Sea the stars lost to the general public?

Sorry, my point wasn't whether you care or whether it matters or such, but rather what it means.

While many would be shocked that Snooker may be more popular than racing, or even shocked that racing's popularity is ever spiraling down. But what should we expect when the attitude, and the behaviour is so contrary?

In this case, when I point out that the pro journalists are gone, you quip good riddance. When I point out that you no longer promote the sport on TV, again you quip 'meanlingless'.

Happily then, nothing is amiss, although, there is only so far you can take the 'brain game' by treating your fans like fools.

If all it took was a free lunch or two....we should lay on the catering, and then some.

jack dash the daily newspapers journs in this country are employed by phum and gold circle and tellycrap is contolled by phum and gold circle,..therein is the problem..look at some of the journos that work for them they dont know which side a horse craps out of and that applys to most who work at tellycrap

A West

My good friend JAP said to me a while ago, that much of the 'intrigue' of racing has gone, and that much of the interest in racing went with it. If they do get rid of bookmakers, the last salt will go and a "UK type' racing system will dwindle to nothing. (You example of when racing was fun, kind of needs the bookies to be there in force).

So perhaps we swapped intrigue for cleaner racing. But this is NOT a spectator sport. We don't sell tickets.

And you are 100% correct, unless you go to the races for the social connection or to watch your horse, it's as interesting as a morgue.

Those that think you can bring back the past have no clue. As for gambling, the oncourse player is blind and lost compared to an online player. In fact, the disadvantage being oncourse is now so vast, that if you go there, you clearly don't play...or at least don't play profitably.

jack most of the big punters have internet on their cell phones and have access to the online sites..nothing will ever beat seeing the horses saddled up walking around the parade ring and watching them go down to the start from a close range,,,tellycrap can never give you this huge advantage

Tellytrack couldn't give you that advantage even if they tried!!!!

The next "spin of the roulette ball" gets in the way. We have to cut to huntingdon to watch some arbitrary jumping race where more horses are harmed then done good by!!!

We can never win with them. I want a happy horse on a happy course with happy money falling out of the sky when my happy horse runs into the happy number 1 box......I have given up on fairy tales a long time ago.

We have no chance fighting the corporates anymore. We wither go along and do it for the love of the game or we switch to snooker or F1!!

Pirates,

I don't have the ability look at a bunch of well prepared horses and 'see' which of them will win. I have spent lots of time with some of the best judges and acknowledged experts and trainers, and as punters they are ordinary.

In fact, one of the best players I know has his money on most of the time before the horse gets to the track. And another is a successful player on UK racing from here.

I have realised that all the long term successful punters I know of have a style/method that they have mastered, and none of them (that I know of) needs to be at the parade ring.

Interestingly (well to me), though I'm in the Cape, my local centre is where I am least successful (and I have a theory on that), so the proximity factor works inversely for me - but we depart from the title of the thread.

jack dash, you are still on thread - racing has itself to blame in any country where it dithers.....no vision. How did Japan do it? - correct me if i am looking at it through rose tinted glasses but did they not harness it from two sides =
a)the love and passion through running programmes whereby the public were educated about the life of a racehorse, over a long period of time a horse was followed growing up, going through all the facets. THe public got attached to the foal - yearling - runner - breeding horse, and therefore laid the roots for 'product identification through emotion' and building the future punter/owner/breeder generation
b)cleaned up the image using technology to their benefit - microchipped horses, chips were scanned on time trials and horses feeding in their boxes, relevant info was/is made public - creating a transparent operation and making the participating punter feel safe and in a value for money environment, ensuring a current and future punter base. Much like Nike or any other big brand - if they kept on selling below par goods, customer confidence would fall.

not rocket science....

ps, i didnt see much press (high brow/low brow public press - not meaning computaform and The Sun - and those papers you would buy if you're in the know already) about StS or any big horses here in the UK...I can't see that even in the UK racing/racing press is addressing who is NOT BUYING THEIR PRODUCT....they keep addressing the existing customer only....

ps, how many of those graduates that were at the special racing day to introduce them to racing of late have returned????is there a follow-up plan for them?

In March, the BBC announced they would guarantee only 14 days' racing coverage over each of the next three years.

This week we learned that Downing Street ignored a 'Save BBC Racing' petition, backed by bookmaker Victor Chandler, which called for Gordon Brown to "ask the BBC to retain its current levels of horseracing coverage, as befits a public service broadcaster, and to reinstate the 15 days that it currently proposes to scrap from 2010."

The Government's response to the petition, which had 184,740 signatures, wasn't really a surprise. But it was clear.

"Responsibility for what is broadcast on BBC television and radio rests with the BBC, which is independent of the Government... detailed decisions on programme content and scheduling are matters for the BBC, reflecting its editorial independence," read the statement.

Victor Chandler, who led from the front, encouraging bookmakers and punters to join forces in signing the petition, was naturally left disappointed by the decision.

He said: "It appears the Government don't want to get involved and have instead pointed us back in the direction of the BBC where we already know we will get no joy.

"With my business hat on, this is not a problem. Football and other sports form a greater percentage of my business year-on-year, so this will only accelerate that movement in turnover away from racing.

"However, as a lover of horse racing this is very bad news. I remember in the 1970s watching Show Jumping every afternoon - and look where that sport is now!

"Terrestrial coverage is vital to bring in new blood to horse racing.

"The average age of my football customers is seventeen years younger than my racing customers, this shows how racing is already struggling to attract youngsters."

Ten years ago, the BBC covered 79 days of horseracing; this year it is 27.

The petition, which was presented to 10 Downing Street by Frankie Dettori and Sir Peter O'Sullevan in June, stated that the reduction in terrestrial exposure will hasten the contraction of the racing industry, jeopardising 20,000 full-time jobs and the racing industry tax contribution of £280 million a year.

Though saddened that the BBC coverage has been slashed, we have to face facts. No sport has a divine right to be broadcast on terrestrial TV and the digital era has changed things. Racing now has two dedicated channels, giving it wall-to-wall coverage which will hopefully be more accessible in the coming years with the analogue switch off.

We still have Channel 4 Racing each week, though it is understandable that many in the industry are not happy about paying the broadcaster to keep the sport on terrestrial TV. Expect more of the same in future.

However, despite washing its hands of the issue, Downing Street offered one piece of advice in their rebuff.

"The Government believes it is important that the Corporation is aware of the concerns of viewers and listeners, and anyone who wishes to raise their concerns over this issue can contact the BBC in various ways: via the website, www.bbc.co.uk , by telephone 03700 100 222, or write to BBC Complaints, PO Box 1922, Glasgow G2 3WT".