One of the great things about racing and breeding is that life is never boring. At times a sequence of disasters can test the most strong-minded of us, but we can seldom complain that nothing is happening.
Yesterday was the final day of the New Zealand Cup Carnival at Riccarton. Readers of this site will be well aware that our pride and joy, La Nouvelle Vague, had been targeted at the 3200 staying test and will also be aware that the dreams of owners and trainers had been dashed by a tendon injury. The fact that the classy Maybe Miami had not lined up in Wednesday’s Coupland’s Mile for a similar reason did little to raise the mood. To be honest, I was strongly tempted to miss the plane for Christchurch, but as I had contracted to take a couple of friends to Riccarton for the day it just wouldn’t have been the right thing to do.
Anyway, it turned out to be not a bad day, even allowing for the easterly breeze and the bar prices. Sure, Dee and Gee’s victory in the R85 2500 was bitter-sweet (you might like to check out my earlier story about our Darci Brahma mare), but an each-way investment covered the day’s expenses and inspired my friends to invest on Gobstopper in the Cup.
The challenge we all face is to get these second-time racegoers involved more deeply in racing. The crowd at Riccarton was evidence that racing doesn’t just appeal to those of us who can remember the Holyoake years. The twentysomethings were out in force and clearly having a good time, but the really challenging market is the 30-40 age group; from my observation, they were almost totally absent. It’s understandable, of course, that if you’ve got small children and a mortgage, there isn’t going to be much discretionary income to invest in horseflesh.
So, here’s a challenge to those of us who describe ourselves as mature (at least in terms of age). Why don’t we select someone we know in our target demographic and just GIVE them a small share of something equine.
A Christmas present which requires zero wrapping and no expensive postage.
