FIELD SIZE ISSUES AT THE CAPE

Race-track operators, Phumelela pulled the plug on a poorly supported Durbanville meeting last week, yet again raising concerns about the viability of staging horse races given dwindling Western Cape field sizes.

The target is 12 runner fields, but some Durbanville events were struggling to attract anything close to that number in February. The country course is notoriously biased towards horses racing handy and making an early run – tactics easier to execute from a low draw. The undulating surface has also been very firm through a bone-dry spell, with many horses getting jarred during running. Those reasons may explain the reluctance of trainers to engage their horses at Durbanville, during a quieter, transitional time for Cape racing after the Summer festivals.

The problem runs deeper than simply blaming an “unfair” venue though. It’s pertinent to question if there are actually enough racehorses to fill cards ? Census figures for the local horse population hover at approximately 1400 in the Western Cape. Of these, around half are youngsters that patient connections will only run at a later stage. During March, there is also an annual exodus of better class horses to KZN. The precise number varies from year to year, but 120 migrants would be a fair estimate.

About 50% of the remaining +- 600 are recovering from injuries or resting off track. Data from the American Jockey Club indicates that fickle modern race horses now average only six runs per annum, down from eight times per year in the early 90’s, and SA stats are not much different. So, that leaves only about 300 horses that are physically capable of competing right now in the Cape, trying to fill twice- weekly, eight race programs.

The majority of these eligible runners belong to a few apex stables that pick the best spots for their horses to keep patrons happy. Looking at these numbers and taking the shrinking of the horse population plus the lop-sided trainer situation at the Cape into account, it’s doubtful that 64 + races per month will be fully subscribed.

Some in the industry are now reconciled to losing meetings, and even support downsizing by getting rid of dud facilities. Others fear serious consequences for those whose racing livelihood depends on regular work, and see course closures as reducing opportunities for horses that prefer a particular type of track or surface.

The local Cape scene has its own peculiarities, but these evolving issues play themselves out in other countries too. Writing in the Daily Racing Form about racing’s economic indicators from 1989 till 2015, based on data released by the Jockey Club in America, Steven Crist summarised the main statistical trends, “Put them all together, and the very broad sum is that with roughly half as many horses making fewer starts in half as many races, total purses and total handle have basically been flat, meaning handle per race and purses per race have nearly doubled. An optimist would say that racing has properly downsized itself and that purses and handle are still robust. A pessimist would say that almost half the game has simply disappeared.”

 

Owners, trainers, operators and punters have different agendas which makes achieving consensus elusive. Local owners have seen stakes diminish in real terms, and dream they could grow back to the point where it makes rational financial sense to own a thoroughbred. Trainers are private business professionals who justifiably want to run their stables as successfully as possible and prosper. Companies like JSE listed Phumelela Gaming and Leisure are profit driven, so they understandably try contain operating costs and are in favour of bigger fields. This generally leads to heavier betting turnovers which sustain the whole show.

Yet, battered punters, already being soaked with a 25% takeout tax, are not thrilled at betting their hard earned cash on a diminished product. Short fields make for unexciting exotic wagering – conversely trying to pick the least slow in 16 runner low grade handicaps where infirm battlers take turns beating each other is also not the answer – and may actually alienate discerning lovers of the “brain game.”

“We’ve got to find a solution…” said a concerned Carol Bass, speaking not only on behalf of Bass Racing, but for the entire industry. She felt that better communication is needed between trainers and programming officials to ensure that suitable races are carded to suit the requirements of a shifting horse population.

Experienced Cape trainer Greg Ennion expressed similar sentiments, just more forcibly – and claimed it was misguided to blame trainers. “The program is at fault. I have middle distance Maidens ready to run now, but suitable races are only scheduled for them in April.” He sees no point in horses under his care idling in stables, indeed Ennion wants them to run whenever feasible, “It’s just not viable training only for the fees – there is not enough in it after costs, so I train for the stakes.”

Getting the program “right” and keeping everybody satisfied may be a pipedream. Internationally renowned trainer, Mike de Kock, who always has the greater good of the racing game at heart and would love to see SA racing thrive again, came up with this programming suggestion during an informal chat.

“How about rotating every three weeks starting with a sprinters card, an entire meeting for milers, then another for middle- to- longer distance runners ? Just keep repeating that at the same three week interval. That way everybody will know what lies ahead and can plan for their different types of runners over each main distance category. It is also a punter-friendly solution, making race-reading and handicapping easier if all races on the day are run over a similar distance, obviously at a range of class levels.”

Even that proposal may need fine-tuning, but it represents the sort of creative thinking needed to resurrect things. A willingness by staunch racing supporters to explore workable solutions together, can secure a sustainable future for South African racing, despite the very real challenges it faces.

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