The Problem With The Flat Races At Galway.

Why not just let it wither on the vine.

There is a problem with the standard of the flat maidens,it is caused by the top trainers conceding they cannot beat Weld.

Antique Platinum. 2/5
Whitey O Gwaun. 9/10
Brooch.    4/9
Massinga.  8/11
Silwana.    2/5

Weld targets these maidens every year which makes the standard high but the other trainers run absolute dross against them.
One solution would be up the value of the races,this could be funded by the huge betting done on these races.

Most 3yo's with any sort of ability have won their Maiden's by now (unless they've had a training set back )Weld seems to keep 4 or 5 90+ animals aside for this meeting, all the other Trainer's know this.

Apart from the maiden for amateur riders they should scrap the others

Why not a Topaz Mile for 3yo's only ( only 2 got in this year)

How can that opening post be deleted?
Weld does target them with decent ones,i,d look at it in more the other trainers eyes,given the fairly unusual layout of the track not much point imo of given an education to particulary an unraced horse there if they have any promise,think a flatter track is possibly better in the long term myself as they will hardly be racing up a hill in their career.

Great suggestion.

I was there Friday and Saturday absolute foul weather yet huge crowds,excellent catering.
Getting out was far easier than getting out of Kilbeggan and the Curragh.

Plenty complained to me about the uncompetitive nature of those maidens,it was their only real complaint.

Galway is a phenomenon,read the Reeling In The Years column in the Irish Field you will see it was two days in the sixties and then on to Tuam.

I have to say wildman is right about the maiden races, there was good value in ladbrookes during the week on these races with money back as a free bet if your horse finished 2nd to a Dermot weld winner on any race at galway.

I take your point about the lack of compeditive racing but it is something of a compensation when as a punter you can simply fill your bootz.

Ladbrokes have put some effort into Galway,they have two SP shops there and two of the most prominent positions in the ring,they also have four other lesser stalls.

The betting looked fair enough to me and unusually for Ladbrokes they were going roughly the same prices as the others.

They had a right bad day Friday but a bonanza Saturday.

The vast majority of flat trainers won't run decent young horses at Galway not because of Dermot Weld but simply because of the track itself.

To be honest its really joke racing for the holiday crowd and they dont mind/care.

It defies belief how stupid punters are.....we are constantly hearing  about small sized fields and their desire to make the racing competitive.......well its uncompetitive races the morons need and not these lottery like handicaps that the big off course bookies want.......
Ya can see every Saturday in England what kind of Shiite racing they put on......about 6 handicaps on every card.....well any punter with the IQ of a bumble bee should know that racing like that is  a waste of time for long term profit......

never a truer word said than paulie there..

Certainly the odds on punters had some Galway,everyone of them won.

Before ye jump in the bumper horse was backed at 5/4 hardly anyone would have backed it at odds on,the SP return pretty typical though.