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Old 3 Jul 2007, 07:30 (Ref:1953081)   #1
andy97
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andy97 should be qualifying in the top 10 on the gridandy97 should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
Horse Racing Vs Motor Racing

Went to the races on Sunday at Uttoxeter as a guest of a friend. Never been before and not really interested in things with just 1 hp but it was free entrance & a hospitality box too. Apparently it was the "Summer National" & the place was packed, despite the recent weather & the weather forecast. However, I was told that the crowd was down on expectation. To be honest, I thought that it was all very dull although the drink was good and some of the stable girls were attractive. Not much seemed to happen on track & there were big gaps between races. Why then, does the gee gees attract the crowds and motor racing doesn't?

I asked a couple of fellow guests what they thought of going to the motor racing & they said that they thought that motor racing was boring, not much happens, no overtaking & too noisy. Trouble was that only a couple of these people had actually been to a race meeting - most of them based their opinions on F1 & none of them had even watched the Touring Cars on TV. Of those that had been to a race meeting, they complained that the facilities were rubbish, it wasn't family friendly, it was too noisy (again), too many gaps between races, and it was boring.

I can't reconcile the difference between the gaps between races and not much going on that I observed at horse racing and the gaps between races and more action at the average clubby than in awhole season of F1.

Hmmm. The thing was that some of the people I was talking to weren't even horse racing fans, as such, they were just going along for a day out. And for the average race goer, at £19 per head entrance fee, it wasn't even a particularly cheap day out. What was clear, though, was that the facilities were good and the the place looked quite smart with good quality staff, food stalls, bars, toilets, covered stands and large TV screens.

Perhaps, also, horse race goers feel more involved because thet can bet on a particular horse & therefore feel connected to the action.

Conclusion to all of this? F1 is doing national level motor sport no favours, good facilities (inc large TV screens and smart helpful satff) are absolutely essential and there needs to be some way of connecting the race goers with the drivers - even at club or national level.
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 10:06 (Ref:1953238)   #2
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andy97 should be qualifying in the top 10 on the gridandy97 should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
And another conclusion - the noise that all us petrol heads like is a disincentive to many more casual potential race goers
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 10:43 (Ref:1953283)   #3
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Rockmunky should be qualifying in the top 10 on the gridRockmunky should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
Most of the people I talk to about motorsport base nearly all of their opinions on F1, which, really, isn't the best advertisement for motorsport.
I agree completely.
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 10:49 (Ref:1953292)   #4
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Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!
One great big difference that you have failed to highlight, on course betting, thats the attraction with horse racing. I know it has been tried with motorsport but I don't think it really works the same somehow. I mean you can go to the paddock at a horse race and if you know what you are doing or think you do can study the creature on the day and if it looks fit and fisesty place a bet, if not bet on something else but in motorsport there is no real way of knowing who is on form that day not at club level anyhow and just by looking at the car, I have seen some right old nails that would grace a banger race really going well come the race so how do you base your form for a bet. Then of course it would also be wide open to abuse, cheating and sandbagging if betting was involved even worse than a horse race.

I don't think the other televised stuff, the awful BTCC does us any favours either I cannot be bothered to even watch it on TV and would not cross the road to see it live and I'm a motorsport fan or supposed to be, they killed it the day they allowed spoilers etc!

Last edited by Al Weyman; 3 Jul 2007 at 10:58.
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 10:49 (Ref:1953294)   #5
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The most important reason that people go to watch the horse racing is betting.

Only a tiny proportion go for any other reason.
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 13:06 (Ref:1953392)   #6
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andy97 should be qualifying in the top 10 on the gridandy97 should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
Al, if you read the post again, you'll find that I did mention betting!

I agree that losing money seems to be an attraction for the horse racing set but in "my" box we just had a simple sweepstake between ourselves as everyone admitted that the betting was confusing (and probably rigged!). On the evidence of my one day at the races I actually think that apart from the hard core, the vast majority just go for a "good day out". Sure, they'll have abet when they get there but I don't think they go for the bet.

That said, I guess that there's an unpredictable element to horse racing so the winner can come from anywhere, whereas in our sport the winner is likely to come from the front row or two of the grid.

Last edited by andy97; 3 Jul 2007 at 13:10.
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 18:36 (Ref:1953611)   #7
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Tainan should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
At Brands on Sunday they had one of the suites in the MSV centre (outside Clark Curve) open to the public at £8 / head - a great idea for the casual spectator who wants some comfort and a convenient bar.
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 19:15 (Ref:1953646)   #8
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Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!
Maybe do away with qualifing and draw grid positions from a hat! :-)
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 19:40 (Ref:1953670)   #9
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bdwoody should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
Al you may be onto some thing there but the problem i see with out of the hat grid positions is ,if say you with a big v8 and fairly quick drew last then some one would argue that it is not safe to have the quicker guys at the back. also doing away with qualy we would lose the chance to familiarise ourselfs with the track especially if you had not raced there before. solution: 15 mins qualy then top 10 draw grids then the next 10 and so on .this way quick guys are still near the front and all the better racing , what do ya think?
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 20:11 (Ref:1953682)   #10
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Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!Al Weyman has a real shot at the podium!
Yeah that would be an idea, we discussed something similiar in the ModProds years ago but never came to nought maybe something to do with the MSA's criteria for running a meeting or whatever.
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Old 3 Jul 2007, 20:35 (Ref:1953700)   #11
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Originally Posted by andy97
Why then, does the gee gees attract the crowds and motor racing doesn't?
Because although your average bookies smells similar to the inside of an ashtray and attracts patrons that look as though they should be living in a bus shelter, horse racing is seen as posh and/or snobby, thereby attracting the hooray Henry and Henrietta's who go to be seen and spend the day in the beer tent getting hammered and not watching any of the racing. People go to the races simply because they think they should, it's a fashion trend. And if you think team tactics in F1 are a little shady at times, you'd probably be very surprised at the level of fixing and cheating in horse racing, it's rife.
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Old 4 Jul 2007, 07:01 (Ref:1953914)   #12
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zefarelly has a real shot at the podium!zefarelly has a real shot at the podium!zefarelly has a real shot at the podium!zefarelly has a real shot at the podium!
I took part in the AIntree Festival in Nov 2004, I can safely say horses and cars don't mix, which is fine by me I hate nags.

The only race meetings thats attract corporate ****heads and that kind of punter are Goodwood, F1 etc, but they're the only ones to offer decent food/drink,comfort levels etc, albeit at a ludicrous price

betting makes a big difference, I'm sure, theres plenty of idiots who like to waste hard earnt on an expensive day out and compound it by keeping the Bookies in sheepskin and Jags!
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