SECRETS LOST TO THE GRAVEYARD

Racing stands alone from other sports in the varied, in depth facets it has to offer that together make up the whole model. Some are so wide apart from one another - you could spend a lifetime engrossed in the intricities and theories of the breeding side without having the slightest interest in the betting and bookmaking side, with the reverse also applying.

It also blows the other sports out of the water for its multitude of characters, many long passed, others more recently passed, and some still on this earth. Put it this way, stable staff who have worked for a lifetime in the sport, even in basic ranking positions, would be such a fruitful source of page after page of anecdotes and if inclined, could write a book purely reminiscing in warts and all manner, one which would probably prove to be a more enjoyable read than a tow the line publication penned by a champion trainer or jockey.

The same cannot be said for football. A boot polisher would no doubt be able to recite some amusing tales but the chances are they would have been done to death and have been in the public arena, either through one of the red top newspapers, or from player autobiographies. 

But racing owns such a deep, congested well of secrets, gossip, along with a large basket of dirty linen  that could probably fill a large book cabinet with memoirs that contain a substantial amount of truth, with many being fully accurate.

Sadly, those who would have most to tell are now into extra time on the life clock and will pass on taking their experiences to the grave with nothing left behind in recorded format - they may have have recited bits and pieces to a young relative likely to have no interest in the sport, meaning the names and incidents would mean nothing and fade to oblivion

The problem arising with racing's grapevine is that many of these recitals could be libelous unless the character who is the subject of the nostalgic scribblings has passed on in which case care would still have to be careful not to implicate a living, touchy relative. Or even a dangerous, powerful one.

This means that anyone seeking to find an old hand long born of experience within the game would have to keep fingers crossed that your discovered  living source remains in reasonable good mental health, while most of the subjects of the tales have passed on.

The legal ramifications in this area leave some interestingly poised situations in all walks of life. An acquaintance who is employed in the fields of attempted rehabilitation of offenders told me that it is common knowledge within some sections of the Police force that the media outlets are sharpening their knives ready to go to war on an ageing, long established household name once he passes away.

The stories that could be drawn out of some old racing folk would not be of the deeply disturbing nature as those, which if true, are to be revealed about this household name. In fact by comparison many would in the main be damn funny but still, the person on the other end may not be so tickled on finding they are in the public domain.

For us enthusiastic racing fans on the outside looking in, we can pick up some fascinating titbits when having the opportunity to talk to those within the bubble, off record as opposed to chatting to a trainer from being part of a syndicate, or having a conversation with a guest speaker at a racing club function. Such private encounters make us realise just how many untold factual tales must be held by the many, mature silent beholders within the sport.

I can recall being in the company of an ex jockey in a northern racecourse bar over forty years ago. I have no idea if he is still alive - I cannot find any record of him passing, though he had such a profound drinking problem that he would be a symbol of hope for all incurable guzzlers as he would now be in his mid seventies if he is still on this earth.

He was in the Tattersalls bar as he would not have welcomed being recognised in the members areas. As a rider he finished in the frame in an English classic, rode Royal Ascot winners, and in his pomp was sought after in the big handicaps. He also rode often for an emerging owner who would go on to be one of the most successful in the sport. 

Anyway, at the time he revealed that he had just left a position working in a well known Newmarket yard - " I wouldn't advise my worst enemy to work there. Christ, it was a nightmare. At evening stables you have to stand to attention outside the box with your stable cloth, body and dandy brushes, and curry comb all laid out neatly while the boss walks around carrying out inspections."

After each race he was back in the bar, drinking double scotches.  He gave three tips ridden by a well known successful jockey he had driven to the course. The horses lost. I could not not be sure of  the volume of alcohol he had consumed, but enough at least to blow a breathalyzer reading off the scale and he was driving the jockey all the way back down to Newmarket after his last ride!

I was also once priveliged to have several conversations with a person who I belive is still alive and has held both a jockeys and trainers licence in his time. He would reminisce back through his racing life, recalling all the trainers he has worked for, some legends who themselves trained equine legends.

He recalled that when he worked for Atty Persse, the lads would be taking a risk if the lights were switched back on after lights out time in the dorm. Apparently, if this rule breaking act was spotted from the main yard the guvnor and senior staff would burst into the dorm carrying long toms and the lads had to duck and dive to avoid a thrashing.

Then there was a stable lad who I was chatting to in the late 1970's. He had worked for two big, very successful set ups. He revealed to me that in one these former yards they carry out x rays on their animals - this at a time when the practice was not routine in most establishments. He spoke of a progressive young horse housed in one of these yards. " There is early arthritis setting in",  he divulged. " They'll sell him soon....... while he is still able to get past most vets."

In the following years I watched on with interest as this animal developed into one of the biggest stars in the jumping game, the best in his division. I'd convinced myself that I was told a load of nonsense until reading one day that the said horse was indeed developing arthritis, so it seems the tale had some substance to it after all.

The point of these recitals is that they have been picked up from being outside the bubble. God only knows the amount that are kept in the mental lockers of those within. Compelling accounts that must live lucidly in the mind of souls who have spent a lifetime in racing yards, irrespective of rank or standing.

Of course, stories that have bits added on need to be spotted and either discarded, or downsized. I can recall a few decades back being told that during the funeral of a stable lad who had committed suicide while working for one of the most successful southern yards of the 1970's, the deceased's colleagues were physically spitting on the trainer's back. It just didn't have a convincing ring to it, even allowing for the fact that the narrator worked for this famous yard, though admittedly not at the time the alleged episode took place.

We know the sport is littered with non triers, that many jockeys bet, some far more successfully so than others, or have their punters paying them to the odds, that one or two mix or have mixed with some very unsavory characters, that something may or may not be 'going on' when a yard suddenly begins to extract improvement from a succession of newly arrived inmates, that big name horses have been doped to lose. 

One has visions of a partly retired seventy odd year old stable lad, wearing a cap and sporting a ruddy complexion. All his marbles are still in place. He's worked for many successful trainers. He has a wealth of knowledge and holds on to many secrets that he will alas take to the grave. And that is a real shame.

graveyard image taken by author

This is the title track from an album released a few weeks before Burrough Hill Lad put up that wonderful weight carrying performance in the Hennessey. Vinyl remained supreme so the album would have found it's way to many households by the time of the race. The album marked Deep Purple's reunion and while not in the same grade of those released in the early 1970's, is surprisingly strong throughout for a comeback production.The video has the reuniting theme. It could easily be jump jockeys from the 1970's and 1980's. Sadly, a portrayal of a similar version for flat jockeys would be missing the passed on legends of Pat Eddery, Walter Swinburn and Greville Starkey.

ANOTHER PART OF RACING’S SOUL IS LOST

For those under a certain age who view printed reference type books as something now needless and cumbersome to navigate through, the news that Timeform are ceasing hard copy publication of their showcase product caused no ripples; but to many mature racing fans it ends a link to the sport at its peak era, an era that no one at the time could have foresaw the end of.

The Timeform Racehorse annuals, developed from Phil Bull’s Best Horses annuals, were viewed as collector’s items that owners believed would increase at least modestly in comparable value. All genuine racing fans have shelves lined with copies. 

As the sport has gradually lost its place in the major sport league, its memorabilia has dropped in relative value to other sports, including the Timeform Annuals which from the 1960’s onwards you can now acquire from online stores and private sellers for relatively modest sums.

Computerisation of form books made them less necessary. Indeed for all the benefits that computers and the internet have brought they spoil many a heartfelt nostalgic discussion with quizes, or just plain enjoyable reminiscing somewhat ruined by the availability of speedy, soulless Googling.

This is why you may find yourself falling into a conversation about horse racing with a member of the emerging generations who may initially say something like, “ Cyrname is now officially the top rated chaser which he confirmed when beating Altior  - but it will be interesting if both meet over three miles on Boxing Day when Altior will be fully tuned up”.

Initially you are impressed, but as the conversation continues it dawns on you that they are just repeating almost word for word something they’ve read off their smartphone, probably when browsing through a racing article on a bookmaker’s site which they’d initially been on to look at the odds for footy matches or other sports.

It’s even more demoralising when you find these so called fans have no interest at all in any historical perspective to the sport. Even recent history. Nijinsky, Brigadier Gerard, Phil Bull, Pinza, mean nothing. Same with Persian War, Tom Dreaper, Michael Dickinson, and Pendil.

This may sound of little relevance in the grand scheme of all things racing but if the affinity towards the sport is a tenuous one, then those characters who may be betting on it regularly now, can very easily be weaned off it. This happening in significant numbers would  do grave damage to a game whose future itself is already uncertain.

Contrast with those who got hooked on the game during the 1970's when it was a truly major sport. It was essential to read Oaksey's Mill Reef book and Hislop's Brigadier Gerard book, to compare the two greats. Going back further in history to learn something about the great names of the sport was also an obligation - Atty Persse, Keith Piggott, Frank Butters, Fred Darling, Fred Archer.

We were also aware that over in the USA they were experiencing a decade like no other, from Secretariat, to Seattle Slew, Affirmed, and finishing with Spectacular Bid. We probably still have a Totopoly in a box in the loft, along with Escalado, no doubt with signs of heavy wear and tear. And on the run up to Christmas the telly adverts even use to regularly show a board game called Kentucky Derby.

In the past three decades the sport declined in prominence in the psyche of the general population.This sadly meant that it was only a matter of time before the demand for publications such as Timeform Racehorses and Timeform Chasers and Hurdlers would cease to exist as the older racing fans became infirm, ill of mind, or passed away with the numbers of those with similar enthusiasm that should have been replacing them comparably tiny.

Once the independent Timeform organisation sold out to bookmaking interests respect began to wain and many of us had long stopped purchasing the annuals in real time. Sadly it will now only be from a historical perspective that we will pick up old copies, browsing randomly through, reading the odd essay, studying the posed portraits. 

The physical descriptions used a consistent terminology down the years though there did seem to be some additions added in later years. I've been looking through Racehorses of 1968 and you do not come across anything described as 'good topped' or 'angular', which don't seem to have been introduced until two decades later.

Then you can't help noting the dress of the 'lad' holding each animal deemed good enough for a posed portrait. A cap covering short cropped hair appears mandatory in the 1960's, then all hell looks to have been let loose the following decade when there is no shortage of lads resembling Robert Plant holding on to their charges. 

There are of course some aspects of the publications that should have been arrested long ago. Not least the introduction which claims that the book, as well as being a historical record, is designed for weighing up a race, a purpose for which in reality it is outdated once the new season is in motion. Has anybody actually ever received a copy of Chasers and Hurdlers for Christmas then gone about using its now outdated ratings and comments to assess the Welsh National?

Another point is the weight for age scale. Timeforms varies slightly from the official one but it too has changed down the years. As an example, for the second half of July, the present Timeform weight for age scale deems that over a mile and a half a three year old should be receiving 12lb from older horses. 

Now, when Grundy and The Minstrel won their respective runnings of the King George in 1975 and 1977 respectively, Timeform had the margin at 14 lb which means that if the organisation's present weight for age scale applied back then, Grundy would have ended with an annual rating of 135 instead of 137, and The Minstrel with one of 133 instead of 135,  as both horses performances in the Ascot event where seen as career bests at weights and measures.

Admittedly the response for being nit picky over this issue would no doubt be that the change is merely keeping in line with what is seen ( but not proven) as horses maturing faster than in decades earlier - indeed, the Timeform weight for age scale at King George time for a mile and a half in the 1960's reckoned that the three year olds should be in receipt of 16 lb!

The fact that we would obsess over such issues in being so critical does however go to show how much respect we had for Timeform and the cold objective views of their senior staff whose dabs were on the annuals. Those are days are now gone for good with no hope of them ever returning.

The online Racing Post form book begins in 1988.To start a good level research prior to then it’s your own personal collections of books, magazines, newspaper cuttings and by visiting libraries or the like. Subscribing to newspaper archives is also a great help but limited in the sense that you won’t, for example find an available Sporting Life or Sporting Chronicle archive from the 1960’s, 1970’s and 1980’s.

The British Newspaper Archive website has both the Sporting Life and Sporting Chronicle available to the end of the 1940’s, while many other racing publications will have been lost too long to be recoverable unless you’ve kept old copies or built up scrapbooks.

When research is needed, the Timeform Annuals form part of the backbone of the material to be  consulted if they cover the period being examined. But if truth be told, hardly anyone without a racing background amongst the under forties will feel any desire to look up an historical racing subject when they can play FIFA 21, or Football Manager.

That the publication is soon to be no more allied to the fact that Wisden remains strong and treasured in hard copy form, says much about the comparable present standings of the sports of cricket and horse racing in Great Britain.

This track is from an album released a few weeks before Comedy Of Errors took back his hurdling crown from Lanzarote, and when Ten Up took the Gold Cup in a quagmire.  The lyrics have no connection to the Alps but the music has a Gstaad or Crans Montana feel and conjures up images of the likes of Roger Moore, Peter Sellers and Clay Regazzoni. No doubt many who visit these locations have full sets of Timeform Annuals.

THIS LOT WILL NOT RELENT UNTIL THEY HAVE THEIR WAY

The absence of a strong Ballydoyle presence, the fact that Tarnawa should have been supplemented for the big event, and the prevailing conditions that compromised too many hopes, all still could not take away from what was a most enjoyable weekend of racing.

In any normal year we'd be bemoaning separate events that came together to reduce the status of some of the races, some of which were not vintage renewals, notably the juvenile events. But because, with so much uncertainty prevailing, we are unable realistically to look more than a few weeks ahead in the calendar, simply having a weekend of overall high class racing to savior was more appreciated than it normally is.

There would however have been one notable item of news over the past week that did not go down too well for traditionalists. It was easy to miss it as the build up to the weekend got nearer. It was the announcement that the postponed team racing event originally planned for summer 2020 has been rearranged to begin in 2021, the intention no doubt to make it a permanent part of the calendar.

This whole team sport concept never will blend in snugly in this sport. The Shergar Cup has lasted because it's over in a day, one in which many fans will have a welcome rest where thoughts of the sport are put aside for one Saturday a year. A few decades back we curiously looked in on a couple of team competitions with visiting American jockeys which stoked up interest, not because fans got into the mode of teams and points but due to the rare opportunity to see the likes of Shoemaker and McCarron in action.

The delayed event proposed for next year is a purists nightmare, it really is. Twelve teams with their squads of horse from up to four trainers each, three jockeys representing each team which will have its own colours. In light of more pressing issues existing in the world, it may seem a little out of proportion to  overreact to this silly concept, but it makes one wonder whether the sport in this country is past the point of no return.

It is so hard to conjure up an image of teams communally managed by two to four trainers. Can you imagine this in the 1970's, a team with a management board of Ryan Price, Dick Hern, Peter Walwyn and Noel Murless - all would want to be the leading voice, none would surely agree to be lower in rank. Similar to a jumping one with Fred Rimmell, Fred Winter, Fulke Walwyn and Bob Turnell, together in allegiance. 

The whole concept is so stupid and unworthy for the sport that you would almost have expected Noel Edmunds, or the shamed Stuart Hall to be part of the production, in fact I'm sure there would have been a chance that they might have been if such a wacky contest had been staged back then.

The characters now may not be so maverick, blunt and individualistic,but you have to wonder in such a dog eat dog sport which ones would blend together. Perhaps Owen Burrows, Charlie Hills, and Richard Hughes would get through it, but a team comprised of Michael Stoute, Paul  Cole and David Elsworth would be a non starter and I cannot imagine any of these three seeking any involvement in this nonsense,

And how about if they extended it to the modern National Hunt arena - the West Country rivals Hobbs, Nicholls  and Pipe would not really want to join together as a team given the rivalry and no doubt levels of jealousy varying from season to season that must be forever ongoing between the three - though I suppose Colin Tizzard is now as powerful as any of them and he would be able to bud up with Paul Nicholls given their operations have always had links.

In part, it is tempting to make comparisons with charity rock events which are seen as opportunities to rekindle fizzled out careers, to boost sales and royalties from music released long ago, but in the racing arena the owners will have a bigger input thus amid the significant cutbacks in prize money levels, all but the top band of elite patrons will probably be open to the idea. There is no doubt that the large bulk of journeyman riders will be very keen to find a place so with the generous number of places available there will be room for plenty. 

There is also a belief held by organisers of these events that just because the emerging generations of racegoers come along for a session of alcohol consumption, which they still would do if they raced motor bikes around the course, means they will embrace the idea by visiting in their hordes.

Well, in view of the fact that these meetings are being staged at the height of the Twenty-20 Cricket domestic cricket season, I don't think anyone should be taking patronage for granted. There is not much chance of many genuine racing fans making an appearance - no one in their right mind would want to be one of the members of the paying public to be selected as an 'ambassador ' for the teams which is enough anyone needs to know about how trashy this concept is - making some no marks 'stars' for the night who have no real feel for the true attractions of the sport.

We keep hearing that racing needs to be open to new ideas, but this ornate rubbish not only devalues the sport's wonderful history, it seeks to move away from it in the belief that it will become stronger by rebranding it's image.

This is a notion that will only hasten horse racing's decline in the UK down to a part time tier that we could never of previously imagined. We will watch the whole charade unfold, knowing the dreadful outcome but unable to do anything to prevent it.

image in public domain

 Back to a time when the sport's problems pale into insignificance compared to today, when it was truly a major sport, when music too was in its element - this track from a terrific album released the day before Brigadier Gerard won the King George.......

KEEPING CHECK ON SANITY IN A MAD WORLD

Racing fans over a certain age will remember it being revealed in the racing media during the build up to the 1987 General Election that Steve Cauthen is alleged to have declared that he would leave the country if the Neil Kinnock led Labour Party claimed power. 

Notwithstanding the rights or wrongs of whether the Kentuckian, who was riding at the peak of his powers at the time, should be taking stances on politics of a country in which he was a working guest, the vow was testimanent to the there being two clearly defined political parties separated by a gulf.

Fast forward to over three decades later, when we now have a couple of decades of middle ground rule, with  both parties often indistinguishable during their spells in power, the Blair Government advocates of  widely applied deregulation with the present Government handling the Covid 19 crisis in a manner that would be agreeable to many ageing Trots.

Ironically it could realistically only be the far left that would be bold enough to bring in anti competition  legislation and to introduce an off course state owned Tote monopoly system for UK horse racing - the other side to this is that a Trotskyte government could just as easily discontinue with the sport, citizens having the free will to gamble not really supposed to be part of their mantra. 

In light of this one wonders precisely what John Gosden was trying to get at when expressing concern that unless the process of addressing the Levy reform is speeded up, we could be falling back to the economic crisis of the 1970's which saw many wealthy individuals bail out on one way journeys to foreign nations.

Then, we had a world economic crisis stemming in the main from the OPEC oil crisis which cascaded down to everyone, causing a recession from which unshackled, powerful unions held the country to ransom. Gosden also alluded to the prospect of other industries folding.

Whichever way you look at it, Levy reform, which would involve a deal requiring the blessing of the powerful, shrewd, and not exactly charitable bookmaking industry, would only produce a measured improvement in finances for the sport which in light of the current crisis would not a mount to a short or long term solution.

This past weekend's edition of Luck on Sunday, saw arguably the most examining set of questions that Nick Rust has ever faced on air. The overall feeling from the broadcast was that the sport's present problems, if anything, have been understated. It was also touched upon the bleak reality that at present 0.6 % of betting turnover is returned to horse racing in the UK, compared with 7% in France.

This is a ratio not going to change by any notable degree anytime soon. Realistically we know this is an avenue now blocked by permanent bollards. Mind you, judging by the Monty Pythonesque rules we have been living under, most being imposed by announcements using a phraseology that could of been taken straight out of that show, nothing should surprise us.

But with a cloud hanging over the sport it is hard to focus on the coming weekend with the usual enthusiasm - it's like not being able to look forward to Christmas if you know you are being admitted to hospital in January to undergo a complicated procedure that will keep you bed ridden past Cheltenham and Aintree.

On the subject of those supportive of Trotskyte indoctrination, one must wonder whether some of the bizarre, mandatory courses that the whole public sector workforce are obliged to partake in will eventually be introduced within the horse racing industry as it would seem there is a wish by the Government for them to extend to the private sector.

Those of us who know people employed within the public sector will be aware that these courses, or seminars, whatever they are called, have been swiftly introduced owing to certain events that hugged the news throughout the summer. They are to make people aware of what is termed as ' micro aggression', and that one may be guilty of this behavior without realising it.

I was given an example from an acquaintance who works in the public sector. He explained that you may have a male work colleague who chooses to dress in female attire. You arrive on the work floor one morning where a system of ' hot desking' exists, which roughly means you take whichever seats and desks are available. On this particular day there are plenty of empty seats. You walk past a desk where the colleague dressed in ladies clothes is sat alone, surrounded by empty spaces, and take a seat on a bank of desks where four other colleagues are sat. 

This apparently would make you guilty of a ' micro aggression' towards the colleague wearing ladies clothes even though you may not have said anything vocally, cast a bad glance, or indeed never have ever had a cross word with them or made a disparaging comment about them.

I am told there is now a culture taking hold where workers are encouraged to be on the lookout for ' micro aggressional ' behavior, to 'challenge' it when they spot it, and to report it. Not surprisingly some will see this as a niche area for them to concentrate on as a basis for obtaining promotion. If such a culture is embraced by the horse racing industry, then one or two characters would no doubt be happy to go to town on it, finding a niche which will provide them with handsomely paid employment for the foreseeable future.

There can be no way now to prevent a radical downsizing of the of the sport in the UK, with Ireland no doubt going the same way. A reduction of the numbers of horses in training, closure of venues, an increase in horse wastage as owners pull out and horses go through sales rings unsold, job losses in abundance, all the specialist racing publications going under for good.

Enough trainers and owners had previously considered the funding issue to be serious enough that they took strike action long before the plague emerged thus by comparison, the state of play at this present time  will involve many licence holders losing their footing and slipping down to the cliffs edge, some even hanging off with their legs dangling and no safety net to break their impending fall.

image CC Wikimedia 

HEADING IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS

It's not by virtue of the fact that the US Open was the showcase sporting event of the past weekend that encourages one to declare with confidence that the future of golf is a brighter one, in better hands and far more assured than that of horse racing.

No, things have been this way for many years now. Racing fans may not want it to be like this but it is something that has to be accepted and yet again a reason for the equine sport to concentrate on cutting its cloth accordingly by setting about creating a path for itself away from the top tier of the sporting league.

An unbiased appraisal of both sports could only produce one clear cut winner. There is a unique state of being with golf in that a fan of the sport can play the game at a Saturday morning communal level but still have the opportunity of playing at some of the venues that hold professional tournaments.

It is a sport that has no reliance on the public placing bets on it -without which racing would not exist - and it does not carry the worry of having to watch it's back for assaults from animal welfare groups, who though possibly smaller in number than forty years back, are better organised with the assistance of the social media platform.

In fact golf has become a very environment friendly sport with the development of new courses more often than not complementing and sustaining rather than damaging the environment. Indeed many are often allowed to run too close to nature for comfort. In 2016 a lady was walking her dog by the course at Hilton Head in South Carolina, a regular PGA tour venue, when an alligator dragged her to her death into a nearby lagoon.

When it comes to TV presentation;well of all of the sports bar none, golf is at the top of the tree in delivering in depth, professional coverage with the right balance of sophistication and repartee, while quite rightly addressing an audience as though they have a similar level of knowledge - those of us who lack this would still not have it any different.

Formula One remains the true glamour sport and is also presented with a splendid blend of professionalism and style, while cricket too is excellently served though the dropping of both David Gower and Ian Botham from the Sky coverage was understandably not a welcome development with viewers.

But the coverage of professional golf both in Europe, and in particular over on the men's US PGA Tour, is the closest to perfection that you will ever come across. 

Even those of us who cannot imagine our uncoordinated gaits swinging a golf club never mind trying to understand the slow motion swing analysis by professional coaches, find ourselves enchanted by the precise mechanics of it all. Many of us have been watching these demonstrations of heads, arms, hips and knee motions since we turned to the specialist sports channels a quarter of a century back, continue to watch and study, but in truth are none the wiser though will continue to look in, a little envious of the lifelong fans of the game who play and understand.

For many years David Livingstone was the front for the SKY coverage, as suitable as one could be for the post, serious when it was appropriate to be but ably assisted by being witty. He built up a great tune with Butch Harmon whose humor was on the same wave.

It came as a surprise when Livingstone retired, though many of us not in the loop probably considered him to be younger than he really was with what appeared to be a full head of real hair.

The SKY team were the poorer for the departing of both Livingstone and Harmon but the coverage remains very, very good, still the best of all. They also seem to have successfully tackled the annoyance of US television's interlude every few minutes schedule which once led Livingstone to apologising to viewers for their enjoyment of the adverts being spoilt by the golf. 

This has been achieved by having the SKY team on site at an increased number of US PGA Tour tournaments, while at other times gaining access to the American cameras during their breaks.

All in all, the presentation is something that racing should be striving to equal, particularly when broadcast on terrestrial television where the opportunities exist to pull in new viewers.

If the trashy 'social stable' can be likened to the outdoor centres on the range that SKY erect at the major tournaments, then the first no doubt has the effect of turning away any would be potential genuine new fans to racing, while the second may even tempt one to browse through golf equipment on the web.

With golf coverage the interviews with the players run far smoother with direct answers more forthcoming despite an outward impression that there is some pussyfooting going on, particularly with the mega stars.

Horse racing is hampered here in the sense that interviews commonly involve jockeys and trainers being asked to assess the chance of animals that the listening audience may be gambling on. A sitting on the fence approach is therefore understandable in the present climate.

Golf is also one of the most relevant sports for statistics in the sense that those provided are as accurate as any sport out there. We know that 'strokes gained tee to green ' or 'strokes gained putting ', or the even more zoned in categories, which exist aplenty, such as ' approaches from 175- 200 yards ', are clear and indisputable while statistics in certain areas of racing, particularly those involving times, have a wide scope for error with even distances covered being open to interpretation.

Then there is the aspect of racing that makes the sport more difficult to broadcast than the  'flowing sports', in the sense that it comprises of a catalogue of separate events, short in timespan as opposed to one golf tournament, cricket or football match.

With golf, and to an extent cricket, live pictures alone are sometimes the best narrator provided that the commentary team are able to recognise when silence is appropriate and allow the audience to take in the visuals.

The problem with racing is that while it needs race commentaries, which to be fair are of a competent standard across the board, there is too much filler between contests. Often, you feel the sport would be better served by pictures of proceedings in the paddock with updated betting shows popping up on the screen but without any input from the presentation team.

With the future of the on course betting ring in jeopardy, you are already looking at one facet of the TV coverage first introduced when John McCririck joined ITV come C4, disappearing. They can just show updated national odds in silence, no doubt compiled by similar method as they have been during the 2020 crisis.

There is certainly no need for things to be rammed down the audiences throat. When the BBC produced a second to none racing production in the 1970s and 1980's with a small in numbers team, Jimmy Lindley alone could take you through the pre race build up in a detailed but non intrusive manner.

Sadly, racing is unlikely to return to being presented in this relaxed manner ever again. One of the reasons would be the widely held perception that modern viewers prefer noisey, continuous prattle, no matter how inane. But this is a perception open to question as golf has not chosen this route and is clearly doing very well thank you.

image in public domain.

A TOPIC NOT UP FOR DISCUSSION

If you were compiling an English language module and needed examples to define the meaning of the expression, ' knowing what side your bread is buttered on ', then you would be spoilt for choice by concentrating on the British horse racing industry.

For every single debate aired on the subject of the financial crisis hitting the sport this year has contained a critical missing link. It's obvious to racing fans, maybe not so to casual viewers - it is of course the fact that UK racing, along with Irish racing, do not have the safety net of an off course pari mutuel monopoly.

No one employed in the media wing of the industry will touch on the subject, they know the buttered side is much preferable and would risk being metaphorically launched out of the window of racing's house if they raised subject that is very relevant to the crisis.

Bookmakers sponsor racing professionals, employ them in certain capacities, are the lifeblood of some racing publications through the advertising revenue, and have influence over racing television broadcasts. Some say racing needs Barry Hearn - well he too would not dare raise this taboo subject for his entrepreneurship in other sports has been helped by him initiating sponsorship deals with major bookmakers which is fine for sports that are neither intertwined with gambling and don't need mass numbers to place bets on it for survival, but not for racing.

Racing is unique in that it is a sport that could not continue without gambling. The major venues and cult courses could last for an indefinite amount of time on summer crowds who drink and spend without too much interest in the fare on show, but what happens when other forms of festival entertainment in parks nearby prove the new flavor of the day, with a day at the races being seen as something to move on along from and on to something more in vogue. Some day this will happen  - though by the time a more measured and proportional approach to the plague is put into motion, the choice of racing venues may have shrunk.

A rather stressed looking Martin Cruddace of Arena Racing was interviewed at Doncaster about the dilemma. He expressed gratitude to the bookmarking industry, without which he reminded us, there would be no contributions through the levy to the prize money coffers. Well, though he will realise more than most how well better off the sport would have been with an off course pari mutuel monopoly he too would not choose butterless bread or Stork, as his corporation's showcase days have major bookmaker sponsorship.

What gets one tickled about all this is that trainers, owners and jockeys undertook strike action over what they saw as appallingly low levels of prize money at the Arena venues long before Covid 19 had been heard of. And it is worth considering that as the world is still officially suffering from this plague, horse racing in Australia, North America and France have healthier prize money levels right now than UK did in the pre- Covid 19 era.

Many in racing could be upping sticks and scarpering. The most powerful and influential people in the sport could carry on business as usual in the States and Australasia, so strong are their established and continual developing interests are in those parts of the globe. While in Europe, France would be the focal point for the sport.

In fact France is the safest long term location to represent the sport in Europe. It's demonstrating how it can continue to sustain prize money at respectable levels which should of course be expected as apart from just a handful of days each year, their racecourses are empty. The UK would be in the same position if off course bookmakers had not been legalised here over fifty years back - but no one with a voice in the sport is allowed to say this.

It would be fitting for France to be the main representative of the sport in Europe. It is the country that draws in the highest number of tourists on the whole globe, being the citadel for cultural class and quality from Monaco to the Alps. It blows Spain out of the water who only makes it to number two on the world tourist list because it pulls in every dimwit who thinks it's classy to lie on a crowded beach in baking sun all day long.

So imagining a world where Australia and America are the leaders in horse racing, with France being the only country in Europe where the sport is run on a large scale professional basis, racing fans here might even choose to concentrate on the sport's rich, in depth history, rather than continuing to follow it in real time.

Seeing there are people who concentrate the main part of their lives in becoming authorities on subjects such as The Great Exhibition, The Six Day War, or Pre- Raphaelite art, then there is enough subject matter in horse racing to spend many, many lifetimes to become immersed in.

Downsizing will happen first - then it will be a case of whether it can survive. That is the most realistic outlook and we have to face up to it.

image from Guide du Pari

NEARING MELTDOWN

Even those of us who are adamant that any single month of the 1970's offered more in music quality than any whole single year thereafter, may not have felt inclined to listen yet to Bowie's Blackstar album, released just days before the superstar's death

His passing was reported on the televised news with clips of a video from Lazarus, a gloomy track from the album showing the singer lying in bed with bandages covering his face. The underlying message was a foreboding one and given the state that the UK racing industry finds itself in at the moment, it would be fitting for the sport to be broadcast in black and white to augment the somber overtone, with the presenters    voice levels and vocabulary befitting the dread felt both by those employed from within, and those contributing or supportive from the outside.

As the weeks pass, the genuine tales of woe increase. Many wonder how they can survive in the industry for much longer, some have already packed their bags and left, trainers and owners included. Courses are in trouble too; something that really hits home when you learn what is happening at Goodwood, a venue which you would class as one of the untouchables.

It's a curious saga involving an appeal for help from the Duke of Richmond, the owner of the Goodwood estate. He has asked annual members of his picturesque racecourse to consider gifting the annual fee they have paid for 2020 to assist in the finanancial well being of the the business. In return, kind members will be honoured by having their name imprinted on a new walkway being built. 

I've no idea how much of the Duke's reputed 225 million fortune is tied up in fixtures on the estate but you'd have to think there is enough movable, untied money to make the total collective amount of all annual members consenting to wavering the money paid for their 2020 badges, merely the equivalent of spare change from his back pocket. 

No previous like for like example comes to mind in this sport of a similar 'appeal'. On the audacity front, there was the Grand National Appeal Fund set up by Lord Vestey in the early 1980's in an attempt to save what was still then a truly magnificent event. The 7 million needed then was indeed spare change from the amount the Vestey family had avoided parting with through a tax loophole. 

This also brings to light an ironic situation whereby in asking the most committed paying patrons to help ease a financial shortfall, they are playing a part in attracting runners carrying the colours of some owners who will be wealthy tax exiles. 

As for names inscribed on a walkway - that is a really odd notion and even those who may be persuaded to forego the return of the money they parted with may be inclined to request their name is left off  'Mugs Walkway'. Firstly, commemorative objects surely should be sparingly put in place and only when it has been agreed upon that the subject or subjects are worthy of having their name honoured as opposed to being part of a trashy scheme used as an incentive to make the racecourse a quick buck. 

Secondly, are the names going to remain permanently?  For the few, or who knows maybe the many, who fancy going along with this daft project may eventually come to view their involvement akin to an unwanted tattoo bearing the name of a one hit wonder singer such as Harpo.

And returning to the broadcasting of racing, the fact that SKY have terminated the employment of three of it's football pundits whose positions seemed as safe as houses, could be an indicator that similar cutbacks could be applied amongst the bloated TV racing teams as by comparison football will get back on its feet much quicker and be much nearer to its norm than UK horse racing, which could well be in bits and indeed may never be the same again. 

Mind you, one would expect that many of the ITV racing team in particular, have less reliance on their income from their roles which would be considerably less than the SKY footy pundits were being paid. It certainly would be safe to assume that over half of the team see the income as a top up to what they earn in roles away from the camera.

There are numerous intertwined issues across the board in UK and Irish racing too, all coming to surface and being far more threatening than if the sport had gone down an alternative pathway in securing it's long term funding half a century back.

If the clock could be turned back to the 1960's, the old portheads would have been replaced by smarter people and we'd have put an Australian style system in place, with off course betting monopolised by the Tote. But they were outwitted by representatives of the bookmaking industry who continue to have influence over the way the sport is reported, with sponsorships, along with adverts in the specialist racing publications, being the lifeblood of continued existence for many.

It's been long lamented in many quarters that the wrong direction was taken but never before will the full, damaging consequences be apparent as they will be soon, when everyone realises just how deep in the mire the sport is.

It can be likened to a bomb with a timer set to go off over five decades on, with the sport initially carrying on blissfully unaware, assured that lower prize money was offset by the established tradition of our programme.

That the whole show would one day implode could not have been contemplated the week when Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars album was released in the first week of June in 1972. Roberto won the Derby and Alice Cooper released his signature School's Out album all within the same seven day period, all just three weeks after the Stones had released their celebrated Exile On Main Street album. 

Image from Wikipedia