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attendance doesnt look very high at chester today
attendance doesnt look very high at chester today
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£23 into Tatts at York next Thursday (Dante day)for me, seems good value. I hope to be there.
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Louise Stewart in charge at Chester when challenged by Ed Chaberlain about being too dear and value for money actually replied " well I heard on TV this morning that we are coming out of recession ". !!
call me old fashioned but what has that got to do with anything.? Louise Stewart.  |
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* Chamberlin
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In charge at Chester , head in the sand just full of s..t, can’t even answer why it’s expensive to go to Chester, hope it’s the last time we see her sort on the tv
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Shocking interview on her part to be honest, not done her credibility much good.
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Unfortunately racing is full of people who get the big jobs who come from outside racing mess things up them move on to another industry then f..k that job up to ,incredibly they get good salary’s for there mistakes.
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And...here is a little tale about quite a number of racedays at a certain grade 1 Northern track.
Outside of the bigger days and weekends, it is all one enclosure there now. IE, all grandstand with no 'County Stand' pricing. Yet, the track is so horribly disorganised, they often start off charging people (at the little desk in the grandstand next to the County Stand) for an upgrade fee to move to the County Stand from the Grandstand! Then, after an initial hour or so they cotton on to how it is all one stand and close the desk! But, what they don't do (of course) is tell people who have already paid for the transfer that the are due a refund. And, as you might guess given the idiot nature of the masses nowadays, almost nobody realises and they just go on happily wearing their County Stand 'swing badge' without working out they have paid for a transfer for nothing. If Trading Standards for the area ever come to appreciate what is happening someone at the track will surely be in bother. Now, I know that sounds too daft to be true but I can assure you it is. I have seen it on a number of occasions over the past three or so years there. So disorganised there that some staff setup to take money for transfers while others set it up all to be one enclosure. I would like to know what they do with the money when they 'tally-up' at the end of the day! Truly desperate times. However, I am just back from Market Rasen today. All one enclosure, reasonable crowd with no drunks, no over the top security and good weather. Shame about the injured jockey and the deceased horse but a nice day - so perhaps all is not lost yet! Lastly....I use my mobile phone at the tracks to play on the exchanges. But if the track has no Wi-FI, or blocks it, it must be remembered that you can use G4S instead (indeed, I use that more than the tracks Wi-Fi). No track can do anything to block G4S, as it is nothing to do with their networking setup. But Wi-Fi wil be running off a router at the track The only drawback with G4S is if you are at a track with a weak signal, or if the networks are very busy generally, then it can be pretty slow. |
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The Knight, what is G4S please? When I searched it just said it's a Security company.
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Glasgow , did Louise say something like 'you don't come to worry about the purse strings' , i only caught a bit of it.
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The prices are bad enough, but it makes one wonder why anybody goes to these early flat meetings just to throw their money away on horses they know little about.
It's the same story year after year. Brilliant 2yo that haven't trained on, and horses that sprout wings after given a kindly introduction to racing with no form the year before. And as one set of losers pack it in, they're replaced by another set of wide eyed and helpless optimists who don't know what they're betting on. |
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That's precisely why serious punters do go to these meetings in the spring. It gives you a huge edge.
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How the horses look; how they look compared to other horses in the race; how they walk, from front, side-on and behind; how they behave when mounted; how they go down to the start.
You can't get any of that off the telly. |
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...... Maybe someone should tell Ken.
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With everything that has been said here is why I go pointing. Much better than going to most of these courses under rules.
Nice friendly crowd, take a picnic should you fancy one, out the boot of the car in between watching the races. Good pricing getting in, beer tent with no queuing , food vans with punter friendly prices, hog roast etc. No Stazi security searching you on the way in, in fact bringing your own food and booze positively welcomed. No pissed up corporates , lots of knowledgeable people , friendly crowds who just strike up conversation with the person standing next to them. Great fun and atmosphere - go and visit your local point to point and enjoy going racing again !! I’ll see you at Kingston Blount this Sunday :) |
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I would love to go to my local point to point ...but sadly all tracks I loved have closed down ALPRAHAM, EATON HALL ,WESTON PARK ,FLAGG MOOR and WHITTINGTON.... North western pointing non existent now...
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How the horses look
Nick Mordin wrote a book called The Winning Look. It's still in print. |
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oneten ...interesting post. i can see your good intentions . but ...who wants to pay £ 30 for a car when there are 3 runners a race and its a bouncy castle on the home straight !...not many pointers around since the hunting ban . tabley soon . lovely but not cheap ! good luck .
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Part two off how racing has change
The totally incompetent bha have now almost accepted that premierisation was a pointless idea just as mo#t had predicted jcr already going back on there promises by pulling 5 or there fixtures whilst the smaller courses count the cost,today I read the bha have come up with an even more ridiculous idea for 2026,it’s clear those in charge at the bha are only interested in salaries not the long term future of racing . We have the gambling commission arguably even more incompetent than the bha who themselves should have to be asked for affordability checks as many still work from home due to the pandemic leaving there plush offices in Birmingham empty most of the time should the tax payer be funding this outfit Online /high street bookmakers obviously we all know about the ridiculous restrictions many face but what a result they got during the pandemic there former employee gave them the right to temporarily return there own sp which they quickly got the taste for and have been allowed to keep the privilege of making up there own sp,what a turn around punters with a good record in the past were told sp only especially the last leg of a multiple bet now you have to take the price .we didn’t always realise it but we miss Big Mac The racecourses many are cashless there’s no option when will they realise a day at the races for many is a day they like to spend cash they don’t want there banks and credit card people to know they like a days at the races a bet and a few drinks many like to keep that private ,it’s something that is without doubt affecting attendance and will continue to do as more turn up and find out,we have a situation where arc want to race behind closed doors in the winter rather than trying to get people through the gates something they already done over the last few months at Southwell they even staged the winter derby in front of nobody rather than letting race goers see the race at lingfield,what would Stan Clark have thought about all that ?you have haydock who find any excuse not to open the family enclosure so they can charge extra for families to mingle with the United and Liverpool supporters on summer Saturdays,you have Salisbury who stop you walking over the course with an ice cream ,as we all know and I mean all rational people we have an over crowded fixture list yet last bank holiday Monday when people can go or watch on tv we had utter garbage,we have unnecessary watering and false going reports and have done for a long time now yet never any explanations as to why. We have the racing press who only want to compare every leading two year old with frankel which is pointless ,rather than doing some digging and asking questions about those running the game,the online bookmaking industry and why some trainers don’t seem to keen on running there horses, On a plus side many of the small racecourses are a pleasure to attend ,York is upon us and it’s now only 37 days to the greatest event on the planet. |
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jimnast , if york can't get our enthusiasm back and put a spring in our step then we are doomed !so looking forward to wednesday even with the potential yorkshire downpours to soak us in the taxi rank . ayala champagne for the wife at a reasonable price , spectacular views from the annual members seats , nice pubs in the city and meeting those ive not seen since last october . oh and the racing is pretty good too .
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racing is a mess compared to what it used to be as in most things in life.(and this is not a grumpy old man rant)
most of the big tracks are now publicity oriented and profit driven and run by people who regard it as a profit making business, my local track chester is a prime example. i used to go there in the 80s and 90s and it was great -all about the racing , finding a few winners and enjoying yourself. last time i went it was full off idiots deressed up to the nine pins- drunk and not giving a monkey about the racing. like an open air night club . Awful . I dont go anymore, Racing has been turned into an entertainment business just like most things today,not cheap, shallow and lacking substance. i know only frequent the less renown racecourse where the old paths are still in evidence. but hey ho we live in a changing world and my children and grand children will view the world and horse racing very differrently. we have been very lucky to enjoy probably the golden era of horse racing |
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A lot of people on twitter saying,horse racing isn’t a sport,after itv won bafta.
There’s no reason why great racing can’t be wrapped up in day out entertainment,there isn’t enough racing purists to fund the sport,plus got to attract new fans by giving them a taste first. There’s enough room at tracks to accommodate parties and race fans. |
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york dante meeting probably is the best meeting of the year
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Horse Racing should be about the horse. Sadly the greedy in Racing have made it only about profits to shareholders. The future of the sport is in doubt and I expect most tracks will soon have houses on them.
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Does anyone remember what horse racing was like when Frankel was around? That Era for me ALL about the horse, and how amazing these animals are. Horse racing was celebrated, and it wasn't about getting pissed at the track and not even caring about horses.
What an earth have they done? To the sport we love  |
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York is upon us, and it’s now only 37 days to the greatest event on the planet.? And which meeting are you referring to?
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Royal ascot trident
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Skiptoo thats a shame. I didnt know all those tracks had gone.
We are fortunate enough in the west midlands area where its currently flourishing . We get good crowds a runners from all over the country. Last meeting we had a winner from cornwall and yesterday Tim Vaughan came up from Glamorgan with his son Ed and had a couple of runners. |
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To be honest trident the era when frankel was around wasn’t much different from now really regarding been on a racecourse however the political side has changed an awful lot and all downhill,some of those in charge of racecourses and at the bha are only short term and in it for the money soon they will move on to another industry,then another clown will step in who will have no background in the roots of racing but will be well educated in that different world .
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Windsor knot,
I couldnt disagree more strongly with your comment not cheap and 3 runner races. I always think what a cheap day out it is with good racing to boot. With good size fields. Yesterday for example the price is £13 per person if tickets are purchased before the day and children are free. The car is free to stop people parking a mile away and clogging up the verges and walking in. We had 6 races scheduled but ended up with 7 because we had to split one due to too many declarations for the safety factor. 5 runners 3 runners 5 runners 8 runners 8 runners 8 runners 5 runners very respectable field sizes I think youll agree ? Though normally we have larger fields but as the ground gets firmer and the season curtails then field are as yesterday. Though Alan Hill has done a tremendous job watering the course. Most races were very tight finishes and contested by decent horses . The likes of Tigerbythetail, Gabrial the great etc and not a bouncy castle to be seen on the home straight, though having one at the back of the trade stands is a good idea as it helps the next generation enjoy going racing. Its amazing what an ice cream and a bouncy castle does to keep little children happy (and they want to go racing again) and if they are happy then the adults enjoy going as its an easy day out for families, and not expensive. |
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record crowds at chester may meeting according to the lady on itv so unless there were 60,000 on fri,the openning poster needs his eyes checking
 , 3 pages moaning about chester,s attendance and not one mentioning the record crowds over the 3 days |
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What do expect her to say, no way they were record crowds.
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oneten...that is a fair enough response to my rather flippant post . i actually enjoy a bit of ptp and it sounds as though yours is a good one . my local is tabley, cheshire . nice spot but small pool of horses can lead to tedious long odds on shots and small fields . and they charge a whopping £80 ( i'm not kidding ) for a trackside reserved car space .
incidentally i was at chester last week . no way were there record crowds in the stands but i presume every hospitality bolthole was packed out . which, frankly, seems all they care about . |
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Windsor, I meant to ask you what area of the country you are in so I’m pleased you cleared that up.
That’s a shame to hear your area is not as enjoyable as ours down here. I always assumed it’s the same all over the country. We must be fortunate here. That’s scandalous charging £60 for a trackside car spot... not surprising people don’t go if it’s that expensive It sounds like your grumble re corporate hospitality at Chester is exactly why I go pointing . I want to go and enjoy the racing and not have all these corporate idiots / drunken louts on the lash and as pointing isn’t glamorous they aren’t attracted to it, Thank goodness. Though we seem to do ok in the celeb department as we had ginger spice and her husband at the last one and their horse won. I guess standing in a sometimes muddy field isn’t glamorous so it wheedles out the numpties hence there is a nice crowd. |
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During the noughties Tatts tickets sold out three weeks before, for all three days. Can be bought on the day now. No way they are getting record crowds. They are just inventing falsehoods. Not sure how long this supremo will last - the former CEO Richard Thomas was sacked in controversial circumstances.
Chester Racecourse says its former chief executive spent more than £180,000 of the firm’s money on his own “personal projects” before he was sacked. The company said the "very unsavoury and unwelcome turn of events" meant it had racked up "exceptional losses" of more than £280,000 as a result of the spending by Richard Thomas, and subsequent legal costs. |
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How much time did mr Thomas do ?
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Think it was sorted out ‘ in house'.
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 Well that’s all fine and dandy then |
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Could be carrying out menial chores to very,very slowly reduce the debt. Right now he may even be on track, tin of paint in one hand, paintbrush in other, giving the rails a coat.
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"personal projects"
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