One of the most often heard complaints from the harness racing industry participants in New Zealand is how the handicapping system as it stands causes more problems than it solves.
Most of the people making those comments and complaints will never go on the record with their views because they believe rightly or wrongly that they will suffer the consequences further down the track.
One person who has not been afraid to voice her dissatisfaction recently is the lady behind the All Stars team Natalie Rasmussen.
The regular driver of the very talented mare Willow, Natalie feels the mare is facing an impossible task the way the handicapping system is treating her at present.
"Quite frankly I find it hard to believe the programming for this week."
"Willow has had to run against horses like Have Faith In Me and Didjamakem Bolt and while they had a Stakes race for mares on Friday, there were conditions (barring G1 winners or $100,000 race earners) that froze her out."
"She was also outside the conditions of the race that suited her on Tuesday."
"I thought the idea of Premier meetings like Cup week was to get the best horses to race with a chance to win, not rule them out."
"I feel quite strongly on the subject."
When the industry in New Zealand is struggling to retain horses here, it is hard to understand how a mare like Willow can be asked to race horses during Cup Week that she has no hope of beating.
Owned by Wayne Feiss in Victoria, it wouldn't be a surprise in the near future to see the mare racing on the other side of the Tasman.
Harnesslink Media