- This topic has 35 replies, 17 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 2 months ago by
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Nothing soulless about Tanforan, Dvinsky, Gallantry, Kames Park, Almaty Express, Dunaskin, Efistorm, Canadian Danehill, Methaaly, Vhujon, General Tufto etc…Not to mention the enduring Norma Macauley/Perlachy love affair.
Wonderful old all weather horses. All of them.
Five beautiful, well subscribed, competitive handicaps at Kempton tonight and a very good card at Ascot saved tomorrow afternoon.
The jumps boys have their Hunter Chases at Cheltenahm tomorrow evening and their still whinging?
We should be thankful for the wonderful variety that UK racing provides. Long may it continue.
Who is the loser by moving it to Kempton, with free entry to boot?
Anybody who enjoys watching racing on a proper racetrack not one where racegoers cannot even get close to the track.
What?? Due to the weather that fixture is not available on ‘a proper racetrack’ (i.e. turf – in your opinion) is it?
You imply that the staging of the meeting on the AW somehow denies turf racegoers an opportunity of seeing this meeting. It doesn’t, their choices here are simple:
1. No race meeting. So obviously said racegoers cannot attend.
2. A race meeting on an AW surface which said racegoers may choose to attend or not.
Again, who is the loser by moving it to Kempton??
Mike
Due to the weather that fixture is not available on ‘a proper racetrack’ (i.e. turf – in your opinion) is it?
Yep – personally I would rather lose the meeting – sh*t happens, it rains, it snows meetings are lost – simple as.
Again, who is the loser by moving it to Kempton??
Mike
It’s not a matter of winning or losing
The jumps boys have their Hunter Chases at Cheltenahm tomorrow evening and their still whinging?
That makes the presumption that all NH fans are fans of Hunter Chase meetings
Yep – personally I would rather lose the meeting
Well sorry Paul, but I think that is a rather silly thing to say.
I think this is a positive initiative. It’s not ideal, but it makes the best of a bad lot. Horses will run, prize money will be won, jockeys will be employed, punters will turn up, bets will be taken. To prefer zero activity – actually prefer
nothing
to happen! – (along with the loss of one group race and two listed races) on the grounds of some anti-AW prejudice is just nuts in my view.
Mike
Yep – personally I would rather lose the meeting
Well sorry Paul, but I think that is a rather silly thing to say.
It’s an opinion Mike, you may not agree with it but it’s an opinion and no less valid than any other
punters will turn up,
It will be interesting to see how many,compared with how many would have attended at Ascot.
The Ascot figures for the past four years are, 7,968 8,257 19,318 and 26,595 (the last two years were free admission, hence the increase)
bets will be taken.
Now we are coming down to the nitty gritty with bookmakers ruling again. It’s interesting none of the original sponsors have moved across to Kempton and the entire meeting is bookmaker sponsored.
To prefer zero activity – actually prefer
nothing
to happen! – (along with the loss of one group race and two listed races) on the grounds of some anti-AW prejudice is just nuts in my view.
The Group Race could have been run at Newmarket at the weekend and it isn’t as if nothing else is happening tomorrow there are still four other meetings taking place, the punters will not actually be bereft of racing action.
It will be interesting to see how many,compared with how many would have attended at Ascot.
No! The choice here is
not
between having the meeting at Kempton or Ascot, it is between having the meeting at Kempton or not at all. Therefore, this is an irrelevant comparison.
However many turn up, I guarantee it will be more than would with your suggestion of just forgetting the meeting!Mike
And more will go to Kempton than will go to the low grade lottery in the mud action at Pontefract.
Well done the BHA for getting this on and encouraging people to attend and well done to both channels for showing it
Surely a pragmatic and sensible view from trainer Richard Hannon:-
Switching what was an excellent programme from Ascot tomorrow to the Polytrack at Kempton was not everyone’s cup of tea, and several trainers have opted out, but Richard Hannon has such a brilliant record on the surface and he takes the view that it is the only place to go just now with the turf meetings resembling a ploughed field.
Not all his runners have run on thge AW, but they work on it.
Either sit at home and watch the rain or go to the AW where there is decent prize money tomorrow
And more will go to Kempton than will go to the low grade lottery in the mud action at Pontefract.
Well done the BHA for getting this on and encouraging people to attend and well done to both channels for showing it
Can’t think of anything worse than watching the all weather at Kempton, given the choice would love to be at Ponte where the atmosphere is ten times better
With blinkered attitudes like this is it not difficult to see why racing has a PR problem.
When such a proportion of people on a racing supporters and fans forum would happily see the back of the grand national, jumps racing, low grade racing – most racing which underpins the racing, betting and bloodstock industries – and AW racing, it’s hardly surprising the rest of the population look dimly on racing and all the issues it carries.
Paul, you seem to be becoming more and more elitist. I think it’s great that the meeting has been saved. AW racing is not particularly my cup of tea but serves a purpose and helps the variety of racing on offer. I would rather have the meeting staged at Kempton than be lost. We now have a meeting on AW with some quality horses and jockeys as well as 100k in prizemoney. This can be no bad thing and does no harm to racing.
Agreed, it seems half of this forum would only be happy if 85% racing and the people in it were gone, leaving them with just a Cheltenham festival and a Champions day, though they would then moan their nuts off about whether it was a weak race this year compared to ‘the good old days’.
As opposed to people like you who would be quite happy for racing to be reduced to a BAGS style betting fodder offering, with all races run on soulless oval sand circuits like it is in America.
And it is actually a 40% – 50% reduction I would like to see, not an 85%.
I’ll keep in mind this Saturday, when I’m listening to My Old Kentucky Home with the Twin Spires in the background and the hundred thousand specatators singing in unison, that Churchill is just a soulless oval sand circuit.Moving the Ascot races off-turf is just smart. The only other option would be to cancel them entirely, which really none of the owners, trainers, jockeys, and bookies would want.
If they must move it why not run it on the hurdles course turf at Kempton and not the all weather? Unless that’s waterlogged as well of course.
I can see why people are unhappy with a high quality meeting being moved to the all weather. Let’s face it, all weather is mostly a sop to keep lower grade horses running through the winter to earn their keep. Can you image the outcry if Royal Ascot was moved to all weather? It doesn’t bother me that much because I prefer jump to flat anyway so wouldn’t be watching it.
And the Kempton meeting will be shown on both ATR and RUK it seems. At least that’s what all the websites are showing.
Nice to see common sense at the BHA for a change and people actually helping each other out and communicating. Refreshing.
If they must move it why not run it on the hurdles course turf at Kempton and not the all weather? Unless that’s waterlogged as well of course.
I can see why people are unhappy with a high quality meeting being moved to the all weather. Let’s face it, all weather is mostly a sop to keep lower grade horses running through the winter to earn their keep. Can you image the outcry if Royal Ascot was moved to all weather? It doesn’t bother me that much because I prefer jump to flat anyway so wouldn’t be watching it.
And the Kempton meeting will be shown on both ATR and RUK it seems. At least that’s what all the websites are showing.
Most jumps racing is low grade horses running to earn their keep, except it’s called off more often, less competitive and more likely to see horses injured or dead.
Any code of racing or sport cannot survive without the vast majority of it being standard and below standard to produce and support a minority of above standard and a top level.
I’ll keep in mind this Saturday, when I’m listening to My Old Kentucky Home with the Twin Spires in the background and the hundred thousand specatators singing in unison, that Churchill is just a soulless oval sand circuit.
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