And We're Back! FTY Goals for 2025, and Things We'd Like to See This Year in Racing
A cheery welcome to all as we begin 2025. Hope the Christmas and New Year season has been well.
From a work perspective here at FTY, the database hasn't seen much action over the November and December period. Potential meetings at Ascot in WA were forfeited in favour of some local media coverage, as the Victorian racing schedule headed more provincial during the same time.
FTY has confirmed an official starting date of January 18 at Flemington, although there was a pipe-opener on New Year's Day at HQ which saw the first public appearance of our Bluesky account. This will be used to potentially showcase one race of interest every meeting, ideally one where multiple or a significant back or lay is suggested. (At present, there doesn't appear to be a 'notification bell' on the Bluesky app, so hopefully this feature arrives in the near future).
Goals for 2025 are relatively simple: continue to improve the service provided and expand the database. All things being equal, we should have 1000 races in the bank come the end of the year. There's a couple of tweaks that need to be made to the spreadsheet in the coming weeks, purely to allow more variables to be recorded for any given runner.
Otherwise, the year will again be broken up in to the two seasonal carnivals, Autumn and Spring, with the focus squarely on Wednesday and Saturday metropolitan racing in Melbourne, and a potential for a short break during the winter months (to be confirmed, although last year was a straight run from May through November).
Meetings will be available in the shop for purchase approximately one month in advance, once dates and attendances have been confirmed.
To date, the results have been pleasing, and while the sample size is still short of the desired mark, the general consistency of certain factors is giving a good guide as to whether they should be considered a back or lay.
As far as the racing is concerned, the industry does seem to be approaching something of a flash point, and not just in the chaos-riddled state of Victoria. In the last 12 months, we saw a coup overthrow the previous board at the MRC, a change in leadership at the VRC and the MVRC enter the final straight of its time as the Moonee Valley racecourse as we currently know it.
Wagering seems to be correcting itself (downwards) after the 'sugar-hit' of COVID-19 lockdowns, incredibly in hindsight seen by some administrators as something other than a one-off spike in betting dollars (we’ll save this conversation for another day, with more committed hearts and minds).
It feels like more often than not, racing in Australia is its own worst enemy, shooting itself in the foot as the competition for hearts and minds gets stronger and more desperate. And quite often, these are the simple or little things which other sports and industries get right.
Let's take a moment to outline some of the things FTY observed over the last year which detracted from the racing experience, and are on our ‘let’s do it better’ wishlist.
Waiting in line at MRC racecourses
With all due respect to how racecourses work and the hiring of staff, there’s a consistent theme with how and when the MRC branded tracks open for the general public for midweek cards, which is half an hour prior to the first race unless that person is an owner in that race. Generally throughout the year at the Wednesday meetings at Sandown, this is a minor inconvenience, unless it is raining or howling wind, which isn’t uncommon at that track.
During the summer months, however, this was still the case at Caulfield for a midweek meeting at the Heath, when the weather was nudging 35 degrees and with minimal shade outside of the turnstiles. 40-odd punters and patrons were scrambling for a sense of respite from the sun, while in the background the audio of the first race in Sydney was audible in the distance. This feels a misstep for so many reasons.
In an era where tote operators have been dismissed from midweek racedays, experience is now and should be seen as everything. The frustration voiced by many of the people waiting was noticeable. They were happy to attend a local, inner-city metropolitan meeting during the week, which should make them priority number one. It feels like their first impression was not a positive one.
Many people like to settle in prior to the first, find their spot or watch the horses get saddled up, or indeed, just watch the first race of the day from around the country. I understand that Sydney and Melbourne aren’t working together to harness hearts and minds, but they should at least be aware that a large number of punters and fans still like to watch both race cards. It feels painfully obvious in these situations that the administration doesn’t empathise with the point of view of the racegoer.
You can’t wear that
This is a personal complaint of someone who has spent many a day on-course in blistering sun, freezing hail, and everything in between. Despite having been a member of five different racecourses across Australia at one stage or another, these days I’m almost certainly not going to end up in the exclusive members’ areas. Back in the day, I’d complete the mounting yard before scrambling over obstacles and up flights of stairs to try and find the best view of the track, usually in the members.
This generally isn’t achievable anymore, mainly because being a full-time yard watcher in a suit and tie is an awful experience. Not only is my devotion at odds with that kind of attire, it’s at odds with the hierarchy of most race clubs, and indeed Australian racing standards. But why? Why does racing still have a sentiment towards the elite when it comes to dress?
Generally I can understand a week of ‘let’s play dress-ups’ and obviously the week for that in Melbourne is Cup Week, and I acknowledge there has generally been a softening of the dress code at the MRC and MVRC to allow some more casual attire (outside of their big ticket features), but the pedantry around what is and isn’t allowed is still frustrating. If I’m clocking up 12,000 steps on a raceday, I don’t want to be in anything other than comfortable, casual shoes. Likewise, if it’s freezing and pouring rain, I don’t want some over officious clerk telling me my waterproof jacket and beanie doesn’t meet the standards, no matter what cost or brand they are. It’s 2025. Why are we trying to tell people what to wear?
Racing in Australia could do far worse than look to our neighbours in Hong Kong and Japan, the latter consisting of the most relaxed and welcoming racing for all that I have experience. Bring a picnic and the kids, and dress to whatever standards you desire. Enjoy cheap entry, as well as affordable and plentiful food and drink options. Our space is yours to enjoy for the day.
Perhaps the flailing members’ cruise ship at Flemington and the glass cage at Caulfield would be more consistently filled if the length of your shorts and the look of your (in)(expensive) sneakers didn’t impede entry.
A view from the ‘glass cage’, the members floor at Caulfield Racecourse, overlooking the former (and soon to be restored) site of the mounting yard.
A big song and dance
If this sounds more of a series of disagreements of personal tastes, then I don’t think it’s an overstatement to suggest that whatever the entertainment was on Caulfield Cup day (or Caulfield Guineas day, I’ve tried to block it from my memory) was universally hated.
Some sort of musical number consisting of a performer singing a cover of ‘Let Me Entertain You’, whilst walking through and interacting with a confused crowd, left a number of racegoers with degrees of headache and annoyance.
Let me put this simply for racing administrators: loud music, and this includes the National Anthem, DOES NOT BELONG on racecourses with flight animals trying to parade or keep calm prior to a race. If you’re going to schedule loud music, ensure the speakers in the stabling and parade areas are off. Save these token attempts at engaging or ‘entertaining’ your audience until after the last race when the horses have safely left the track.
This also goes for guest carnival MCs that have a propensity to shout and their microphones not adequately balanced for the speakers on course (Perth Racing, this is aimed at you).
