Eight Race Cards – Another Bright Idea

[% MAN]

Paul, correct me if I’m wrong; but did the BHA not recently sanction the running of NH 8 race cards?

I’m against them for NH racing in the winter for the simple fact that it will wreck even further the already shoddy ground on most tracks.

My understanding is they have generally sanctioned eight race cards this year from Sept 1st, until the clocks go back.

Then until next April the "aim" should be seven for NH and eight for the twilight / evening sandpit races.

[Anonymous]

When I look at going to a meeting, the first thing I look at is how many races their are on the card – I’ll rarely go for just the 6 races.

[weejoe81]

i really dont see the problem ppl have with more racing on any card (if you enjoy somethin the more the better) other then the fact than it will encourage more corruption which is a sorry state of affairs for racing that givin the chance everyone would be uo to there necks in skullduggery (i dont think i spelt that correctly but who really cares)

[bbobbell]

Blimey you lads have never lived. There are loads of point to points which have had 8 races and more. I think one had 13 last season – might have been in Ireland mind – Jeremy will know. Dalston usually has 9 or 10 and the Coronation Cup at Larkhill’s United Services meeting was once run in 4 Divisions and it is an Open!!

[Shadow Leader]

Paul, correct me if I’m wrong; but did the BHA not recently sanction the running of NH 8 race cards?

I’m against them for NH racing in the winter for the simple fact that it will wreck even further the already shoddy ground on most tracks.

My understanding is they have generally sanctioned eight race cards this year from Sept 1st, until the clocks go back.

Then until next April the "aim" should be seven for NH and eight for the twilight / evening sandpit races.

Cheers Paul; I’m not aware of the specifics of the recent sanction and I wasn’t aware that it was seasonal. In which case, fair enough. In the winter it’s not really workable IMO for the reasons already given about the ground and also simply because daylight hours are lacking!

[graysonscolumn]

Blimey you lads have never lived. There are loads of point to points which have had 8 races and more. I think one had 13 last season – might have been in Ireland mind – Jeremy will know. Dalston usually has 9 or 10 and the Coronation Cup at Larkhill’s United Services meeting was once run in 4 Divisions and it is an Open!!

Bob,

I can confirm the Cothelstone meeting (for the Quantock Staghuonds) I was thinking about had 12 races rather than 13, comprising four divisions of the short Maiden, two of the 3m Maiden, two divisions of the Restricted, plus Members, Confined, Mens Open and Ladies Open.

Still the most races of any one British meeting last season, I think. Bishops Court ran to 10 a week or two earlier.

130 runners at that Cothelstone card, but only three fields containing more than 12 and the rest all seven to 12 – ergo the point I was making earlier about unremitting massive fields being a bit much for my maggot brain to cope with sometimes! Conversely the Ross Harriers meeting at Garnons I was doing some spotting at on the same day crammed 94 runners into seven races, including an 18-runner Restricted, which wasn’t a whole heap of fun at times given the moderate viewing…

Jeremy
(graysonscolumn)

Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.

[Author]

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