Owners of South Island jumpers will get one extra unexpected chance at stake money at Timaru next week.
The addition of a 3000m 0-1 win hurdle and a 4280m 0-1 win steeplechase came after a jumping forum was held at Riccarton last week.
Both races will be run for a stake of $15,000.
NZ Jumps Inc national jumps co-ordinator Andre Klein said the extra two races were due to demand from southern trainers and owners for an additional opportunity after the Grand National meeting.
''The number of entries we've received throughout the year for the southern jump races have indicated a turnaround,'' Klein said.
''There's demand from the likes of John Parsons, Brian Anderton and Murray Hamilton to have a set of 0-1 win races. It's a tough call, the Grand National carnival, to have as a grand finale for a Southerner. It's a very abrupt end to the season.''
The extra races were the main concrete plans to come from the forum, with other ideas likely to be progressed or confirmed at an NZ Jumps meeting in October.
The mid-late August date might become Timaru's second date, with Riccarton perhaps picking up a jumping date in late June or early July.
''There's a desire to see a second meeting at Riccarton. Perhaps ideally about a month or six weeks out from the Grand National to give everyone an opportunity to trial that course.''
A jumps meeting - possibly at Wingatui - could be slotted in before Riverton to get horses prepared for the Great Western features, and the handicapping could be loosened up to allow more discretion, Klein said.
''There was a desire to increase the spread for handicapping; there would maybe be no minimum top weight.''
Other ideas include an international riders series, following the success of Irish jockey Ruby Walsh's visit to Australia at the weekend, guiding Bashboy to his third straight Grand National at Ballarat.
NZ Jumps, with assistance from New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing, would also look at helping some jumps riders to travel to England and Ireland during the northern hemisphere jumping season.
Klein said young Waikato jockey Daniel Miller spent time working for Charlie Longsdon in Britain two years ago.
''That was of huge benefit to him, so that's something we may look to replicate in the off-season.''
The organisation plans to develop a jumps jockey mentoring system, which has worked well in recent years for flat riders.
