On Sunday 3 October, the government imposed an Alert Level 3 ‘border’ placed around Raglan, Te Kauwhata, Ngaruawahia, Hamilton city and Huntly for an initial period of five days, ending at 11.59PM Friday 8 October.
As a result of this, New Zealand Bloodstock has devised a contingency plan for the 2021 Ready to Run Sale Breeze Ups set to be held at Te Rapa Racecourse on 11 and 12 October.
NZB and the Waikato Racing Club have been advised that Breeze Ups for the Ready to Run Sale cannot take place under current Alert Level 3 restrictions, and therefore have devised the following contingency plan:
A) At 1PM on Friday 8 October, if it is announced the restrictions have been lifted, the 2021 Ready to Run Sale Breeze Ups will go ahead at Te Rapa Racecourse as scheduled on the 11 and 12 October.
B) If, however, that announcement extends the border restrictions, the Breeze Ups will be postponed until the following Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 October at Te Rapa.
C) If on Friday 1PM 15 October (or earlier), it is announced that that the restrictions are to be extended even further, the Breeze Ups will be held at the Cambridge Jockey Club’s synthetic track on Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 October.
NZB acknowledges the complexity of the situation and is aware of the severity of COVID-19, as well as the ever-evolving challenges it presents.
NZB will adapt to the changing circumstances in the best way it possibly can and would like to thank the Waikato Racing Club, Cambridge Jockey Club and New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing for their help in ensuring it has a workable and realistic contingency plan in place.
More information will be made available regarding the Breeze Ups in due course.
