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You tell em Max , of course I hate to break this to you on this holy of holy days……our classic season cusp , our high alter of racing excellence …its really a tiny minority sport and the reason is :
I was at a party the other night , 21st loads of bottle slurping young people ..I got talking to 6or 7 of them , none had ever heard of newmarket racing , none had a clue about the classics , they knew of the Grand national ..and thought all racing was over jumps
Truth is well over 90 per cent of the population today wont be the slightest bit bothered about the first classic , to them it does not exist
Until that changes we will always be a minority sport
ps love the 45 quid haircut bit ,priceless !!!
Ricky
Some people should be more tolerant of the interests of others.
I’m afraid that, like it or not, the viewing figures for snooker are vastly greater than those for horse racing, as will unfortunately be proved this afternoon.
Until racing engages more with the benighted, this will remain the case. Judging by the views of so many on this forum, there are too few fans who want this to happen. It may come as a shock to some, but it isn’t 1953 anymore.
It is perhaps worth pointing out that when the BBC did broadcast both the Snooker and Ascot on that last Wednesday afternoon in April, the complaints about the interrupting of their beloved sport were both louder and more numerous from the snookered couch potatoes than the sagaroed. David Vine did his best to try and ‘integrate’ the dual broadcasting by attempting to involve the snooker players/commentators in the racing – ‘any tips for Ascot Alex**’ – in the manner of the rather forced marriage of C4 racing and test cricket a few years ago
If I recall correctly the last week of the Snooker also sometimes coincided with the Beebs broadcasting of the Chester May meeting and that oil-and-water mix raised even more hoots of derision from the lovers of the green baize
Sorry Max, much as I’ve always liked the wee midweek jewel that is the Sagaro meeting and have generally only valued snooker as the afternoon nap-soporific par excellence, for every one like me – or you – there are ten for whom it is vice versa
To reprise a reply to an earlier post by you : you’re expressing personal opinion – with which I agree – but it ain’t fact
On a related subject, wasn’t the 20,000 at Ascot heartening? Adds credence to your oft-stated opinion that quality midweek meetings do quite well enough thank you very much left where they are:.
The crowd on Wednesday was approximately twice that of the Saturday NH cards run there this year, and whilst realising that isn’t a strictly a robust apples-with-apples comparison does emphasise that good racing will attract customers at any time if made doubly appealing by the dangling carrot of free/cheap entry
Well done the beleaguered RFC, you’re onto a winner at last. This week has been a great success
Keep it up and build on it
This is the great leap forward
**After winning the Snooker circa 1980 Alex Higgins missed the subsequent press briefing and celebratory hoo-haa he was expected to attend…
…he was at Pontefract races
Good man
Having just glanced through Ascot’s Sagaro card I see no Victoria Cup or Victoria Stakes
The rapidly softening grey matter may be short-circuiting but they were on this card weren’t they?
If so are they now run at another meeting?
I’m not really
au fait
with recent shufflings on the Flat
Today is a good example of the BEEBs shocking racing schedule. The poor ‘analogue’ punter is missing a great Ascot card that used to be a regular TV fixture, two listed races and the G3 Sagaro.
BUT they get to watch that really exciting armchair sport of snooker all week
WTF are they thinking?The BBC have done more to kill racing than most in this country. ATR had great coverage of Ascot.
Having just glanced through Ascot’s Sagaro card I see no Victoria Cup or Victoria Stakes
The rapidly softening grey matter may be short-circuiting but they were on this card weren’t they?
If so are they now run at another meeting?
I’m not really
au fait
with recent shufflings on the Flat
The Victoria Cup is the highlight of next Saturday’s Ascot card (and for some of us of the entire season).
Drone,
The Victoria Cup is now run at a relatively new Ascot meeting in May – actually it’s next Saturday. Still a decent race with £85,000 on offer. But scheduled to clash with the Lingfield Derby Trial and the Swinton Hurdle. So that’s three races that used to be run on a Wednesday, Saturday and BH Monday respectively, all now booked for the same Saturday afternoon.
There’s clearly a guiding hand at work here, but it might work better with a guiding dog as well!
AP
Thank you gentlemen
The reference to a "Victoria Stakes" should have been White Rose Stakes which – on checking – may have been a conditions event way back when but became a handicap subordinate to the Victoria Cup at least 15 years ago
The attendance at next Saturday’s Ascot meeting will be of interest, just ‘up the road’ from Lingfield’s big day of the year
Let’s just bring back those John Rickman hosted Wednesday ITV afternoons, at Sandown and the like. Listening on the extel blower and not having a clue what has won until the commentator wants you to know. I’ll be in my heights of glory. Let’s just jump from the roof of the Wolves sheep pen and relive those heady days.
That customary, elegant tip of the hat at the end of the broadcast always made me glad I had tuned in. It made me feel special, part of the crowd.
It gave me a feeling of well being to be involved in a sport that had such sartorial grace. He was a proper presenter of a proper dedicated programme, and would probably have not been too bothered how many teeth Liam Treadwell was missing. He would have merely revelled in the splendour of the victory in and of itself. It would be the highlight of my week.
To watch racing back then was akin to reading a very well written Timeform commentary. It was almost a literary experience. Now, it is like attending a race night at the local.
Oh how I wish ‘Life on Mars’ was a non-fictional productionCould not agree more Racing Daily,and while we are at it lets have the sporting life back a those were the days.
There was a poster a few weeks back desperately defending Channel Four when they left the Dubai World Cup before the result had come through. Its not easy to break a shcedule, he said. Its virtually impossible, he said. They have to think of the wider audience, he said.
I’m currently channel surfing and by chance, I bump into a snooker match for the seventy eighth time this fortnight.
Lo and behold, they’re staying with the snooker match to a finish!!
significantly delaying the next programme considerably.
So it IS possible, TV executiveman. Us racing nuts could have watched the Dubai World Cup result after all.
One rule for one, another for another. Damn the BBC.
Sir, whoever you were, you were talking nonsense.
Arnold Rothstein and the Red Sox, Jimmy Gauld and the Sheffield Wednesday first team, Bruce Grobelaar, Sean Long, Martin Stevens, the Bury first team in 2008, most Italian teams after March, Hanse Cronje, Ferrari, a ringful of boxers, Silvino Francisco (my gran used to love him – "he looks just like Julio Iglesias"), Kirk Stevens and now the handsome and clean cut Presbytarian
John Higgins…
…historical proof that sport betting is a much safer proposition than horse racing for the discerning punter.
(…and that snooker is much more deserving of saturation airtime than horse racing: which is bent, innit Rog.)
Drone,
The Victoria Cup is now run at a relatively new Ascot meeting in May – actually it’s next Saturday. Still a decent race with £85,000 on offer. But scheduled to clash with the Lingfield Derby Trial and the Swinton Hurdle. So that’s three races that used to be run on a Wednesday, Saturday and BH Monday respectively, all now booked for the same Saturday afternoon.
There’s clearly a guiding hand at work here, but it might work better with a guiding dog as well!
AP
It may be old age catching up with me, but I have a vague memory of the Victoria Cup being run on the same card at the Heinz Chase back at the start of the 70s. I certainly watched the Heinz Chase live on one occasion, I’d have been 10 or 11 at the time, and remember there being a ‘big field, straight course’ handicap on the same card.
Rob
Lo and behold, they’re staying with the snooker match to a finish!!
significantly delaying the next programme considerably.
True enough but for the previous eleven days they cut the snooker coverage off at bang on 8pm whether midway through a frame, mid way through a shot even, it’s 8pm so press the red button now.
Now I know most people have digital now but certainly not everyone.
Now I suspect there are times when TV presenters have to say something just to avoid pregnant pauses before the action takes place. But I do wonder at just how stupid they must think their viewers are when they furnish them with such utter bilge as I heard before the Lockinge today. It went along the lines that, stats wise, Lockinge winners tend to be of a certain age and trained in a certain place (was it 4yo’s and trained in Newmarket? I think that’s what was said, or it may have been 5yos+ and trained somewhere else).
They might just has well have said that horses ridden by jockeys wearing yellow caps have a great record, or horses that have 9 letters in their name.
There is only so much history that is of any use when it comes to trying to find a winner. The draw perhaps in certain races and yes, the age especially early in the season but the TRAINING CENTRE? Oy vey! If a horse is good enough, then history isn’t going to stop it.
Horses don’t read history books. Dobbin isn’t going to pull himself up and get beaten because his profile doesn’t fit with some historical sequence.
(I moan about this and the limited use of history every year or so. This is it for 2010.)- Total Posts 17716
I saw this and it was absolutely pathetic, oh how about a stat "8 out of last 10 winners ate a polo mint 5mins before the race" that leaves us with two horses "Lord Shanakil and Zacinto" who are being backed off the boards from 18’s into 11’s – so cringeworthy.
I wouldn’t bother watching Channel 4, I dont think any of them know what they’re talking about seriously.
Give me RUK anyday, Melish, Hislop, Luck, Bell, Cunningham, Freemantle, Howard, Machin, McNae, O’ryan, Steedman, Neesen – proffesionals.
Have to agree Mr Wilson another pathetic C4 Racing, I just couldn’t believe how they kept prattling on about something inconsequential, and almost forgetting they were also showing action from Newmarket until they were entering the stalls.
Also why is Emma Spencer still co-hosting, she’s blumin’ useless and Catt isn’t that much better. Bring back Alastair Down or even Brough Scott if they have to.
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