Is NH Racing let down by Schedule?

[Tete Rouge]

There is another factor to all this that the punters amongst us, in particular, should remember.

runandskip alluded to trainers having "worked out how to get horses fit at home instead of on the racecourse" – they are, of course, no longer allowed to "get them fit" on the racecourse … (theoretically).

Having said that, I’d agree with Alan that trainers no longer like to see their horses lump heavy weights and with runandskip that the horses don’t seem to be so hardy, now.  Perhaps a robust constitution has been sacrificed in favour of speed?  Or perhaps the problem is related to the speed at which races are run?  Most of the top Irish horses run more often than the UK-based ones – and Irish races are typically less frenetic.

[Daylight]

Or maybe it’s like everything else, people are alot softer nowadays and maybe it’s changed their ideas on a horses safety more which you can understand.

Football is a great example, to be injured only 15 years ago you’d have to provide an x-ray of proof of a broken bone before you were unavalible for selection even then it would have to be a bone that support your weight whilst playing!

[Aidan]

I know its not the subject of the thread……..but forget handicaps proving Best Mate is "great"…….first of all he has to consistently put in impressive runs (as his run in the Gold Cup) as Arkle and Istabraq did. He only scrapped home in this years King George, the previous Gold Cup and FP beat him in the King George before that. A few more performances like in this years GC would go down nicely.

[runandskip]

classic example of how cheltenham is the be all and end all with trainers was the way FLAME CREEK  was trained last season.<br>after winning the haydock champion hurdle trial this horse had a great racing weight  in the tote gold trophy at nebury worth 100.000 but didnt run to be saved for cheltenham.<br>as we all know he ran badly there and in the scottish version at ayr thus ending the season with nothing. maybe it serves them right for not running at newbury  

[PAULCS]

I think that once the jumps season finishes at Sandown there should be a break of around 6 weeks taking in the whole of May and upto mid June.

It would be better to take the whole summer off and come back on September 1st but with summer jumping being reasonably popular with decent attendances especially on Bank Holidays etc, this will obviously not happen now

As for the schedule debate on the jumps, one thing I’d love to see sorted out and I know a lot of people feel the same on the forum, is to stop the feature races off times clashing on a Saturday.

The Reynoldstown going off around 2 minutes before the Kingwell being a prime example last year.<br>-Just as Keen Leader was crossing the line in the Reynoldstown, the leaders were entering the home straight in the Kingwell so it was just as well that Jair Du Cochet departed early on.

Also I would move the start of the flat to mid April with the Lincoln  happening the Saturday after the National and the Craven following on later that week.

[THE ROOK]

Excellent thread,

Personally I don’t think that there is much wrong with the current structure of National Hunt racing, and to address Daylight’s point specifically I think the media are far more responsible for the hyping up of the climax, that the participants.

I have to say to knock this side of the sport, when frankly we’ve drowned in poor quality flat racing through the summer does seems a strange instance to take and to show what effect this is having on the standard of turf racing look at today’s card at Newbury, in particular the Haynes, Hanson And Clark Conditions Stakes, a race which has throughout the years thrown up numerous classic winners, when it was used as introduction race by trainers for some of their better juveniles. It wasn’t unusual to get large field, so I find it very sad to see only five horses lining up for what was once a useful indicator.

Some people don`t like Summer jumping or the early part of the season, however since its introduction not only has it given the poorer horses a chance to win a race, as well as the genuine fast ground horse to get some opportunities to win a decent purse. It has also been used to prep horses to win at Cheltenham, the most recent being Golden Alpha who is one of several novice chasers who were blooded in lesser company to gain experience. I expect this trend to be exploited again in the future and it needs building on.

If I did have one criticism, it is that the “powers-that-beâ€ÂÂ

[Author]

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