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A punter rang last night’s ATR phone-in to complain about the increasing amount of drunkenness and concomitant bad behaviour on racecourses. He cited Saturday at Newbury as an example. This was breezily dismissed by Matt Chapman as just the way of things nowadays and that ‘there’s not much we can do’. Chapman further suggested that the gentleman should take time off work to attend ‘quieter’ midweek meetings – something I do myself.
Aside from this dismal response, I wonder if it is now feasible for courses to consider alcohol-free days on occasional Fridays/Saturdays perhaps to encourage families and genuine enthusiasts?
I understand that bar turnover obviously plays a part in racecourse’s finances so it would be a brave move. However, unless courses come up with a strictly-enforced policing of drunkenness and anti-social behaviour (of which there is no sign at the moment) I think racing is running the risk of making it’s showpiece days simply a magnet for coachloads of pissheads who have scant regard for the racing taking place and even less for the sensibilities of their fellow racegoers.
Mike
Totally agree Mike but sadly can’t see it happening.
On the Rowley Mile at Newmarket the bar is positioned in the centre of the area where everyone who has viewed horses in the paddock is walking through to the betting ring and the racecourse to watch the horses going to post and racing. This area is flooded with groups of people gathered with pints of beer and bottles of wine etc and sometimes especially on big race days it is virtually impossible to get through without having beer splashed over you.
I think maybe move the bar areas away from the parade rings, betting and public access areas so that those that just want to drink and watch all the action on the tv screen can do so and the rest of us can enjoy easy access to the horses and stands.I know at the Rowley Mile they have the facility to move the whole bar area to the first floor where at present they have a Costa Coffee facility which could come downstairs, that would move the drunken masses away from the flow of punters moving from paddock to racecourse and also make a nicer family environment for any children visiting the racecourse who would not have to see drunk men and women shouting and making fools of themselves, at the bar, throughout the day with not a tad of interest in the beautiful horses on parade outside..Why do they bother to even go?
JacThings turn out best for those who make the best of how things turn out...I can understand the punter’s frustration, I have on occasions seen booze bags
that can hardly stand unaided at race meetings, although thankfully not too often.
I’ve also seen some some racegoers, if they can be called that, who seem to pay
little attention to the horses or the races. It seems like just a group day out
for some, and you can spot them coming a mile off.I think Chapman’s comments out of order, if he wants to promote racing and racegoers
His attitude that “there’s not much we can do” (if that’s the comment he made as I
didn’t hear his comments) is like putting your arms up and letting the lunatics run
the asylum.As much as I’d happily go to a alcohol free meeting, I don’t think that’s the way to
go. Going to the races, and having a couple of glasses of bubbly, or whatever takes
your fancy, is a nice way to spend an afternoon or evening. I don’t think these
buffoons should be able to dictate what the rest of the very reasonable racegoers do.I think the racecourse management need to recognise that this is totally unacceptable and
will have an influence on decent racegoers future attendance. The answer is in proper
stewarding and bar staff being taught that they can say NO. I don’t want to change the
feel of being at the track, I don’t mean hordes of burly men in black suits watching
your every move, but a word in the right ear might do the trick, and if it doesn’t then
action has to be taken to remove them. Perhaps it being made very public at racecourses,
that any racegoer who allow themselves to get inebriated or behave badly, will be ejected
and banned from future meetings.I’m not being unrealistic, I know how difficult this would be at big meetings where there
are vast crowds, but just to take the attitude that Chapman appears to have taken, (if the
quote is accurate) that nothing can be done and we just have to accept it, is not helpful
to the wellbeing of racing as a whole.Racecourses make too much money on drink to do alcohol free days. Sadly, this day and age would also put off more people than it encourages.
Answer is: Drunks need to be thrown out earlier, but what society thinks is acceptable these days means very few are. Suspect that is the point Chapman was trying to make (although I did not hear him either).
Value Is EverythingSadly you will always get certain types of individuals that do not have the common sense to know when enough is enough and thus spoil the raceday experience for everyone else.
I currently can’t see there being a time where a ban on alcohol on selected racedays even gets to a position where it is trialed at a racecourse as it generates far too much raceday revenue (that they would not be able to recoup elsewhere). Maybe enforcing a policy where serving staff are encouraged to cut people off when it is clear that a customer is at the tipping point – but that could then put said staff at risk of violence if the customer becomes unruly and belligerent about not being served.
The recent incident at Dundalk highlights a very lucky escape for a racegoer (on a stag do I believe) but drives home the point that it might not be too long before we have a spectator fatality on a racecourse due to excessive drinking – unfortunately, in the day and age we live in, it will take something like that happening before the issue is actually addressed.
Fingers crossed that it never happens.
LD73, even then it will not be addressed. The effect of even bad news is so fleeting these days that the PR effects have gone from memory in 24 hours.
When a death does occur, the racecourse/company concerned will issue the following statement: “We take our responsibilities toward customers/alcohol/safety/employees very seriously indeed and are constantly reviewing our policies”…
Or some such patent and worthless nonsense, and when Saturday comes, everyone has forgotten. Except, of course, the unfortunate and helpless grieving family, but, hey, what do they matter?
Couldn’t agree more Mike. This year at Goodwood the entire route in was past coaches with massive parties drinking and already plastered by the time they got to the entrance. A sensible drinking campaign might be a way forward, I race a lot in France, they don’t sell bottles to swing around, the glass sizes are more like 100ml, not 175-250. Cheltenham have small plastic glasses you can insert into the top of champagne bottles so you can swig freely as you totter around, encouraging people to drink bottles not glasses. This is not unlike the days of the six-pack greyhound meetings, bring in the masses to drink freely and ruin the sport. If a decent days racing is what you enjoy then you are hard pushed to find it in the UK.
The answer is, if courses are having issues with drunken racegoers then the matter should be reported to the local licensing authorities (normally the local authority)
It is an offence to serve someone who is drunk.
OK one complaint will just lead to an investigation and probably a quiet word but if enough people complain persistently the licensing authority will soon get hacked off and act.
If the racecourse is threatened with the possible loss of its drinks licence they will soon clean up their act.
However it needs people to complain to the authorities and not on internet forums.
What always concerns me is how many people are driving home afterwards that are well over the limit.
A punter rang last night’s ATR phone-in to complain about the increasing amount of drunkenness and concomitant bad behaviour on racecourses. He cited Saturday at Newbury as an example. This was breezily dismissed by Matt Chapman as just the way of things nowadays and that ‘there’s not much we can do’. Chapman further suggested that the gentleman should take time off work to attend ‘quieter’ midweek meetings – something I do myself.
Aside from this dismal response, I wonder if it is now feasible for courses to consider alcohol-free days on occasional Fridays/Saturdays perhaps to encourage families and genuine enthusiasts?
I understand that bar turnover obviously plays a part in racecourse’s finances so it would be a brave move. However, unless courses come up with a strictly-enforced policing of drunkenness and anti-social behaviour (of which there is no sign at the moment) I think racing is running the risk of making it’s showpiece days simply a magnet for coachloads of pissheads who have scant regard for the racing taking place and even less for the sensibilities of their fellow racegoers.
Mike
Mike ,one has to forgive Matt Chapman, as he has form at times as a d#ckhead… I remember Peter Moody was very annoyed when Matt said Black Caviar had to come to England to prove herself. Now Moody replied..Yes arrongantly..but correctly ‘Why do we have to come half way around the world to meet inferior horses for less money to prove herself’. Now, yes she just fell in, but with f***** suspensorys and torn chest muscles with Luke pulling her up before the line Moody was proved right…As for the drinking, i have done my time at the races getting ‘maggoted’ (any pom who knows an Aussie knows that means well p!ssed). No fun next morning and these days the young crowd just seem to be on the ‘shots’ waggon, i mean if anyone knows anyone older than 25 that does shots.. Well they are a d!ckhead, one should learn…Nothing wrong with having a good few drinks at the races, it can be enjoyable, but have some self control. Over here like there they are promoting to a young crowd, they have to and drinking and music is their Ace,it works and these are the times we live in…
Photographers warned off if they were to publish photographs of ‘drunk racegoers, racecourses know exactly what a problem they have and they want to brush it under the carpet. Its all about the money not the racing experience now. Royal Ascot’s so called ‘Royal Enclosure’ is another world away from horse racing. If you turn up at the entrance (about half a mile easily from the parade ring) you will be sidelined by the Bollinger marquees etc and wonder where the hell you are within an hour, if get far enough you see that total a@se Gok Wan before a horse.
As for the drinking, i have done my time at the races getting ‘maggoted’ (any pom who knows an Aussie knows that means well p!ssed). No fun next morning and these days the young crowd just seem to be on the ‘shots’ waggon, i mean if anyone knows anyone older than 25 that does shots.. Well they are a d!ckhead, one should learn…Nothing wrong with having a good few drinks at the races, it can be enjoyable, but have some self control. Over here like there they are promoting to a young crowd, they have to and drinking and music is their Ace,it works and these are the times we live in…
“Having a good few drinks at the races can be enjoyable” for the “p!ssed”. Unfortunately, those “maggoted” always think they have “self control”. They do not! Being “p!ssed/maggoted” means reasoning is impaired therefore undermining “self control”. Making it far from “enjoyable” for a lot of others and can ruin the racing experience for some. The “p!ssed” are either deluded or selfish or addicts.
Value Is EverythingBooze and racing are inextricably linked. That’s the way it is. The boozers of lager at £4.60 a pint are giving racecourses lots of revenue. Drinks companies are also one of racing’s biggest sponsors.
In fairness to Newbury, last time I went (for the Lockinge meeting) the stewarding was hot on enforcing no alcohol in the stands. I believe it was Newbury which has had problems with drinking e.g.brawls between rival football fans and allegations of under age drinking. Goodwood is also strictly stewarded.Personally I don’t drink at racecourses and find the “in your face” puce faced drunks a bit much . Many annual members and other potential racegoers don’t attend Saturday night meetings at my local course for that reason. However we are outnumbered by the once a year plastic cup brigade.
Easy to patronise them but there has to be room for everyone to attend racing. Also the boozers are probably subsidising the annual membership to an extent. I have seen alcohol free zones at some racecourses (Ascot I think). Sounds a good compromise to me.
This is my main bugbear when going to the races but I am resigned to the fact that it happens!!
Years ago before the licensing laws changed I could understand it because of there not being many places you could drink all afternoon but now I find it even more incomprehensible that people just get absolutely bladdered , to use a modern phrase, at the races.
Personally I might have one drink before the racing starts and maybe one or two after racing if I am fortunate enough to win a few quid!!
Racecourses are never going to ban or limit drinking because it generates so much income for then.
It’s no worse now than it’s ever been, the alcoholic industry sponsors massively in our sport, Crabbies, Hennessey, John Smiths, Guinness, Budweisser, Fosters, Adnams and there is one brewery that pays Wincanton well for a big race that name escapes me amongst others.
Sorry like all sports, the alcohol industry funding sponsors prize money and it’s here to stay and I attend many meetings and see rowdy incidents but nothing you’d not see on any high st.
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