WOMEN KEY TO RACING’S POPULARITY
By Richard Dunwoody
How do we make racing more popular? “Easy,” said friend of mine who has very little interest in racing. “Get more women to go”
If the authorities in this country want a model of how to boost the sport, they should perhaps look Asia or Australia.
They appear to have succeeded in making racing fashionable and attractive to the young
That’s not easy.
Racing is a sport that is not easy to understand, particularly for the newcomer, and especially in this soft scoop age of immediacy and short attention – spans.
In Japan the one thing the authorities did was very simple. They persuaded young girls to come racing by every means they could think of, including offering free entry.
The boys naturally followed.
Anyone that has been racing in Japan will be amazed at the number of young couples seen walking round hand in hand.
They have somehow persuaded the youngsters that going racing is a ‘cool ‘date.
The Australians are also way ahead of Britain when it comes to attracting a younger demographic. The Lawn Parties they have are tremendous and are teeming with women. The guys are there to have a drink and perhaps get a date.
The tick is to convince the young that going racing is fun and even if they don’t have more than one eye on the horses, at least there is a chance that some of them will become real racing fans.
Start them young, as the Australians do. The Phar Lap Club in Melbourne leads the way as a club for five to 15 year olds.
Named after legendary 1930’s southern hemisphere champion, the Club was started in 1996 and has well over 5,000 numbers.
It gives its young members the chance to visit the races six times a year under the supervision of Camp Australia staff. It has a bi-monthly newsletter and aims to educate young people about the broader aspects of the racing industry. It provides a basis for the continuing growth of the sport.
There are plenty of aspects of business of a racecourse that can be linked to the school curriculum: mathematics, meteorology, diets, genetics, turf husbandry, catering, fashion, fitness, regimes, etc, and we seem to have cottoned on, as plenty of school children seem to be being shown round race courses in Britian these days.
Some courses are brilliant at reaching out to the real community, but some could do a much better job of being pro-active in reaching out to a younger generation.
A couple of weeks ago, I was sent a pack of Collectacards playing cards by Racing Enterprises, the promotional vehicle of Racing For Change.
It is horseracing card game, similar to the popular Top Trumps game, and it’s aimed at kids (anyone playing this game and looking ahead to next week’s Sussex Stakes might notice that Frankel beats Canford Cliffs in only one category). I would be great to see kids, who visit the racecourses, given a set of these cards.
Rod Street, chief executive of Racing Enterprises, said: “We thought a racing-based card game would be a fun way to engage with new and existing fans. One of RfC’s aims is to connect new customers with the race horse,, not just with betting or raceday entertainment. We have trialled the Collectacards through competitions and giveaways and the response has been superb. We hope that racecourses will be using them as promotional tools going forward.
Incidentally, you can try and win a set of the gaming cards a www. thepeoplehorse. co.uk, which is another new initiative to engage people with racehorse ownership. It gives people the chance to follow the ups and downs of horse ownership on Twitter or registering on the webtsite. She’s called Tweet Lady and already has nearly 1,200 followers in just a few weeks.
The sport has to be open to new ideas and I’m all for the trying new things.
On Sunday, the race to become Britain’s first female commentator enters the final furlong. From an original entry of 46. Hayley Moore will take on Rachel Casey head-to-head at Ascot as they bid for a place on the industry’s commentary training course.
I wish them both well. Commentating is not an easy discipline. But it will be great if one or both of them join the ranks of race-callers, especially if it helps break down the barriers and helps get a few more women through the turnstiles.
Women and kids need to be targeted.
Let’s get them through the gate and educate them about this great sport of ours.
