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I can’t believe that I’m saying this, as someone who lives in jeans and trainers, but I was overwhelmed by how lovely everyone looked at York on Wednesday, from little girls dressed as fairies to 25 stone ladies dressed as fairies [good on them!]. How many occasions these days do people have to dress up in their Sunday best and plan for ages what they are going to wear? I assume the point of this thread is about men having to wear jackets and ties in certain enclosures which, on a blisteringly hot day like Wednesday must have been awful, but it seems to me that the dress code sort of starts at the top and works it’s way down. Maybe there’s something anachronistic about it but what’s wrong with having standards that were set in a bygone ages that were possibly better than the standards we have now? [mo; still wearing my jeans and trainers but already planning what to wear next year!]
Jeans, trainers/boots, any sort of shirt, scuffed, faded and generally knackered barbour – it’s got me in so far but then I wouldn’t go to a main event or festival meeting now if you offered to pay me.
I don’t think it maintains standards as we’ve probably all seen drunk and disorderly smart twats in suits, whether they’re on a stag do or dressing up for that 1 day a year when they go to Ascot or court.
I can see it as part of the social occasion and I can see some people feeling alienated by it and I know some who bristle at the sight of it but at the meetings I go to and considering I like to walk about rather than stand in an enclosure or box with a Pimms in 1 hand, it doesn’t bother me.
Any business that tries to be more selective in recession has to be very sure of itself, in my opinion.
Racegoers definitely see the mandate of formal dress as a symbol of the special occasion of "going to the races".
The men love to turn debonair for a day and the ladies, well, need little incentive of course.
To put it bluntly, those who have no interest in the races are generally those who have no interest in frocking up or wearing a suit, as far as I’m concerned.
Racegoers definitely see the mandate of formal dress as a symbol of the special occasion of "going to the races".
The men love to turn debonair for a day and the ladies, well, need little incentive of course.
To put it bluntly, those who have no interest in the races are generally those who have no interest in frocking up or wearing a suit, as far as I’m concerned
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Yeah, because it’s only people wih really expensive suits who can truely like horse racing
I personally couldn’t give two pennies about what anyone wears to be honest. They’re probably better off keeping a strict dress code for the bigger meetings, and keeping an open dress code for one day events.
I prefer to wear smart casual unlike most of the "boozed up look I’m on tv" crowd who give little regard to wearing smart attire and prefer just to make a noise and prove a nuisance.
I used to attend meetings at York where even in the height of summer I had to wear a jacket and tie in the members enclsure (that might still be the case?) and more absurdly at lowly Thirsk I resented being forced to wear a tie in the members enclosure even in the middle of summer when it was baking hot.
Places like York,Goodwood,Ascot,Newmarket,Newbury and Chester for example are Ok for being smart and formal as they are some of our Premier tracks but Thirsk even though when i went i was in my suit but i could not work out why as it is not a big track but still if thats what they want.
To put it bluntly, those who have no interest in the races are generally those who have no interest in frocking up or wearing a suit, as far as I’m concerned.
To be honest, I think it is the opposite that is the case. I think it is those who have no interest in racing who are most inclined to glam-up for the racecourse.
At mid-winter NH racing — where the hardcore racefans congregate — practical clothing and "sensible" shoes are far more in evidence than fashionista "creations".
Maybe it is different in Oz?Jeans, trainers/boots, any sort of shirt, scuffed, faded and generally knackered barbour – it’s got me in so far but then I wouldn’t go to a main event or festival meeting now if you offered to pay me.
I don’t think it maintains standards as we’ve probably all seen drunk and disorderly smart twats in suits, whether they’re on a stag do or dressing up for that 1 day a year when they go to Ascot or court.
I can see it as part of the social occasion and I can see some people feeling alienated by it and I know some who bristle at the sight of it but at the meetings I go to and considering I like to walk about rather than stand in an enclosure or box with a Pimms in 1 hand, it doesn’t bother me.
Any business that tries to be more selective in recession has to be very sure of itself, in my opinion.
Yep – from beggining to end.
I wholeheartedly support strict dress codes – they don’t apply to all enclosures across the board – so you have a choice.
You can pay a premium to be in the "smarter enclosure" or you can dress down and go in a cheaper enclosure.
Personally I
prefer
to wear a suit and tie when I go racing – however having said that I tend to dress appropriately to the course I happen to be attending. But smart casual is an absolute minimum for me.
However speaking as someone who does not even possess a pair of jeans I am probably speaking from a different perspective than most.
I detest the dress code and as a previous owner have had many a tussle over this matter. Some of the most arrogant and drunken louts have been dressed up in top hat and tails. As long as clothing is clean and tidy that should suffice.
And I find it ironic that horse racing has probably more than its fair share of crooks and gangsters dressed up to the nines.I walked out on York before the end of Wednesday due to being expected to continue to wear a jacket and tie when the temperatures were soaring. I was not alone.
Slightly off topic, but a real nice piece from Johnny Ward in today’s Sunday Indo on the relaxed nature of the racing at Killarney last week.
http://www.independent.ie/sport/horse-r … 67263.html
No problems with a racecourse having a smart casual dress policy here. Cant understand this obsession with neckties though. I’d never be interested in any enclosure that made me wear one.
When I go racing, I wear whatever the feck I want. If a certain enclosure doesn’t let me in then it’s that enclosure’s loss. I probably wouldn’t want to be around people who actually pay for the privilege to look bland and feel smug about it anywayz.
Spot on prufrock. Wasn’t much value in walking around York on Wednesday sweating like Rik Waller at the buffet.
I have no problem with smart casual if needs be, but this jacket and tie nonsense is antiquated and if racing is really trying to appeal to a new audience, it is a strange way of going about it.
I’d posit the dress code at the Google offices in London as the ideal;
"You can wear anything. Just remember to wear something
".
gc
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.
Interestingly, I don’t think any racecourse has an explicit ban on the combination of short skirt/no knickers. Any thoughts on how this affects the raceday experience?
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