A Champion Days Racing

Ignoring the little matter of Christophe Soumillon’s whip ban, more of that anon, there can be little doubt that the first British Champions Day at Ascot can justifiably claim to have lived up to its billing of “The Greatest Show On Turf”

Of course the organisers had a little outside help in that the weather God’s were incredibly kind and there was the presence of arguably the greatest horse of all time, Frankel.

However even the most determined Newmarketphile, even the most cynical sceptic must accept that yesterday went really well and once again Ascot proved itself the perfect venue of a major race meeting.

Rod Street and his team must be justifiably proud of the way the day turned out, although they must also be cursing the BHA in terms of the timing of the introduction of the new whip rules.

Frankel crossing the line

The balance of the days racing was good, although it may be worth considering a 45 minute gap between the two feature races as it seemed we were thrown into the Champion Stakes all too soon after Frankel’s impressive victory in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

My biggest concern as the day approached was the on course presentation, my fear were unfounded. Back in August I was very critical of Ascot’s use of Matt Chapman’s on Shergar Cup day and I was equally worried when I heard he was to front the on-course presentation for Champions Day.

Those of you who read my blog last week will recall my reservations, although they were tempered with the comment that if anybody could pull it off then Matt could and pull it off he did.

I am happy to admit I was wrong and I believe Matt managed to get it right on the button. OK there were a couple of occasions when I feared his natural exuberance may have gotten the better of him but no he was good.  Robert Cowell was also a good choice as the straight man to Matt.

My only question about the presentation team was the “value” added by Amanda Davies and I still cannot help but feel she was included as the “token totty”.

I must admit I also had slight concerns about the use of Mike Vince for the on-course commentary, not least because Mike gets very little live racecourse commentary options.

Speaking to Mike beforehand, and I’m sure he will not mind me saying this, he was understandably nervous, especially by the final 29 runner contest. Mike was not helped by the fact, with coverage by BBC TV and radio as well as the Racetech commentator, none of the “official” commentary boxes were available and he had to make do with a makeshift position short of the finishing line.

Because of his makeshift position he did not have full use of the multiple camera shots the other commentators had.

In the circumstances Mike did very well indeed, his calls for the Championship races were absolutely fine and he was able to link in with the presentation team.

He also made a very good job of the final contest, considering the pictures and angles he had to work from and he should be rightly pleased with his afternoons work.

The only real gripe I would have about the presentation is it seemed to take precedence over the judge announcing the details of the result. On more than one occasion we had to wait for the winning distances and race times until after a winner had been “called back in”. It may sound insignificant but those details are important and need to be disseminated as quickly as possible, but that is a minor gripe in the scheme of things.

Ascot, once again, proved more than capable of hosting a major international meeting and it is certainly a more “user friendly” venue than Newmarket.

Much as I love Ascot I do think consideration should be given to alternating the meeting between the north and south, if only to give racegoers based in the north the opportunity to watch such high class racing live. Although, selfishly, I am more than happy if it does permanently reside at Ascot.

One thing that struck me yesterday was how popular the parade ring was. There may have been just over 26,749 at Ascot yesterday but the numbers around the parade ring were akin to those seen at the Royal Ascot where the total numbers are far higher.

Of course for all the positives and plaudits of the day, as well as the high class racing, the day was overshadowed by the ban and withholding of fees for Christophe Soumillion following his victory on Cirrus Des Aigles in the Champion Stakes.

Much has been written about the new whip rules in the last week and it is clear some compromise needs to be reached. So to save the egos getting in the way here is the solution.

There is nothing fundamentally wrong with the new rules so a “count” should remain in place, whether the current limit is correct is a moot point, we have not had any three mile slogs in the mud since their introduction. Retain the “count” but remove the final furlong restriction as it is abundantly clear it is difficult for the riders to judge when they have crossed the furlong marker.

The penalties need to be effective but it is clear the new penalties are too draconian for minor infringements. I would therefore retain the ban guidelines as they are now but would only introduce the withholding of fees and prize money for serious or repeated breaches. By serious I mean where the number of hits exceeds the limit by 50% or more (rounded up) or where a rider has a third breach in a rolling 12 month period.

Finally, Paul Roy should do the decent thing and resign. He has lost what little remaining credibility he may have had and, frankly his performance on RUK yesterday afternoon was an embarrassment.      

My coverage of British Champions Day

Sublime Cartmel and Rod Street

By all logical measures I should abhor Cartmel racecourse.

Set in the middle of nowhere, accessible only by single track country roads and with awful viewing of the racing it seemingly has little going for it. Certainly if Cartmel racecourse did not already exist and it applied to a licence to operate it would quickly be shown the door by the BHA – for heaven’s sake it still has dry stone walls along the edge of the track?

Yet Cartmel is a course I adore and one, all being well, I will visit again and again for many years to come.

With years of practice the “issues” have been addressed. There is an effective one-way traffic management system in place which means you will not meet oncoming traffic in the country lanes. Indeed, even after racing, the system is so efficient you will be very unlucky to encounter any traffic issues when leaving.

Yes viewing is poor but, probably uniquely at any British racecourse, punters line the rails of the entire course and are able to get close to the action. Many arrive early just to be able to park-up by the running rails. There is always the big screen and Iain MacKenzie, who commentates at most Cartmel meetings, does adjust his commentating style to provide a more descriptive account of what is happening.

However Cartmel has that certain something extra. The setting is sublime, set in a lovely village. The local village store, renowned for their Cartmel Sticky Toffee Puddings (although I prefer the Sticky Ginger Pudding), also have the ideal supplies for the picnic lunches and barbecues which predominate at the course.

Indeed at last week’s meeting there was even a prize for the best barbecue.

The atmosphere is magical, very informal, no airs and graces, like a super point-to-point meeting. The staff are friendly, you get the impression the entire population of the village (apart from those working in the shop and pubs) are at the racecourse to make your day all the more enjoyable.

You won’t find many fearsome jobsworth’s at Cartmel, indeed what looks like organised chaos is actually a very well run, efficient operation.

Last Thursday I bumped into ATR’s Robert Cooper, making his first ever visit to the track. His reaction to the place “I’m smitten” and that is the reaction of most who visit this Cumbrian idyll.

From a working perspective it is not the easiest course, race reading has to be done from the television and the Press Room serves as the Groundsman’s hideaway the remainder of the year and on a hot sunny day it is like the black hole of Calcutta – but you know what I don’t care one little bit.

If you have never been to Cartmel you will not realise what you are missing out on – visit once and I am quite certain that, like me, you will want to return again and again and again. I also have a strong feeling I shall be bumping into Robert Cooper there some time in the future as well.

I have given Rod Street of Racing For Change (RfC) a great deal of stick over the past year or so about some of the initiatives from RfC. However it is only right to give credit where credit is due.

Rod recently took questions from members of The Racing Forum and the frank and full answers he gave to the questions, most of which were critical of Rod and RfC, were most enlightening and I must admit the respect I have for Rod increased dramatically from what I read.

(A link to the Q&A session can be found at the bottom of this page)

Indeed he has almost won me round to what RfC is doing, it has certainly giving me a greater insight into the aims of RfC – it may not go amiss if RfC were to include some of the Q&A’s in their next news sheet.

OK I still have some doubts.

I still believe they were very lucky the semi-finals of The Filly Factor did not go pear shape (by the way the final is at Ascot this coming Sunday).

I also have reservations about Champions Day, although not for the reasons given by many.

I have no problems with the meeting moving from Newmarket to Ascot as Ascot is far better able to stage such a big meeting.

My two main concerns are around what seems to be the excessive level of prize money, which seems hard to justify in the current climate.

My biggest concern, however, is the impact on the meeting that already exists and serves the function of the perfect end to the season – namely Longchamp’s Arc meeting.

For me that meeting is the climax to the European Flat season. With the Sunday seeing six Group One races over most of the main distances, culminating in the Arc itself. It would be a crying shame if the proposed new Champions Day took any of the quality or glamour away from Longchamp.

Here is the link to the Q&A session on The Racing Forum     Rod Street Q&A            

An Open Letter To Rod Street

Dear Rod,

I am writing this letter to ask you to reconsider the format of the semi-finals of The Filly Factor and, in the process, avoid a potentially embarrassing situation.

Now if I am not mistaken the aim of The Filly Factor is to try and find a female commentator to break into what is exclusively a male domain and to also promote the cause of women in a male dominated arena.

Whilst there may be debate in some quarters concerning the suitability of the timbre of some women’s voices, that does not concern me here. The aims are laudable and there is no reason why there should be a female commentator, so long as the criteria for selection is to the same exacting criteria currently used for male commentators.

My genuine concern is this weekend’s semi-finals, as they are currently proposed, will not only undermine what is being set out to be achieved, it will actually set back the cause of female commentators.

I was at Newbury races yesterday afternoon when three of the semi-finalists were having a training day. As part of the day they were allowed to share the commentary of a charity race at the end of the card. Now I do not normally remain behind for such novelty races but yesterday I made an exception.

To be brutally frank the efforts of all three were embarrassing and cringe worthy. 

One of the three is an experienced broadcaster and even she was struggling to identify runners in an eight runner race.

Now I am not criticising the ladies taking part, they are all doing their best but commentating on a horse race is not a skill acquired overnight, It takes plenty of time and practice, not a couple of afternoons watching a professional commentator.

Yet these ladies are being asked to provide a racecourse commentary, in public, this weekend when they clearly are not ready for it. These brave ladies run the risk of humiliation and embarrassment, through no fault of their own, for the sake of a competition.

By all means go ahead with the semi-finals but with their commentaries being kept on a closed loop, rather than being broadcast over the PA on course. That way, should any of the ladies freeze or make errors they will not be exposed to public scrutiny, humiliation or ridicule. The two winners can then undergo some intense training before the final in July and the final in July should only go ahead if the finalists are of sufficient quality.

They are not even being helped by the venues. At Bath there is no second commentary position and even yesterday afternoon there were negotiations in progress to try and find a suitable commentary position for the finalists. In the case of Doncaster it is known to be a very difficult course from a commentary perspective and couple that with the usual large fields it again puts additional, unnecessary, pressure on the participants.

I appreciate I have only heard three of the eight in action but is is worrying the three I have heard are the ones considered to be the front runners.

Also has anybody considered the public reaction to these commentaries? Top price tickets at Doncaster on Sunday are £32. How would you feel, if having paid that amount of money,  you then had to listen to a “commentary” which was not fluent and from which it would be very difficult to actually follow what is happening – if it were me I would  be demanding my money back.  

For everyones sake please reconsider what is planned this weekend.

Regards

Paul

Rod Street has responded to my letter and it can be found at  http://bit.ly/hMiuJ9