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An interesting and very topical article by Tom Percy
West Australian Racing
TheDiva
13,248 posts
This was taken from Tom Percy's regular spot in the STM Magazine:
Race to the Finish
TOM Percy looks at what happens to the racing industry when the world is not watching on Cup day.
The tumult and the shouting dies, and the Melbourne Cup is over for another year. The form guides go in the bin (along with most of the betting tickets), the big hats go back into their boxes and the morning suits go back into mothballs. Most people's annual racing fix is complete.
But what happens to racing for the rest of the year? It's been a long time since everyday folk took any more than a one-day-a-year interest in the Sport of Kings.
A phenomenon such as Black Caviar comes along occasionally and causes a frisson of excitement, but in reality almost no one outside the industry goes to the races anymore. Not to the home and away meetings, anyway. Not to the dismal wintry days at Belmont Park, the rainy weekday fixtures at Northam or the sweltering February afternoons at Ascot. It's friends and relations only.
And while the industry is promoted as a day out for young, vibrant people dressed up to the nines having the time of their lives, it's an image that is a long way from reality.
The regular race days are usually a sad and dreary affair, even for the diehards like myself.
It wasn't so long ago that racing enjoyed a widespread popularity. There were race broadcasts on commercial radio, interspersed with the music and talkback.
Unthinkable as it might be today, major cricket and football broadcasts were interrupted for calls of ordinary Saturday races.
These days you need to seek out an obscure radio frequency to hear a race description. Racing has all but vanished from the face of popular radio, and from the public domain.
For more than 20 years the Saturday ABC TV news showed videos of the last two furlongs of every race run in Perth that day. Today, they don't even give the result of the main race.
Even the iconic turn-and-finish pictures have disappeared from the pages of newspapers, without a whimper of protest from the industry.
It's not that the media is anti-racing, it's just that racing's not that popular anymore.
Compared with the AFL, the racing industry has been left to wither on the vine by its administrators and successive state governments.
The members' bar at Perth Racing these days is a tragic sight - its denizens the last remnants of a time when racing genuinely meant something to the average Australian. Somehow, horse racing has lost a generation, possibly two.
How to redress the situation is a perplexing question, and one to which there may be no immediate answer. But one thing is certain - it will take more than a few Black Caviars resurrect it.
Race to the Finish
TOM Percy looks at what happens to the racing industry when the world is not watching on Cup day.
The tumult and the shouting dies, and the Melbourne Cup is over for another year. The form guides go in the bin (along with most of the betting tickets), the big hats go back into their boxes and the morning suits go back into mothballs. Most people's annual racing fix is complete.
But what happens to racing for the rest of the year? It's been a long time since everyday folk took any more than a one-day-a-year interest in the Sport of Kings.
A phenomenon such as Black Caviar comes along occasionally and causes a frisson of excitement, but in reality almost no one outside the industry goes to the races anymore. Not to the home and away meetings, anyway. Not to the dismal wintry days at Belmont Park, the rainy weekday fixtures at Northam or the sweltering February afternoons at Ascot. It's friends and relations only.
And while the industry is promoted as a day out for young, vibrant people dressed up to the nines having the time of their lives, it's an image that is a long way from reality.
The regular race days are usually a sad and dreary affair, even for the diehards like myself.
It wasn't so long ago that racing enjoyed a widespread popularity. There were race broadcasts on commercial radio, interspersed with the music and talkback.
Unthinkable as it might be today, major cricket and football broadcasts were interrupted for calls of ordinary Saturday races.
These days you need to seek out an obscure radio frequency to hear a race description. Racing has all but vanished from the face of popular radio, and from the public domain.
For more than 20 years the Saturday ABC TV news showed videos of the last two furlongs of every race run in Perth that day. Today, they don't even give the result of the main race.
Even the iconic turn-and-finish pictures have disappeared from the pages of newspapers, without a whimper of protest from the industry.
It's not that the media is anti-racing, it's just that racing's not that popular anymore.
Compared with the AFL, the racing industry has been left to wither on the vine by its administrators and successive state governments.
The members' bar at Perth Racing these days is a tragic sight - its denizens the last remnants of a time when racing genuinely meant something to the average Australian. Somehow, horse racing has lost a generation, possibly two.
How to redress the situation is a perplexing question, and one to which there may be no immediate answer. But one thing is certain - it will take more than a few Black Caviars resurrect it.
Comments
The advent of Sky and at home broadcast of racing and the ability to also bet from home means racing enthusiasts don't need to go to the course anymore - they also want timely results and information which all comes with the net and less so with news reports
It would be interesting if RWWA did some marketing research to find what % of the population has an interest in racing these days
Racing was measured in Imperial for 300 years why change?
We still use the old terms at track work
I like the track but it seems to much like hard work..
a few shandys and a feed dont come cheap
If your idea of a good time is sitting in front of your tv and pc and punting well good luck to you. Not my idea of how and where I want to spend my weekends.
For me the enjoyment is about the social occasion with friends, not sitting staying home (on my own) trying to extract the best possible price.
So what if I miss out on the best odds, i'd rather miss out on a few $'s and get out and about and enjoy my weekend. I guess I put a greater value on my weekends than the few $'s I may miss out on. Each to their own.
Same thing was $8 down Chapel St the following nite.....
On average I'd guess Perth drink prices about 10% more than Melb.
Coffee prices about 15-20% higher in Perth
The members bar is nothing more than a silver fox convention.
Two words that spring to my mind when I think about public opinion of racing these days - political correctness!
I saw a comment on Cup Day which inferred that racing was purely a day for girls to dress sl&#ty and horses to be belted with whips for our amusement/entertainment - that is the public perception which is out there - so it's hard to work against that!
Either way the golden years are over and they aren't coming back no matter what anyone does - we live in a different world now! :(
Far more and better quality than any niteclub around! :wink:
Funky music - yes. PR need to put on the right type of live entertainment to attract younger people. This aspect seems to have improved a bit this season.
To my surprise the Nursery had half of its sites empty as a number of people who traditionally took a site obviously didn't do it this year. Each day of the carnival was worse as the carnival progressed and although still a busy and vibrant carnival, crowds were well down.
So if the main carnival is suffering, how are the administrators going to get patrons to lowly, wintry events in the dead of winter at Belmont??
Build apartments on the surrounds;
Schedule meets to coincide with footy games at the new stadium over the road;
Introduce night racing to coincide with HK or Singapore meets.
No atmosphere, pricey drinks, crap food...tried Niks lately? :x
Have a chat to diva and rumours about vic. racing..they were rapt. reasonably priced drinks, good snacks, great facilities.
cop that chew'n'spew joint at ascot, a tin dump, selling crap food right in the middle between the round bar and the main long vomitorium. obstructs a decent view...no effing idea from those loons running the joint.
how many times do you see a committee man...apart from peter gangemi who is always downstairs...walking around the place. rarely..if ever...
snug in their lofty eerie with their snouts in the trough pissing in some dudes pocket.
Bahhhh :evil:
The big $$$ have taken over sport and everything else - look at the job theyve done at Subi Oval... turned a 52000 crowd in 1979 into 43000 30 years later!!!!!! - all in the aim of entertaining people and providing comfort...... show me one person who can say they enjoy themselves more today than they did at the above venues and Ill stand r.....g !!!!! See you at the Charles tomorrow nite mate.
remember that horse of mews..mouton...declared in the welter perth cup day..rang u late nye to tell u to get some cash....shat in, i think chad davies rode it..
mate, did we kill a lot of pigs or what....fearless punters in those days.
pissed in charge of unlimited credit....well sort of unlimited.
had an even grand on something with rod wilson and he asked if i could settle. :roll: don;t worry he knew the family...thats why he asked.. :lol: :lol: :lol:
Connell, Way, Omalley, Sestich, Harper, JJ etc..... that was entertainment.. and it was free!!!! Will never see those happenings again but it was great fun and Cummings/Smith and Hayes would knock each other over to get here with great horses. Time for a drink - starting to tear up!!!
Even the penguin was sniffing around in those days ... same jeans and red polo though!!!
Personally I think 'The Potbelleez' this year (for Super Saturday) is the first 'nail on head' music addition they have had since Barnesy - these guys are hugely popular with the young crowds and I'd be surprised if they don't generate a large 'after the last' spending binge!