan in second to last position in the middle of the track. From that point up until the 200m he hit his mount 18 times without the required six- stride respite. Mr Williamson said that although Mr Colgan clearly rode outside of the guidelines it was not a vigorous ride as he paused for two to three strides between strikes.
Mr Colgan said his horse was a big one-paced horse and he had to “keep at him” to keep going forward and get through the ground. He finished in fifth placing approximately six lengths from the winner.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
As Mr Colgan admitted the breach the charge was found to be proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Oatham said today’s breach of the whip rule came as a surprise to the Stewards. Mr Colgan had only breached this rule once in his long career (January 2015) where he was fined $450.00 following a charge in a Group 1 race at Trentham. In respect to the incident today Mr Oatham said while the number of strikes was well above the guidelines Mr Colgan did give a 3 stride respite between strikes.
The Chairman confirmed that both parties were familiar with the new JCA penalty guidelines which came into effect on May 1st 2015. The starting point for a repeat offender is a 3-5 days suspension recommended for second (or more) breaches of the whip rule that fall within a six month time frame.
Mr Oatham said although Mr Colgan falls into this time frame it was the opinion of the Stewards that his overall record should be given consideration. He said Mr Colgan’s record was excellent, the breach was out of character, and a more appropriate penalty was one of a fine somewhere in the region of $500.00. Any further breaches however and the Stewards would be seeking a period of suspension.
Mr Colgan was invited to make submissions on penalty and said that depending on the size of the fine a monetary penalty was appropriate. In case of suspension he advised the committee of commitments through until next Saturday and said he rode predominantly in the North.
reasonsforpenalty:
An updated JCA penalty guide came into effect on May 1st 2015. Where there is a second breach within 6 months for excessive use of the whip the starting point is a 3-5 day suspension. Following a clear 6 month period a rider’s record in respect to the whip rule will be reset.
The intention is obviously to deter repeat offenders. Mr Colgan’s situation is perhaps an anomaly whereby in a career spanning 25 years he has only breached the whip rule on two occasions but both of these breaches have occurred within the last 6 months. The committee gave consideration to the Stewards’ submission for a monetary penalty but it was our opinion that the new guidelines were put in place to send a clear message to riders that excessive whip use will not be tolerated. It is perhaps unfortunate for Mr Colgan that his only two breaches have fallen within the 6 month time frame in conjunction with the revised guidelines. His record prior to January was unblemished and we have adjusted the starting point downwards to reflect that. The only aggravating factor was the 18 times he used the whip, which is well over the guidelines, but this is mitigated somewhat by the frequency and severity of the strikes. Mr Colgan did not hit his horse in a continuous or relentless manner and he did not use the whip with vigour. We also note that Mr Colgan’s horse was responding and gaining ground. Taking into account all of the submissions it was our opinion that a two day suspension was an appropriate penalty on this occasion.
The Committee is aware that Mr Colgan has no recent history of riding in the Central Districts on industry days and this is reflected in penalty.
penalty:
Mr Colgan advised of commitments within the next seven days and admitted to riding only in the Northern region in the immediate future. Accordingly Mr Colgan is suspended from riding from the conclusion of racing on Saturday June 6th up to and including racing on Saturday June 13th. Race days included are:
10/6/15 Avondale
13/6/15 Ruakaka
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 638(3)(b)(ii)
Informant: Mr J Oatham - Senior Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr V Colgan - Licensed Rider
Otherperson: Mr M Williamson - Stipendiary Steward
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: 12e3f14a40bcda326ae9ac2cc56a836c
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R 4
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: 0747be8a6742b130611928aae7067f65
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 30/05/2015
meet_title: Auckland RC - 30 May 2015
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: auckland-rc
meet_racingtype: thoroughbred-racing
meet_chair: NMoffatt
meet_pm1: ADooley
meet_pm2: none
name: Auckland RC