Australian Harness Administrators please read this article and get excited

The Prix d'Amerique surely inspired me and I have found this old review of the 2014 event written on a thoroughbred site!

https://www.thoroughbredracing.com/a...-pulses-racing

We race the same breed here and just about everything the author highlights are true for us too so where are we going wrong?

Here is the first half of the article by John Gilmore

The numbers are quite staggering - €2 million ($2.7 million) race days, 30,000-plus crowds and a big race that brings thousands on an annual pilgrimage across Europe. Yes, trotting is big business in France, and several other European countries. John Gilmore, fresh from a day at the sport’s equivalent of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, explains what all the fuss is about.

While most racing fans around the world concentrate on the sleek, aristocratic Thoroughbred, the ordinary punter on much of mainland Europe prefers to wager on a different type of horse altogether - the high-stepping trotter, who pulls a driver in a lightweight two-wheeled single-seat sulky round the racetrack.

Betting revenue is the key to the prosperity of all horse racing, and trotting on mainland Europe is the most popular equine sport - accounting for 55 percent of total horse race betting turnover. From its humble beginnings, when Normandy stallions were crossbred with hunting stock, trotting has become an occasion that can attract 30,000 to an evening floodlit meeting.

The secret is its accessibility. Trotters, strengthened by judicious introduction of American bloodstock, can run to a greater age and more often than the fragile Thoroughbred. First running in two- or three-year-old races, their careers can last until they are 10. Thus the best become heroes to the betting public, who have more chance to get to know them. Races often take place on tight, all-weather round tracks - where those placing bets can see all the action all the time - and generally vary between 1,600 and 2,750 metres, although there are a few longer races.

From the latest European figures available, for 2012, France is far and away the leading trotting nation, with €239.2 million ($327.7 million) in prize-money (it was €118.3 million or $162 million on the flat) and 11,088 races run (against 4,878), at an average of €21,572 ($29,560) a race (against €24,253 or $33,233 for flat races).

Sweden is next with €83.24 million ($114 million) in prize-money (its flat horse racing total was €7.9m or $10.8 million) and 8,112 races (against just 668 flat races). France and Sweden have one thing in common - they both operate a successful lottery-type pool bet for a small stake. Even so, Sweden, with a population of approximately 9.6 million, has a remarkable return for racehorse funding.

France has 95 courses designated to trotting and 135 for flat racing. The top trotting venue is the 2,000-metre oval cinder track at Vincennes to the east of Paris. It holds 155 meetings every year and is the scene of Europe's most prestigious trotting race, the Prix d’Amerique, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe of trotting.

Run over 2,700 metres on the last Sunday in January, the Prix d'Amerique features the 18 leading European trotters. First run in 1920 and named as a tribute to American involvement in the First World War, it is watched by millions of TV viewers in Europe, North America, Asia, and Australasia.

The 2014 Group 1 Prix d’Amerique on Jan. 26 offered €1 million ($1.4 million) total prize-money, with €500,000 ($685,150) to the winner. The quality card also featured two Group 3 races and three at Group 2 level - for an overall prize-money allocation of €2.76 million ($3.78 million).

The race is a bit like the Grand National in England, with plenty of French people who don't normally bet placing a wager - usually in one of the café bars that litter the towns and cities. Total turnover on Prix d’Amerique day in 2014 was €38.6 million ($52.8 million).

I have said it before (including in my submission to HRV) we need a race at a set venue on a set date
which is an Event that engages the public's imagination and attracts a huge TV audience - as I put it in my submission 'Our Melbourne Cup' that captures the rank and file

If we promoted and telecast our showcase event to the high standards of the PdA we would make huge in roads on the gallops. Even streaming would do for openers for it would not be long before the broadcasters wanted a piece of it.

We have to make something happen instead of just being content with surviving. It may require some pain at first eg. reducing all prizemoney by 10% for a couple of years to fund it
But the pain would be short-lived if we pull it off

We sometimes have Harness admin and advisory council visitors to our forum - tell me you are thinking BIG

Admittedly Vincennes is virtually in Paris - not out at Melton or Menangle, I dont know if this has to be addressed first

I know Perth has Gloucester Park but with its smaller population and the fact that its distance from Melbourne and Sydney is 50-70% more than even Paris to Helsinki (plus east-west adding the problem of time difference), I do not know if they could pull it off for Australia - I will not rule it out, everything should be on the table

I hope I am not rambling on, it is just that the recent PdA has reinforced for me a lot of things I have long believed

ps Let's not just dismiss it as dreaming - if trotting can be bigger than gallops in Europe, why can't it make inroads here

A REAL WORLD CUP MUST BE THE AIM!
A trot-meeting with the best horses of the world, like the "March of Dimes Trot".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la0NPh-nIrM

Kevin (Messenger), as a long time lover of the sport (I go back to and clearly remember the days when of all people the ABC had the legs of the Daily Double from Harold Park live on free to air TV across NSW every Friday Night - AND had a replay of all races after the last race.....we would kill for that sort of coverage on free to air these days) but a first time contributor - I only wish we had some foresight and thinking like this in the corridors of power.
Where the sport is promoted as a spectator sport alongside the football codes, cricket, tennis and the major galloping carnivals (i.e. Melbourne Cup Carnival, Melbourne Spring, Sydney Autumn) as well as being a business that turns over the dollars to drive the racing/owning/training/breeding of the racing stock.
Sadly, our administrators in Australia gave up on promoting harness racing/trotting as a spectator sport 30 to 35 years ago when they took the soft option of sitting back and relying on TAB Turnover as the major source of income for the Clubs/Industry. At that point, it became all about dollars and business side of the sport and nothing else. Full stop. Period.
This was further re-inforced when the administrators of the major clubs in our (Australia's) 2 biggest cities (Sydney and Melbourne) decided to move their racetracks out of their respective CBDs to smaller crowd capacity venues on the outskirts/fringes of those cities (i.e. Menangle/Melton). This moved the sport AWAY from large chunks of potential fans, not towards them.
All you have to do is read between the lines of the most recent announcement by Harness Racing Victoria on the culling of standing start races for pacers to see where the priorities are.
Turnover, turnover, turnover. Think small, short term, insular looking, safety first and bottom line.
And as a result - instead of trying to establish and maintain traditions (we all know that the Melbourne Cup is on the first Tuesday in November, Parisiennes know that the Prix D'Amerique is always on the last Sunday in January, even Kiwis know that the NZ Cup is on the 2nd Tuesday in November every year at Addington!!) we in Australia destroy them, throw them out and/or try and change them to get that extra 1.50% boost to turnover.
I cover off on this a bit more in another thread about tonight's AG Hunter Cup possibly being the last......again!! (HRV have tried to kill the Hunter Cup before!)
As for asking the owners and trainers to take a 10% cut to fund something like this with a bit of forward planning....good luck getting that over the line!!
Operational costs would be your first target for funding this with corporate sponsorship 2nd.
But hang on, harness racing/trotting is not a spectator sport any more in Australia so Corporate Sponsors would not be interested in advertising to no one....
Maybe one day someone will see the light and give the notion of attracting crowds and fans to the sport outside of families and friends of owners/trainers/drivers/breeders a chance.
I'm not holding my breath!!!

Thanks Tony you certainly outlined the heart of the problem and why many would see my hopes for the game as dreaming. It may take as long to reverse the damage done as it did to inflict it but it certainly cannot happen without some new inspired leadership. Maybe it needs to start with the Minister - does he have an understanding of where we have come from, where we are now and what is actually possible (see O/S) if we get the correct administration

Tonight was one of Vic's biggest nights but how many other than us stalwarts and those at Melton (the majority of which are Meltonites) knew/remembered it was on. The crowd was good at Melton but it and the telecast would be lucky to have gained us one convert and that is probably because there were no newbs there/or tuned in.

I see it as a very slow process but it has to start with a couple of basics. Firstly nailing that one event that will become OUR date and which will receive huge media coverage, closely followed by attracting people all around the country to try a day/night at the trots again. There would have to be some considerable improvements at some courses to pull this off but you can have some amazing pop ups nowadays - that is all the gallops Dunkeld Cup is, as it is pretty much staged in a paddock. It goes without saying that the product needs to be first class. If we start with these basics - we can grow. I doubt I will see it in my lifetime as I am getting to be an old codger but I hope I see the reversal start

As far as the direction our racing/programming goes, I have been a fan of Adam Hamilton in the past when he was the only Vic sports journalist that supported us but that is not what he is anymore and people have got to be cautious of considering everything that 'the employee of a betting agency' has to say as gospel

When you look at the big picture in the longer term, the sport has been declining in popularity since the mid eighties.....when did we transition to mostly mobile racing? Yes that's right, the mid eighties.


Much of what Tony has written is correct in my humble opinion, and here is another reason clubs have taken the easier path of relying on TAB distribution, the way this is carved up and paid to the clubs, the stakes clubs have to payout are no longer measured by the individual club's turnover. Another disincentive to promote yourself!


There are many, many reasons why our game is struggling, but when we moved from mostly stands to mostly mobiles all those years ago we were copying the North American style which was already in deep decline! I voiced that observation at the time, but it fell on deaf ears because many people were salivating about the increased "value" of their stock with the faster times mobile racing would bring.......once again people were looking for a quick win rather than taking a longer look and making decisions that were right for the longer term.


We most CERTAINLY need to get extra people to the trots, that is where an interest in participation usually starts...the more participants we have the more interest each individual garners in the community through their own networks of family, friends and colleagues....this game was always driven by the MANY little people, not the few big yards, they all play their part, but the smaller players encourage a wider audience and always have.


cheers,
Dan

There does seem to be more people attending at Melton on the regular Friday night meetings. Luke and I go every week and have noticed an increase. They do a great job of promoting the sport to the locals and slowly more are attending.


As have said before Melton is probably one of the fastest growing places in Australia so track isn't in such a bad spot if they keep encouraging the locals to get along.


I'm with you Danno... copying North America is not the way to go. Saw some comments from people that have travelled here from Nth America recently and been to our local trots and they liked what they saw "Now that's harness racing" was one saw after Vic Cup. Its not just the trots where crowds are dwindling. The gallops are the same and even AFL crowds were down last year. Too easy to stay home and watch.


Kev...maybe we need to 'borrow' one of the French administrators for 6 months? While on the French, I believe the turnover in France on ONE of the Monday night trot races at Melton is more than the turnover Australia wide for the entire meeting. Of course they have the greater population but this has been a great earner for Vic Trots (told earn $80,000 for the 4 trot races) and HRV should be congratulated for organising that.

I definitely agree with borrowing or even stealing a French administrator or two Paul.
I have also come to appreciate the benefits of packaging trots races for France but I hope we do not get to the stage that they have to send us most of the horses to put on the show (they have an excess).

We need people people coming to the trots as you are never going to buy a horse if you don't even go
We need greater exposure and more than just Melton - at the very least it needs a twin on the other side of town. The gallops have 4 tracks in the Metro area while we have none
I dont know whether it is a concern if the crowds oscillate a bit as long as people are coming sometimes and ARE actually watching from home - gallops are still far easier to access

Our 'new administrator Francois' can start anytime and anywhere he likes for they definitely know what they are doing over there
They get 30k to there big meets and more $ are bet on trotting than gallops
(Admittedly they have more trots races but the good news is that there is little difference in average prizemoney between the 2 codes)