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Much better ITV coverage compared to years previous. Far more focus on the horses. Also they’re talking a lot about how they’re ridden. Ruby Walsh is putting on a show, even AP is better. There’s also much less “social stable” stuff. Maybe two-ish segments rather than between every race. They still have Gleeson being a gobshite in the betting ring, with more idiot gobshites shouting behind him, but the time there seems to have been shortened. They’ve even got one of the social stable lads doing behind the scenes stuff, except it’s not about English made sparkling wine this time. The social stable fella had an interview with the Saffa head steward and talked about how the stewards are setup for the day, and they had an interview with the Clerk of the Course about how she keeps all the pieces moving, especially the doctors, vets, and equine and regular ambulances.
I’m pretty impressed. I’d suggest taking it off mute at opportune moments but there’ll always be problems.
I feel they might have realised that trying to win people over with “glam” and “showbiz” doesn’t convert anyone to a longer term viewer when the less prestigious and “non-event” racing is on without the glam.
They did have that prick Jack Whitehall on one of the social stable things. Guy hadn’t a clue about the horses he was mentioning or horse racing and everything was obviously pre-written for him. Which is no surprise considering he’s a “boy band” comedian. Producers (his dad in showbiz) tailoring him to the audience and his jokes coming out of writers. A complete prat.
Those citing, “Wouldn’t stand up in court,” obviously have a lot of experience with sports law, do they?
A professional sporting body governing the sport and the sport’s best practices for both competition and safety have a lot of leeway compared to something governing plumbers.
You see similar rubbish come out in other sports with, “Should get the police involved for that tackle!” People talking out their rumps.
Not everyone who’s blind is 100% without vision.
Much like not everyone who needs a wheelchair at times is completely unable to walk.
Much like not everyone who needs crutches or a walking stick is completely unable to perambulate without them.
Much like not every disability is visible to others.The last time I was at a racecourse I brought some non-racing friends. None of us are/were pissheads (apart from me but only in the right circumstances) and surprise surprise my friends, after the idea of “a day out” were most impressed by the horses/racing.
Two women liked the parade ring the most. Getting up close to the horses, being almost within touching distance of them and seeing what their mentality was like. A married couple liked the betting, and used the tote because it was closer than us, and didn’t actually do too bad after getting their card marked the day before by someone at work. And the final fella liked the energy of the horses going past at the finish. He was extremely excited by how powerful it all was. And this was a midweek meet with not much happening (although in Ireland.)
If it wasn’t for me having even the little-est clue about stuff and saying, “Let’s go to the parade ring,” or seeing my friend’s buzz at the finish telling him to go down to the winning post they wouldn’t have enjoyed their day as much. None went back, but I know they told other friends of theirs it was a good day out.
My point is, with stewards, security, bar-staff, etc. surely there’s something to be said for having a few “official helpers” (suitably and obviously dressed) wandering around pointing out the intricacies of racing and letting people know what they might like.
I’ve been saying it for years but when the likes of amazon for shopping and netflix for entertainment can have you wrapped up comfy at home, in person stuff is going to thrive on the personal touch and the kind of friendliness and knowledge an actual human can impart that a machine learning algorithm or even just a printed guide can’t.
The guy on Nick Luck yesterday said the major events were as good as they ever were numbers-wise, it’s the bog standard stuff that’s getting hammered.
I do wonder if that’s a reflection of a change in priorities from people after covid. I can certainly see the argument that people are much more inclined to stay home and have a night in for your average day then splash out on a big event, it being the big events people were really denied during the pandemic. People just got comfortable at home, and were forced to realise that a few cans and a bottle of wine is just as good bus > train > racing > betting > meal > drinks > taxi on a random Thursday evening. He also said, when talking about competition for attention with racing their big rivals were Netflix and the like, not other events.
If you can have a night in for €30/£20, and it’s triple that to go out for an average day of racing (being cheap) then it seems the nights in will eventually pay for one absolutely massive day out, or even an overnight somewhere.
He put up a similarly impressive performance on the clock in the Tolworth. It is easy to be wise after the event but he should have been odds on at Cheltenham.
I wonder if some people are getting into a moneyball type situation with times, especially with the TV stations really pushing it lately.
When you look at Irish domination recently you see a lot about prize money and “better horses.” No-one really seems to talk about the quality of jockey (it should be noted there’s a lot of Irish jockeys in Britain) or how trainers campaign/train their horses. HdB’s mild fall in form this year is an example of this. If it was just a case of the quality of horse he shouldn’t have had people talking about his drop. Same for Gordon Elliot, but people are still thinking of the recent past, never mind the Mullins domination even more so.
Maybe it’s more a case of Ireland have a better all around situation to get the better out of the horses, while Britain is more focused on sheer quality. Then we only have one situation where it all absolutely comes together (Cheltenham.) Look at the talk about the race course atmosphere for this. In Ireland people are still roundly interested in racing. In Britain it’s getting tanked and shoving stuff up your nose.
If Ireland’s going to drop behind in the future it’s going to be on traditional practices going out the way. And I’m not saying Irish trainers don’t pay attention to speed maps or time, rather they take a more holistic approach. With nitty gritty, and the lesser lads targeting money/wins as the opportunity arises.
There seems to be a lot of, “This horse is simply better.” But that’s not what the game is. It’s not being a better horse, it’s being a better horse, and jockey, and trainer, and race planner, vet, and head lad, and assistant trainer, and mucker-outer, and morning rider. You have to have it all. If England isn’t doing it, not that I’m saying they’re not trying, they don’t have the absolute cauldron that is Ireland.
The one thing I will say that’s way outside this thread is that Jessica Harrington is sorely missed from a bigger focus on National Hunt. She’s had some superb performers this week in Punchestown and you have to wonder what the map would be like if there was two Jessica Harringtons. On purely sexist terms I think Emma Lavelle and a few others could really show they way, if some of the racing breed weren’t the type to keep their dicks in their tweed pockets with their cash that rarely appears for fear someone sees how delicate it all really is.
Good shout. I was getting greedy with Speaker Thomas and the arse goes tumbling at the first, never mind the horse and jockey.
Absolute waste of a week for me and that race sums it up. I dunno what to think, whether to pack it all in or wonder if I’ll be stronger for it
I haven’t been racing in years since I lived near the train station here. I keep trying to gee myself up for it, but then I think about the bus to the train station, train to the town, bus to the course, day actually racing, bus from the course to the train station, train back and probably a taxi home because it’s too dark to take the bus home. It’s a huge amount of hassle and downtime, and with the constraint on time you don’t even get to enjoy a few pints after.
I’ve looked at hotels near the racecourses as well, so you’d arrive day of then come back the day after to spread things out but that’s a huge cost. Then you look at the cards and it’s three maidens with horses with no races under them and the betting/racing proposition isn’t there.
It’s all a huge amount of hassle when I can take one bus, for at most a thirty minute time commitment (10 minute walk, 15 minute wait at most, 5 minutes on the bus) and I’m in the pub supping pints before I know it, with all the racing ready to go, at a minor cost and almost zero hassle.
My issue isn’t with the gambling. I know racing is tied to it. My issue is with the idea it’s a way to get rich or get a fat wedge in an instant.
When there’s so many people saying “gamble responsibly” it’d be nice to see some evidence of what responsible gambling is on the coverage. It’s certainly not talking about ten grand bets on coin flips.
The way sensible people talk about casinos in Las Vegas is about right. You’re paying money for the experience with your bets, it’s not a way, for most people, to earn money. Having a horse in contention coming up to the last is worth a few bob for me but the way the TV shows it it’s all about stacks of twenties wrapped in rubber bands. I hope if I ever had that amount of money I’d still be happy with a bet that costs no more than a pint.
What pisses me off is this focus on gambling carries over to the pub. I was out drinking for Tuesday and Thursday and the amount of times I was asked, “Are ye winning?” was unreal. And they literally just wanted to know if I was up or down. Every other day of they year they people would ask, “What were ye on?” And you’d have a chat about how the race was run. For Cheltenham it’s just “Up or down?”
Then people started getting pissy when I said, “I’m enjoying my pints in the pub,” as though it was against the spirit of “Up or Down.”
They need to find more of the group of (typically) women in the crowd who are betting a fiver and just having a blast. Show people the bets are the icing on the cake not the cake itself.
Another blog.
Paying for Racing? – An Emotional Bet
For those wondering about the Thyestes I had Mister Fogpatches each way.
Thanks a million, BigG! That’s a lovely thing to say.
I have to give a bit of credit to Rory Fraser. He’s an amateur photographer who tries to get to meets and was at Ascot on Saturday. I was messaging him Sunday night and he agreed to give me a few of his snaps of the race. I was too impatient in waiting for them so put the blog up when I did but he got the photos to me later that day.
If you looked at the article and there were no photos from the race you should click through again to see them. They add quite a bit! There’s a link to Rory’s website with a lot more photos of Saturday and other races than what’s on my site.
I will say it’s both good and bad there’s the likes of me and Rory (and many more) knocking away at this type of stuff for the fun/love of it. We (or me at least) are very lucky we’re in a position where we can both watch the racing and write, podcast, make vlogs or take photos around the whole of the industry. It’s bad because there’s many who will never have the opportunity because their family life, or work life, or just general situation can’t provide them the freedom or finances to do it. And then on top of that there’s arguments in pretty much every niche area (especially photography,) that amateurs providing their work for nowt are taking away from the people trying to make it their living. It’s a tough line to walk, people who are able to plug away for no reward other than the thing itself, people who feel the people doing it for nothing are diluting what the powers that be will pay for their work, and people who never got the opportunity or can’t do the work because of the lack of money. I can’t say I know how to thread that very small needle, other than saying I don’t feel I’m taking away from what anyone else does.
A new blog is up.
What else is it about other than Shishkin and Energumene, and of course the pub.
I don’t think giving stable staff the occasional long weekend should be conflated with “extremes” or them “relax[ing] the whole year round” and “actually lose[ing] the will to work completely.”
That’s something they absolutely deserve, ID. And much more than the occasional single day off. It’ll annoy the hell out of me if it’s a day I could be watching the racing on but I’ll have to accept it for the good of others.
I think it was Milton Harris on Luck on Sunday two weeks ago who talked about how he has more morning riders in his yard than others, so his staff (a lot of whom are young) aren’t pressured as much and get to enjoy their life a bit more. His attitude was that you can’t make every day a good day, but if you have more good days than bad days the staff will reward the stable in the long run, and they’ll be happier themselves, which is what it’s about.
Any industry where the people in it, especially young people, see the game they’re in as their love and passion is ripe for exploitation. And for someone against the wall it’d be hard to resist doing so. They have to resist, though. Churning through people who’ll put up with everything because they love horses can only end in a bad way, and along the way there’ll be a big documentary on the BBC or something of 16 year old boys and girls, worked to the bone and then shat out.
