(Ticket to Ride: The Beatles have a tribute act at Haydock Park races)
Racing goes down like a 'Yellow Submarine'
Saturday night, sunshine and racing at Haydock Park...what more could anyone want? But for a percentage of racegoers at last night's flat racing meeting Saturday night still means "Let's get hammered...just in a different location".
Looking around at the groups of race goers I noticed one major difference. A difference that Racing For Change are going to have to tussle with in all manner of ways. Saturday nights and indeed race meetings in general mean only one thing for a vast portion of the new target audience...drink and general loutedness...and that's just the girls! While groups of suited young men ponder the winner of the next event pretending to understand how everything works as the detail of race form has not been explained coherently for the younger generation the orange glitterati faces of the ladies cackle together, champagne spilling onto the county stand lawn in wild fits of giggles. And all this regardless of the racing which was going on a couple of metres away. Here at Haydock Park last night I discovered the difficulties this wonderful sport has of attracting newer audiences.
The main issue is the drinking culture of this country. Along with an ignorance of the sport through no fault of the target generation and the associations racing has with flat capped pensioners sporting garments of best tweed, horse racing will inevitably struggle to capture the excitement that it can definitely offer.
Last night to promote Haydock Park night racing a special event was planned for after racing...a tribute band to The Beatles. This type of event could be seen as a positive step towards attracting newer audiences with not only racing on the cards but also the opportunity of a good night with a live band. But again issues have failed to be addressed...The Beatles. How do we attract younger generations to our sport if all they have to look forward to as entertainment after the racing is a tribute act to a band from forty years ago? A creditable band however...have no fear there is no danger of disrespect towards Lennon and company but they hardly offer exciting news for would be spectators of the future.
There was a fundamental theme last night. Around the parade ring stood mostly older people taking their entertainment from the horses and pre-race preparations. Around the grandstands swayed younger people who took their entertainment from the champagne bar. Here is the problem and with it comes the issue of how to change this for the better.
(Pre-race preparations in the parade ring at Haydock Park)
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