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Further evidence – the comments reflect much of what has been said on here:
Yes AP and they said on Sky that Windsors crowd was low too last night. And it was a stunning day here
One thing marketing people absolutely have to ensure is that they look at the market not through their own hang ups and preferences but judge the full picture. Forget the marginal drop in quality of racing or an extra 50p (how much!) on the price of a burger (as if anyone remembers from two years ago), its irrelevant
Especially at events like Chester which if geared too much towards the Weatherpoons hoards in their anoraks, shiny crimplene trousers and underpants not changed since last summer would drive away the permatanned Cheshire set in droves.
I noted the commentator saying it was a meagre crowd at Windsor last night as well. Someone posted here a few weeks ago that a paddock ticket is now £35. I assume that was last night’s price, for an ordinary Listed race and some distinctly average racing. No wonder it was empty.
It is not your beloved Wetherspoons crowd at Chester, Clive! One of the commenters in the Guardian summed up the crowd there: “No course has sold itself to the drunk sockless cokeheads more than Chester….you reap what you sow.”
A friend of mine works as a steward there. He says it is the worst job he ever does. Lots of the crowd are pissed on arrival and many of the lads are just looking for a fight. He says the crowd all dressed up for the County Stand are far worse than the crowd in the cheap seats in the Dee Stand.
Plenty of racegoers have given up on Chester. I would not go near the place on a race day. The last time I went was about 15 years ago. I am sure I am not alone. Their rip off Tote does not add to its appeal either.
Now it looks like Chester is finding out that the sockless cokeheads were only fair weather fans and have found something else to do instead. Maybe it might pick up again but if it does not, Chester only has itself to blame.
Don’t alienate your core audience would seem to be the lesson here!
Ive heard its just about the worst course for all that but either way, thats the crowd that has fallen away and if they can put £100 up their nose, then price of a burger or whether the handicap sprint is lacking a true listed class runner is not going to make any difference
the trouble is that at racing the core audience doesn’t actually amount to much. Especially on the flat
My point is that by making it the social equivalent of Catford dogs is not exactly going to get that audience back.
But Windsor is way OTT. I would guess that the pricing has had a minor effect on attendance there (believe me that crowd doesn’t look like they worry about the price of Ruddles at you know where) but its habit
As it happens im there next Monday on a reciprocal and frankly I wouldn’t pay £35 for that at all, especially given that the paddock is almost the best thing about the place but im a minority
I appreciate the crowd at Windsor are not 99p a pint Ruddles in Wetherspoons drinkers but at the same time no one likes being ripped off. £35 for ordinary handicaps and maidens is too much.
Then again, it is not just racing. I heard the Tate is charging £25 for the Cezanne exhibition later this year. Not that long ago, such exhibitions were about a tenner.
And CAMRA is charging £24 (£20 if booked in advance) for the Great British Beer Festival. As recently as five years ago it was about £8.
It will be interesting to see what impact that has on the crowd. There are lots of good cask beer pubs in London. They all have free entry, the last time I checked.
Is there a case for saying that many of the smaller racecourses are doing well out of media rights payments, and the expense of catering for crowds is increasingly becoming a burden they cant be arsed with anymore?
Surely places like Worcester charging £35 quid entry for five runner, midweek, 0-120 jumps racing, are aware that fee plus f&b, is a complete non starter for most people.
Agree with the ‘fair weather fans’ comments too. Understand racings need to attract a broad audience, but I think that should be balanced with the requirements of the more committed long term fan of the sport too, and increasingly that isn’t the case. It seems attending live quality racing in the UK, is becoming more of an uncomfortable experience, the experience of being a customer with many bookmakers is frequently unpleasant nowadays, the analytical side of the sport is being largely ignored by the racing media (broadcast in particular) in favour of churn, and as displayed in the recent Frost/Dunne case, there is a significant element within the sport who simply dont care what existing or potential customers think or perceive of their attitudes.
I love racing, but in terms of raceday experience, value for money, analytics, betting (ability to get a bet on in the first place, being treated like a criminal), the sport is giving less and less.
What else has it to offer after that…?
No wonder the courses are emptying.
The last time I was at a racecourse I brought some non-racing friends. None of us are/were pissheads (apart from me but only in the right circumstances) and surprise surprise my friends, after the idea of “a day out” were most impressed by the horses/racing.
Two women liked the parade ring the most. Getting up close to the horses, being almost within touching distance of them and seeing what their mentality was like. A married couple liked the betting, and used the tote because it was closer than us, and didn’t actually do too bad after getting their card marked the day before by someone at work. And the final fella liked the energy of the horses going past at the finish. He was extremely excited by how powerful it all was. And this was a midweek meet with not much happening (although in Ireland.)
If it wasn’t for me having even the little-est clue about stuff and saying, “Let’s go to the parade ring,” or seeing my friend’s buzz at the finish telling him to go down to the winning post they wouldn’t have enjoyed their day as much. None went back, but I know they told other friends of theirs it was a good day out.
My point is, with stewards, security, bar-staff, etc. surely there’s something to be said for having a few “official helpers” (suitably and obviously dressed) wandering around pointing out the intricacies of racing and letting people know what they might like.
I’ve been saying it for years but when the likes of amazon for shopping and netflix for entertainment can have you wrapped up comfy at home, in person stuff is going to thrive on the personal touch and the kind of friendliness and knowledge an actual human can impart that a machine learning algorithm or even just a printed guide can’t.
What an excellent point fifty and totally agree with the last paragraph
On my business blog I wrote about how retail is bouncing back unexpectedly strongly against fading online shopping. cpcmcredit.wordpress.com/2022/05/10/home-delivery-slump/
Personal touch is so undervalued
Mind you the poor guides will also have to deal with some weatherspoons gits droning on for an hour about the cost of race cards whilst reeking of stale Ruddles on a breath that smells like a dead dog in a sewer whilst wearing falling down tracky bottoms showing his hairy builders arse. Followed by a sobbing lament that no one has ever fancied him since his mum
I think he’s been barred!
I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains
I've walked and I crawled on six crooked highwaysWindsor have backtracked on barring spectators in the trackside enclosure from the parade ring.
No word on price reductions though.
No chance Purwell!
It’s all a bit of a wind up of course. They are often great places from what I see but I very rarely go to the pub
‘I appreciate the crowd at Windsor are not 99p a pint Ruddles in Wetherspoons drinkers but at the same time no one likes being ripped off. £35 for ordinary handicaps and maidens is too much.’
This is a good point. Nobody got wealthy by being ripped off at every turn. One of the richest people I know is tight as a duck’s arse and then some.
Do like the idea of having a few guides/helpers too. Would cost almost nothing but add a lot if done right.
And off topic but fully agree about retail, I keep hearing that it’s dying but every time I go to the high street (which isn’t that often) it’s bloody rammed.
Dick Duck double eight wrote…
‘One of the richest people I know is tight as a duck’s arse and then some.’
Forbes credit Scrooge McDuck ( Donald’s thrifty and very rich Uncle at 64.5 billion dollars net worth – the highest worth of all fictional characters, with Lara Croft slumming it at around a cool billion.
I haven’t been on-course at York this week but have had a wander around the periphery on all three days and it has seemed pretty quiet, and curiously subdued. As would be expected it’s busier today but I’m almost certain the paying crowd will be significantly down again, like for like
Perhaps the most obvious sign has been the relative lack of coach parties. The number of coaches parked up is well down: one incomplete rank on Wednesday and just two ranks subsequently
Cost to get into the Grandstand and Paddock (Tatts) has been £25, which strikes me as reasonable; and Members £40, for those who like wearing a jacket and tie
There’s a new meeting next weekend (Sat & Sun) christened the ‘Tribute Weekend’ with the Sunday forming part of the Skybet Sunday Series. Weekend meetings are normally rammed so it will be interesting to see if the ‘collapse’ in attendance is sustained at these
Drone,
Interesting about the coaches, as I noticed the same thing at Salisbury yesterday – three coaches and no minibuses, where I’d have expected to see five or six of each. Maybe it’s a result of the pub and club closures caused by lockdown – no pub outing to the races if there’s no pub.
And maybe no office trip if everybody is working from home. After all if you WFH, you can watch the racing from York on TV without using up any of your holiday allowance. Work from home facilitates watch from home!
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