My first point is a lot of peope complain about the coverage NBC, and now ESPN, of the breeders cup races. For the person that has knowledge of racing, their coverage seems pretty basic. One needs to keep in mind they are talking to the sports fan that generally has very little knowledge of horse racing.
As been mentioned before, I would like to see more of the horses in the paddock, post parade, etc. Unfortunately, the coverage of the BC, and TC races are geared towards watchers that want to watch what I call the, "Kleenex" or human interest stories. I reckon that is what the veiwing public wants to see, so be it. I for one, generally don't pay attention to what is being said leading up to the races. The one exception is when "Muttonchops" is on the air. I like to listen to what he has to say, not neccessarily for his insights, but for entertainment value.
Now on to the point I would really like to make about getting folks out to the races!! We should not rely on the NTRA, or any other orgs. to do the work for us.[i][u] How about WE, as owner, trainers, and fans work on getting people out to the track.
I strongly feel we need to get the public intimately involved in horse racing. Here are a few things I must ask of the people on this forum.
Do you discuss horse racing with friends, family and co-workers? Also do you talk about racing with anyone you might have a casual contact with? Such as a the bank teller cashing your check, the barista that pours your coffee, or anyone that you may come into a casual conversation with??
If you can get a persons interest in racing, seal the deal and invite them out to the races. Once you get them out to the races, don't just get them out there and then bury your face in the DRF and ignore them. Give them a tutorial on the PP's. If a Dumb S**t like me can make the PP's understandable to someone, you can too.
Get them started on making simple mutual bets to start. You can even fall own your sword like I have done seveal times and have them give you $20 to bet on, and tell them you will cover that $20 if they lose it. Hell, it is only a $20, and if you do your job right, you can turn that $20 into something bigger. Just put a fiver to place or show on a mortal lock and watch the excitement on their faces when you bring em back seven or eight bucks!! Not a big deal to a degenerate gambler like me, (or you
) but it is to a non horse player.
Now, as an owner, have you ever invited someone to the backside to get up close and personal with a horse you own? The look on a persons face when they are able to feed a mint, (especially a child) to a real race horse that they have seen run is priceless!!!! Of course, a well behaved child is better than some brat!!!
If you have a horse running, make darned good and sure you let your friends know. Do you know how exciting it is for someone to get their picture taken in the winners circle?? It is still exciting for me to get my pic taken with a winner. If after all these years I still get a tingle, what do you think it would mean to the newbie to get into the winners circle?
This has been a long rant for me, and I hope everyone will overlook my grammer and spelling errors. (I am too damned tired to proofread my comments)
I hope I havent ruffled to many feathers with my late night rant.
All the best,
Shergar
