Pick up any racing calendar, no matter the year, turn a few pages and you will soon find yourself shaking your head, writes Jonny Turner.
Even looking at this race week’s racing would be a good place to start. After just two harness meetings in nine weeks in Otago, suddenly there are two meetings in three days.
That makes no sense.
Cromwell’s meeting on Sunday is only the second thoroughbred meeting in the province in more than six weeks.
Sure, both codes have had New Zealand Cup week by that time, but that provides opportunities for a very limited number of horses.
Surely a more consistent approach to race programming would be better for everyone — more consistent opportunities for people to race their horses, bet on horses and attend the races.
The setting of the calendar is a tricky process, but I think there is enough to gain by challenging some of the patterns of Southern dates to make it worthwhile.
More consistent opportunities are needed for thoroughbreds, especially. Obviously there are exceptions to the idea we must have consistently spread racing. Back-to-back Christmas meetings and other public holiday carnivalsare an essential part of the racing year.
If racing in our area is going to be run in short, sharp spurts, rather than spread evenly, then I say let there be more carnivals — more two- or three-day meetings at the same track. It is another avenue for opportunity.
Thursday-Sunday or Friday-Sunday meetings seem to work everywhere else in New Zealand, but are seldom seen in the South.
They can lure trainers to the West Coast, Manawatu and Nelson for their carnivals, so why not to Forbury Park, Wingatui or Oamaru?
Why not expand the Central Otago racing circuit? Why not have two-day meetings at Omakau or Cromwell or Roxburgh in February? The people are there: in fact there are more and more people coming to the area, yet they have no regular racing.
Those places have facilities that are maintained year round that sit empty for about 360 days of the year. Smarter programming could also include the flexibility for clubs to move racedays that clash with major events.
This year the Harness Jewels had to compete with a Super Rugby final being played the same day, just up the road. There are hundreds more examples that relate to more local and low-key meetings having to clash with major events.
Why not have contingencies in place to avoid these situations? Why not move a raceday to a Sunday if it clashes with a concert or a rugby game or a major event on the Saturday. Why doesn’t racing dare to dream when it comes to programming? Plenty of people do when they breed their mares and hope to produce a champion.
Let me know what you think.
Happy trails
