Maybe I'm smoking my socks????

Just when our children/grand children will be studying about tobacco companies in economic history they will also be studying about horse racing in SA.

keniza999 Wrote:

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> I wonder why is it that ppl form queues for lotto
> tickets when the odds of winning a pick6 are a
> fraction of winning a lotto jackpot. Could it be
> lack of education or perceptions of crookedness.

This is a massive point. Why indeed do people play where the chances of winning is so much worse than horse racing? I am pretty sure I discovered an answer that is very close to the truth.

I believe that most people believe or feel that their chances of winning at almost every other game (other than horse racing) is about the same as everyone else, whereas at the races you feel that other people have an edge that you do not have.

That feeling quickly progresses (real or imagined) that the fix is in. The winning jockey must have known, or the jocks knew, or the trainers big punters knew etc etc. For all we know, the lottery or the casino or soccer could be fixed somehow, but we don't feel it in our collective bones as we stand in those queues.

The answer must be in information...sectional times, work out info, riding instructions accountability, faith in the stipes, etc etc I even think that bets that generate carry-overs is a public demonstration that there is a randomness that applies to everyone, and therefore everyone has a chance.

I don't think education per se is the answer. I'm probably not interested in anything that has to convince me that they are clean. Like everyone who is interested in their passion, the chances are NOT that they were talked into it, but they got infected by the genuine enthusiasm of other participants. Why do we try and make this so hard, we all know this shit!

(tu) Agreed Jack - Those dam perceptions that I have been harping on about for the last month or so!

The problem is even if these things were to be introduced, would non racing people be educated on this?

Let's be honest we are the minority and the man in the street, the R100 punter ( maybe should say R20) just looks at the R20 million lotto or the option of having a bet on his sport (soccer) he knows Man U, Chiefs, Pirates etc and can also win BIG!
In the past he only had the horses and a pick 6? Why should he now by a race card, study etc, etc to place his money on racing.

Alcaponee Wrote:

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> (tu) Agreed Jack - Those dam perceptions that I
> have been harping on about for the last mont or
> so!
>
> The problem is even if these things were to be
> introduced, would non racing people be educated on
> this?

I don't know. But Racing (capital R) has a responsibility to try it's best, to be seen to be trying to do better and be better. We want SA to do well overseas, we broadcast our racing. Any endeavour that is not trying to grow, it is doomed to shrink. We have small camps each looking out for themselves, but no one is leading the sport.

I don't know if sectional timing on it's own will do anything, but I do know it's sad that there doesn't seem to be a desire of the people who call the shots to even look into it or other innovations. I worry that people who run banks and supermarkets are hell bent to be better than their competition, but racing looks lethargic in comparison to me.

People within the sport strive..I think trainers have to compete for clients, jocks for rides etc etc, so they do well anywhere. Gamblers know exactly what happens when they are wrong. Breeders and owners also feel the whip when they are wrong. But on the whole, our big plan seems to be rudderless. While individuals have goals, I don't know if we have any plans on the macro scale though except divorces, bickering and finger pointing at the top.