Bus Service. Avis are the service provider.
The horrendous car accident involving two young jockeys on Monday evening has seen the blame game being played with the inevitable fingers being pointed at racing operator Phumelela, as the transport provider for out of province stakeholders at the regular Monday Kimberley meetings.
The saga and legend attached to the bus that is laid on at Phumelela’s expense has been ongoing for some years now. The public speculation and suggestions have once again demonstrated that there are inevitably three sides to the horseracing coin.
The horseracing operators are known to rather ignore public opinion than defend themselves, and the information and clarity readily provided on the matter by Phumelela Racing Executive Patrick Davis, paints a professional caring picture rather than the blundering inept image created by uninformed speculation.
According to Mr Davis the coach is provided by Phumelela to transport key operational staff and apprentice jockeys to and from racedays. They apparently also allow jockeys and the odd trainer and assistant trainer to utilise this free service, as space permits, from time to time. The first assumption has been clarified. Jockeys and trainers do not have automatic free use of the facility.
We Care. Phumelela Racing Executive Patrick Davis.
Davis acknowledged that many derogatory things have historically been said about the Kimberley coach, but he felt that this had changed when they had switched service providers several years ago. “ The previous coach company did not have the required back up services along the Johannesburg / Kimberley route which resulted in the problems in the past. This is why we reviewed the service and switched service provider to Avis Coach Hire, who as part of their contract with us, undertook to have all the necessary support contingency requirements such as replacement vehicles and qualified mechanics at various key towns along this route in the event of any problems.”
We put it to Davis that the public image of the bus may have been skewed over time as a result of the issues and problems encountered in the past: “I can assure everybody that the coach in question is anything but “a jalopy with goats and bicycles on the roof rack, Transkei style” as you suggest. It is in fact a luxury coach along similar lines to those used in most professional sports,” he stated.
WRONG! The Phumelela Kimberley bus is a luxury coach.
As regards the specifics of the failure on Monday, Davis was adamant that they had had no ‘real problems with the new service provider’ since the inception of the new contract. “ Whilst everyone appreciates that vehicle breakdowns can occur, Avis let us down and we are of the opinion that they were in breach of their commitment to us with the lack of expedient back up service on Monday night. We are obviously taking this up with them in the strongest way to ensure that the situation is remedied and that it does not recur.”
Davis was outraged when we put it to him that there had been suggestions in certain quarters that the motor vehicle accident involving JP Van Der Merwe and Ryan Curling could have been avoided had they not been forced to utilise private transport and drive the long round trip after a day’s hard work: “For anybody to suggest that the horrific car accident involving two of our jockeys has anything to do with the coach is ridiculous and in bad taste, ” he said.
Both jockeys are stable and still in hospital.
We thank Mr Davis for his comments.
