Trying to make plans, eh? That was the title I gave to the previous chapter, in which I mentioned that we'd have two runners this week, Sussex Girl and Solitary Sister in the 3.30 at Brighton tomorrow. I was indeed trying to make plans rather than making them (well, I suppose that I did make a plan, but it was a plan which has floundered) because Solitary Sister won't be running. She has had a long history of corns in her near-fore foot which formerly kept her off the track for a long time. The near fore foot is fine now - so, right on cue, she was lame this evening. Off fore. Yes, you've guessed it: a corn. You couldn't make it up.
Still, there's plenty worse things that happen. She might have me scratching my head often enough, but what about those in charge of racing in Ireland? They must be tearing their hair out. We think that we have problems here, but what about the attendance-figures for Ireland's biggest meeting of the year, the Irish Derby Meeting? Three days: 2,859 there on the Thursday, 3,661 there on the Friday (when there was a Group One race on the card) and 11,957 there on the Saturday, Derby Day. One might say that that's not dissimilar to how things were when our Derby Meeting was still four days prior to its re-invention in the '90s, but even then our Derby Day, the only busy day of the meeting, attracted a few hundred thousand, not fewer than 12,000.
Still, there's plenty worse things that happen. She might have me scratching my head often enough, but what about those in charge of racing in Ireland? They must be tearing their hair out. We think that we have problems here, but what about the attendance-figures for Ireland's biggest meeting of the year, the Irish Derby Meeting? Three days: 2,859 there on the Thursday, 3,661 there on the Friday (when there was a Group One race on the card) and 11,957 there on the Saturday, Derby Day. One might say that that's not dissimilar to how things were when our Derby Meeting was still four days prior to its re-invention in the '90s, but even then our Derby Day, the only busy day of the meeting, attracted a few hundred thousand, not fewer than 12,000.
1 comment:
Strange that Irish jumps racing is invariably well supported but the flat meetings generally are not the total dominance of one stable may have a lot to do with it , you only had to look at both derbies at Epsom and the Curragh to see there is a major problem in the competitiveness of the two biggest races in the calendar .
Whether the race was won by the one in the blue colours , the one in pink or purple frankly was of little interest to most people in both races most people thought the winner would come out of Ballydoyle , as a punter the fact some of the mounts are blatant pacemakers despite the protestations that all are running on their merits (and maybe Saturdays result suggests they are)makes the races very unattractive .
The issue for Irish flat racing seems to be that the races only interest a hardcore and that as yet they have been unable to extend out into the wider community and this seems to be particularly true of the Curragh for whatever reason , possibly a touch of elitism maybe they have a choice to make find a way to engage the public at large or be left with a magnificent white elephant
which brings us back to the current state of British racing where possibly 90 percent of the track attendees only turn up for peripheral reasons not the races be it stag and hen does , pub and club outings or to watch the band after racing and those who pretend otherwise are burying their heads in the sand .
However that is not to denigrate the success of British racing in getting bums on seats but it is hiding from reality to pretend that flat racing would struggle to attract a crowd just with the racing . It is classed as a great day out but you would struggle to say that the horses are the centre of everyone's attention which is a crying shame
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