What would you change to improve British racing?

and who is going to pay for all this?

2 outriders at every meeting, it would cost peanuts and would help resolve some of the ridiculous delays we get.

Ah,Ashley you reminded me of one I'd left out.

All racecourses to get together and form a Tote with all profits going to racing would be a good start.

The rent racecourses are paying for stalls is probably more over time than owning their own.

The only other additional expense would be more stalls handlers.

Thanks Slippy I forgot that one.

Someone said during the York meeting that the Aussie-style stalls were £1m a pop!  Can't imagine too many courses having that sort of cash kicking around.

Make it compulsory that every race on the AW is at least 10 runners and we have have a 5 6 7 8 and 9 places market , so that way the lads who are laying their horses , have more options than they have at the moment . After all if there were no owners , trainers and jockeys ,there would be no racing.

That someone might not know what he's talking about.Lata.

rograin ...

Programme numbers to match stall numbers. Why is it necessary to number them according to their handicap rating
-------

ANSWER..

That is a Nonsense - and entirely unnecessary ...Talk about making FORM Study/Racecard Appraisal  HARDER - and LESS ATTRACTIVE to both new and long-standing Punters.
----------

rograin

All racecourses to get together and form a Tote with all profits going to racing

-----

ANSWER ...

Chester, Ripon, and Bangor - are already doing that - with ASCOT about to join them -

However - The, "Profits," are [b]going to those RACECOURSES - and NOT Racing.
----------

rograin ...

25 minutes between races not 35.
-----

ANSWER ...

There are more meetings held in Australia - yet races RARELY Start LATE.

However - Australia has 35 and 30 minutes between races - and most races are 1000 metres (5 fur) 1200 (6f) 1600 (1m) too.

Reducing UK Race separation times to 25 mins would/could only exacerbate the LATE OFF issue = 1.01.
-----

rograin - Quite a number of your suggestion appear to be predominantly from an 'In-Running' favouring  perspective.

^ *  Australia has 35 and 40 minutes between races

So is that a good thing onlooker?

Personally i would get rid of all AW racing, but maybe that wouldn't go down so well on here

Agreed Andrew. We should have racing on dirt not AW!

A tote system sounds a bundle of fun ffs

Here we go again with personal likes and dislikes. I for one will not advocate abolishing races I personally dislike.

onlooker    26 Sep 18 19:55 
^ *  Australia has 35 and 40 minutes between races

roggrain    26 Sep 18 19:57 
So is that a good thing onlooker?
-----------------

Reference my earlier remark ....


There are more meetings held in Australia - yet races RARELY Start LATE.

BECAUSE of that LONGER gap between races.

Were Australian races to be every 25 mins, instead - You could bet that their exceptional Start PUNCTUALITY record would definitely be impaired - and probably on a par with some of our racecourse culprits.

Couple trainers horses, detest it when Elliott, Mullins, Johnson etc win with the outsider of 2. Would love 30 min time (or less) across the board, where did the awful 35 min for everyday racing come in, extra 5 mins seems like forever on a freezing day at the races in winter.

What does it matter if races are off late? I subscribe to RTN for US racing. They have access to every race in the States. You can watch any race from any track i.e they have a separate feed for each track. The problem here that ATR and RUK don't.

Another thing that needs fixing.

What’s wrong with the yards outsider winning I would not want coupling one that spring to mind is when penhill won his first stayers hurdle after his win at limerick I was happy to back him on his own I wasn’t interested in what Ruby choose or betting him along side the stables other 3 runners I am afraid anyone in favour of coupling just wants it easy it doesn’t work like that effort and imagination along with opinion is needed.

As soon as a course dolls off hurdles or fences because of low sun, then the course should lose that fixture the following year. If there is a danger of low sun then course should not have been granted the fixture in the first place.

a strong tote system would be great but they would need to lower the take out to make it more attractive,they could then advertise how often tote prices beat sp and also try to include some type of multiple bets,sadly there only ambition (chesterbet and co) is to effectively fleece punters and try and get a small bit of a small pie.

should be able to void your bet if they doll off any hurdles or fences because of low sun.  maybe you can ....

Would struggle to think of a worse idea for encouraging people to bet than "coupling" horses.

Obviously, they are not going to happen:-

Massive cull of fixtures, confine all-weather to winter months. Midweek Festival meetings to be stand alone. Scrap summer jumping and recreate distinct turf seasons. If meetings are lost to the weather don't automatically create extra all-weather fixtures to replace them. 

No split handicaps and no more than three per card. 

Whip carried only for steering purposes.

If horses are entered at the 48 hour stage they should be prepared to run regardless of the going.

Jockeys should be fined for not riding out for the best possible placing beyond standard place terms as bookmakers are increasingly offering extra places.

The time given to horses going in the stalls should be reduced.

TV Companies to upload old races rather than show them as a treat once in a blue moon. If they hold all this great footage let people view it. History is massive to this sport. 

Reduce the cost of RUK and the Racing Post. Both prices clearly take advantage of racing being a rich man's pastime.

Get rid of the gravy train cheerleaders and find some people who are actually willing to criticise.

2 MEETINGS A DAY WITH 15 MINUTE GAPS BETWEEN RACES MON TUE WED.
3 MEETINGS A DAY WITH 10 MINUTE GAPS BETWEEN RACES THUR FRI.
4 MEETINGS A DAY WITH 10 MINUTE GAPS BETWEEN RACES SAT SUN (3 FLAT AND 1 JUMP APRIL-SEPTEMBER).

RACING TO START 1.00PM DAILY MARCH - SEPTEMBER, 12.00 DAILY OCTOBER - FEBRUARY.

1 EVENING CARD SEPT-APRIL.
2 EVENING CARDS MAY-AUGUST.

REDUCING THE NUMBER OF MEETINGS AS ABOVE SHOULD INCREASE THE OVERALL FIELD SIZES..

ALL MEETINGS CAN BE UP TO 10 RACES IN TOTAL - AS LONG AS DIVIDED RACES HAVE A MINIMUM OF 8 DECLARATIONS.

ANY RACE WITH LESS THAN 8 DECLARATIONS TO BE SCRAPPED.

STIFFER PENALTIES TO YARDS WITH PERSISTENT NON RUNNERS.

DO AWAY WITH 48 HOUR DECS ON THE FLAT - KEEP IT HOWEVER FOR ALL GROUP 1'S AND HERITAGE HANDICAPS.

GET RID OF THE SHERGAR CUP.

DO LAST 6 PLACEPOTS AS WELL AS FIRST 6.

BRING BACK QUALITY RACING IN TO THE MID WEEK - TOO MANY BIG RACES ON A SATURDAY (THEY JUST ALL BLEND IN AND LOSE THEIR IMPACT).

HOW BUSY WAS THE DERBY WHEN IT WAS ON ON A WEDNESDAY - IT WAS THE FOCAL POINT OF THE DAY - NOW ITS A RACE AMONG 50 ODD TAKING PLACE ON THE SAME DAY.

i think that there is a great way of getting money back into horse racing.And it concerns involving the grand national day.The horse racing board should run some sort of raffle in conjunction with the big day with a super massive prize of a life time for the winner.(something so good that everyone in the country wants a ticket)millions of people have a flutter on national day(in fact even the baby in the pram gets a horse backed for it on that day) in one day the horse racing board could get millions and millions of pounds for horse racing if they were to advertise their raffle correctly ,and spend the other 51 weeks selling tickets.advertising their super duper raffle and the prize  of a life time that would be on offer.And they could do it every year ,a sort of sweepstake connected to the winner of the race.
so that is only one idea to get loads of millions of pounds back into racing'but before all this is done i suggest that someone should sack the horse racing board and get some people who are prepared to work to improve horse racing because the powers that be at the moment don't care about horse racing ,and its my guess that the powers that be are the same people who also hold the powers to sack the board.so they will not sack themselves,but they will sit on the hands and do nothing.that are only interested in themselves .IMVHO

i think its something like 300 million people tune in world wide to view the grand national,but if they all had a horse in the race that would get them through to the next round for the prize of a life time it would be fun,then move on to another big race like the 1000 guineas,2000 guineas,the oaks,the derby,gold cup an so ,and everyone  who has a ticket goes from round to round until you have one lucky winner.if advertised correctly the raffle could become  as famous as the grand national itself,and horse racing itself would improve in leaps and bounds,big leaps and big bounds,and loads of money to run the industry in the proper fashion that it should be run.

Sep 26, 2018 -- 2:58PM, McCoy Carp wrote:

As soon as a course dolls off hurdles or fences because of low sun, then the course should lose that fixture the following year. If there is a danger of low sun then course should not have been granted the fixture in the first place.

Unfortunately there are not many straight 3m 5f courses in the UK.

One reason the Racing Post costs so much is there is too much racing. All those cards and form need to be printed and that is probably their main expense. The OP's final proposal is clearly there just to wind up Pat Eddery fans.

@brassneck's suggestion is the sort of thing you'd expect from racing's rulers. It's like holding pop concerts at race meetings. Tying racing to a glorified raffle does not increase interest in racing, just in raffles.

I'd increase access so more people become engaged in the sport.  Free to air TV coverage (freeview) plus reducing admission costs dramatically.  I'd also make a cheap "family" ring compulsory at every course where standard admission is £10 or more.  Unless people engage with the sport where will the punters of the future come from?  I'd also make it compulsory to offer refunds to people who walk out of a course before a concert starts so if people want to go just for the racing they can.

the goddess

you make a lot of very good suggestions in particular bringing more quality back to midweek racing,your suggestions on the number of meetings each day i think is just about spot on,voiding races with less than 8 runners isnt on whilst not ideal you have to consider owners who have made advanced plans to go and see there horse run,regarding the shergar cup i really dont see what harm it does they get a really good crowd at ascot that day they get runners just ignore it if it is not your cup of tea.all in all though some really good suggestions.

A hog roast at each track to encourage more fat people to come racing.

On-course tattoo parlours for the aforementioned to top themselves up between races.

Designated, cordoned off fighting area for the mass brawlers.

The cessation of 'music nights' which will be replaced by live screening of Love Island.

Members' car parks to be bulldozed to make room for Thorp Park-themed ride.

That should do the trick.

british racing is the best in the world, the fixtures and established pattern in the racing calendar is perfection. concerts at race courses was a brilliant idea to increase revenue streams. i would like the
racing post to have a picture of where the stalls are with their numbers on the race cards and directional flow, this would be more punter friendly.

FREE HOT DOGS

good morning jm you really do have a liking for tattoos dont you.

good morning wasnot your point about cheap family rings at all courses is of course right and not just from a cost point of view ,most families on a summer saturday would be very uncomfortable in main rings at the likes of haydock and chester.

free racecards

Racecards should be given out at the turnstile and included with the cost of admission as it has always been with Greyhound Racing.

Football grounds have family friendly areas foxy so people with kids can enjoy a day out without feeling intimidated.

those who pay top prices sparrow almost always get a free race card whilst those with a smaller budget have to pay.

thats correct wasnot and it seems to have worked very well,market rasen family enclosure is very good in fact its better than the main enclosures.

less racing
much less AW racing
significant bans for stopping rides

Gordon63    27 Sep 18 09:35 
less racing
much less AW racing
significant bans for stopping rides



Some of us like AW racing but don't you worry about anyone else.

These are individual views, nothing to do with worrying about what anyone else thinks.

Morning to you too Foxy, hope all's well.

i am well jm looking forward to the winter and spring with all the great racing that comes with it,hope things are good with you.

differentdrum    27 Sep 18 10:13 
These are individual views, nothing to do with worrying about what anyone else thinks.






Yes that seems a good idea to improve British racing.

good morning sparrow

i thought todays card at newmarket was the poorest i have seen on the opening day of the cambridgeshire meeting.

Good morning foxy. To be honest it's not a meeting I take a lot of notice of these days but I didn't think it was too bad. That Newmarket Whip race is getting popular now with 5 runners today as it used to be a match most years I remember.

sparrow - I was unaware I wasn't allowed a different opinion to yours!

AW racing was introduced to cover for turf cancellations, particularly winter saturdays, this laudable idea has now morphed into Saturday 1st September - 3 AW meetings, surely overkill.

I'm 100% in favour of the race programme at Chelmsford (and to a lesser extent Kempton & Newcastle) where they're putting up really great prize money for horses which prefer or at least act on the surface and where they can race into the evenings in autumn/spring, but whilst day after day of tedium at the other tracks might be doing you a favour, the reality is it's diluting the pool of horses for turf racing, hence lower field sizes, less betting, lower levy, less competition etc etc.  I also believe a knock on effect of an increased quantity of lower level racing (and most AW races are below Class 3) has played into the hands of those who are prepared to bend/break the rules of racing for their own gain.

But I don't have to take any interest in the Kempton 5.40, each to their own

gordon- My point is that we all have likes and dislikes but we should not be arguing for getting rid of meetings we personally don't like. As you say each to their own but just remember that your opinion is not necessarily shared by others and racing needs all the friends it can get. And since you mention field sizes you surely know that Class 6 races attract the biggest fields overall.

No opinion is going to be shared by everyone. How does effectively lauding mediocrity equate to the idea that 'racing needs all the friends it can get'? Surely part of racing is improving the breed. How is that achieved by putting on loads of rubbish races for rubbish horses? It just encourages more and more rubbish.

It is pretty obvious that in any sport far more people will be interested in the best that sport has to offer, not the worst. You can't sell the sport off the back of a mass of Class 6's. The fact that they might fill just confirms how many poor horses are in training. Too many.

every time a jockey is being interviewed and they say "listen" , they should lose their share of prize money , or riding fee . trainers should pay £500 per "listen" , AOB can afford it so he's alright

The sport will just be for the super rich if you have your way differentdrum. Owners spend tens of thousands keeping this "rubbish" as you call it in training and many people in work. Your thoughts on racing are simply a recipe for the demise of the industry.

"rubbish" horses are the ones that never manage to get within 50 lengths of the winner. They are usually retired after a few runs anyway. I would make some more changes to the entry conditions and declaration system to reduce the variability in field size. Too many races are restricted to a small % of the horse population and don't attract enough entries.

2 year old can not race over 7 fulongs / and 3 year old not over 1/5 fullongs .and 4 year old 2miles and more

Only British bred horses can enter our classics #Brexit

Get more people going with much reduced admission and sponsored free days.
I always quote some old Guys on the bus going to Suffolk Downs, It's cheaper than going to a movie and you might win a few bucks. They also had a lot of free days there.
Meeting we went to in Norway was free admission but the beer was expensive :-)

sparrow - i'm proud partial owner of a 69 rated 2yo and a 60 rated 3yo, hopefully not rubbish but if there was any indication that they would be more suited for AW racing then I'd try to sell my share as personally for me that's a one way street I don't want to go down...trainers like scott dixon and others who succeed on AW have my admiration for winning regularly with 45-60 horses and for sure they have their place but the 'pyramid' structure has far too many class 5 and class 6 races and there are possibly too many horses being bred/trained

I think you need to be relatively rich to own a horse full stop.

One of my reasons for preferring jumps to flat is the chance it offers the smaller owner to occasionally dine at the top table. You are not going to get the equivalent of Norton's Coin, Lady Rebecca, Earth Sunmmit etc. winning a Derby. Unfortunately, the fairytale stories are diminishing with the increasing dominance of the likes of Gigginstown, Ricci, JP and co.

if every course in the country got a new clock at the starting post it would help

all racing should be free to watch,,after all its not only trainers and owners that keep this game on its feet,, its the punters.

Without punters racing might well go back to it origins with aristocrats and rich owners running their horses against each others. Although it would make betting tame for the majority of us an off course Tote monopoly would put a massive amount of money into racing and to the State. With on course bookies only it might get punters off their backsides and on to the course.

Everyone in racing is interconnected. Owners need breeders, racecourse managers, horse transporters, trainers and their staff and if they want some prize money, punters. There is no doubt that the current product is easier to access from home than on a racecourse or in a betting shop. Racecourse entry should be cheaper but it can only happen if courses get a higher percentage of betting turnover. Towcester made a brave attempt at free racing but it has now gone bust.

get rid of bookmakers

three biggest racing markets in the world (HK, France, USA) all tote monopolies

you do the math

France has plenty of Tote/Pari Mutual outlets as do Australia and Hong Kong.
Despite the number of times I've been to America I did not see much off course betting and the New York OTB even went out of business in 2010. I suppose most of it now is online.

Tend to agree with everything in differentdrum post 26 Sep 18 23:27.

i agree as well kevo

also i know it wont happen but..

...draw a line in the sand and say to owners, trainers and jockeys this is how it's going to be in the future regarding

the way horses are ridden

The American race tracks all offer betting on other tracks, and open for that purpose on 'dark' days, Oldgit.


A substantial percentage of the pools come from off track betting in this way.