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What single factor do you think ‘sells’ horseracing?
Wondering about that earlier after a bout of tweeting.
What is it that draws people into the sport? Lots of different things depending on individuals I suppose but what one single factor is the biggest aggregate draw?
To be honest, it is amazing that horse racing attracts any new blood. It couldn’t sell a cup of tea to an eskimo.
I think Kingfisher is on the right path and I’ll add it’s also a very exciting way to lose money.
However what keeps people in the sport is that the horses themselves become eternal legends, revered as much as any human could strive to be.
All depends what you call "Racing".
Those frequenting betting shops and betting off course are mostly there for betting.
Suspect half of all regular racegoers first came for the horses. That’s not to say they don’t like a bet. Half of regular racegoers were probably never that keen on horses, just betting. Although it must be said most of my racing pals are horse lovers and one or two don’t even bet. Those two halves of "regular racegoers" don’t include those there for the day out. In truth, suspect most male there for the day out, it’s the betting and sometimes booze; most women for fashion and horses.
I don’t think racing sells the horses enough.
A lot of the general public believe it is all champagne, fashion and toffs.
Value Is EverythingI don’t believe you can "sell" horse racing; people fall in love one at a time with racing.I fell in love while not noticing it.Maybe because the racing has religious, social significance. The Irish Grand National fell on Easter Monday,significant as Easter but also as the week of 1916. The first day of the flat season began with the celebrating of St. Patrick at Baldoyle.Then the summer festival began in Galway and ended in Tramore during the Feast of the Assumption.Start of summer school holidays,end of same.Gradually I fell in love with racing and now after seventy years I am as sick as the first day I caught the bug.
I think Ginge is spot on there are two camps of racing followers.
The first sees racing simply as a betting medium and a means to follow the delusional elusive dream to make a fortune for a small investment. They like to consider themselves REAL racing fans. At the risk of repeating myself your "average" betting shop punter who says he follows racing, in reality, could not give a toss about the sport. If racing was not there they would bet on something else to sate their addiction.
The other camp are those who see racing purely in a sporting contest, a contest to find the best horse in any given race or in a generation. Granted, as in other sports, the higher the level the better the sport becomes but each has its place.
The Artificial Surface pseudo-BAGS meetings can be compared with the Football Conference. Meetings like the Tingle Creek, or this weekend at Cheltenham can be likened to the Premiership, whilst The Festival, Royal Ascot etc can be compared with the Champions League.
I want to see horses competing on equal terms, of course to see good horses like Sea The Stars and Frankel but racing can be exciting without the "Superstars". The duel between Pacha Du Polder and Eradicate at Sandown last month will live in the memory for a long time.
It’s probably no surprise when I say I fall into the latter camp.
Racing should put more emphasis on the horse and the competition and place less emphasis on betting. It is the gambling emphasis that puts many people off the sport.
I think Ginge is spot on there are two camps of racing followers.
Any room for lovers of the thoroughbred racehorse in full flight who also enjoy a betting medium they take seriously enough to have ambitions at making money from, whilst at the same time acknowledging the hard work this labour of love entails and the gargantuan improbability of turning that small investment into a fortune?
Or is it black and white only….
On careful reflection perhaps I was a little harsh but racing is terrible at selling itself to newcomers. Its biggest asset are the personalities, equine and human, whose lives are more colourful than most.
However, the key selling point is LUCK.
Or is it black and white only….
Not at all Cav, I’m sure there will be some with feet in both camps
There certainly is room for people with a hoof in both camps Cav.
I love investing on the horses, but only horses. Had very few bets on other sports. Lottery / football pools etc don’t interest me. I don’t consider myself a "gambler". For me, a love of the horse came first, even before betting while at school and was the school bookmaker.
I’d be interested in the "Champions League" of racing even if there was no betting. These days rarely bet on course, only going racing because I love to see the horses.
Value Is EverythingWhat is it that draws people into the sport?
I suggest it’s simple; the spectacle of horses racing.
Until the sports various governing and marketing bodies appriciate this simple USP they will not successfully draw people in and KEEP THEM.
Fashion, drinking, concerts, champagne, the attendance of celebrities and footballers and all the other things that are used to attract new blood generally engourage people to visit a racecourse, they do not get them hooked on the sport unless they are then encouraged to appreciate the USP.
Fine point Aji.
Racing is unique in that it is a sport with minimal confidence in it’s own product. It’s arcane nature means that it is not easily accessible to newcomers. However, like most things in life, those who perservere are always hugely rewarded in terms of thrills, spectacle, opinion (see "Whip") and entertainment.
Unfortunately, in this age of dumbness and instant gratification the chase for the ephemeral ‘yoof’ market (as if racing was ever followed by the under-25’s!) means endless tawdry sideshows to ruin – sorry, ‘enhance’ – the product. Of course, the many who attend a Peter Andre spectacular at Newmarket in July will no doubt be musing over the novices’ chase at Hexham come December, thus proving these comments ridiculous.
As a Angus McNae once said on RUK: "If you take away the concert, all you have left is just six horse races."
Absolutely. It’s called a race meeting.
Mike
Fine point Aji.
Racing is unique in that it is a sport with minimal confidence in it’s own product. It’s arcane nature means that it is not easily accessible to newcomers. However, like most things in life, those who perservere are always hugely rewarded in terms of thrills, spectacle, opinion (see "Whip") and entertainment.
Unfortunately, in this age of dumbness and instant gratification the chase for the ephemeral ‘yoof’ market (as if racing was ever followed by the under-25’s!) means endless tawdry sideshows to ruin – sorry, ‘enhance’ – the product. Of course, the many who attend a Peter Andre spectacular at Newmarket in July will no doubt be musing over the novices’ chase at Hexham come December, thus proving these comments ridiculous.
As a Angus McNae once said on RUK: "If you take away the concert, all you have left is just six horse races."
Absolutely. It’s called a race meeting.
Mike
What really hacks me off more than almost anything else is a large number of courses seem to use a concert to cover up absolutely crap racing – the worse offenders being Epsom, Sandown and Haydock – they seem to think the concert goers will not care about the quality of racing.
Anybody not interested in the concert would not pay £35 to watch the rubbish racing offered up on most concert nights – it is so bad at some meetings even the annual members stay away in their droves.
(I have to say in Newmarket’s defence they don’t tend to lower the quality of racing as much)
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