Owners’ Update: October 2021

By Paul Carpenter, GBGB Owners’ Practitioner Director

 

Last week I had my first Board meeting and as Elton John so movingly said, “I’m still standing”. With the last 18 months having been so extraordinary for us all, I can now most definitely look forward with optimism. I love this sport and I am committed to its future prosperity.

You do not need me to tell you what a marvellous sport this is. But, as someone who has owned greyhounds for over 30 years, I know greyhound racing can be even greater, and, as Owners’ Rep, I now have the chance to help the sport realise this potential.

This can only be achieved if we all work together – owners, trainers, promoters, bookmakers and GBGB – and the first steps were for me to open vital lines of communication between owners and GBGB. I am pleased to say that this has happened.

 

I would like to take this opportunity to bring you up to date with how things have been progressing and provide you with some insight into the points raised on behalf of the owners during my first few weeks in the post.

As a starting point, I looked at the key issues facing owners and what we would like to see changed for the benefit of everyone. Thank you to all the owners I spoke to and who gave me their thoughts and ideas. I presented many of these points during the Board meeting.

The list was extensive, and it will now be broken down and allocated to the relevant sub-committees and followed up in readiness for the next meeting. Don’t forget, if I haven’t heard it, I can’t pass it on, which is why I am trying to create as many opportunities as possible for owners to contact me.

Like many in the sport, I have my own long wish-list of aspects I would like to change and improve. I know this cannot all be achieved overnight and, whilst I am determined to maintain a can-do attitude, I know that not everything will be realised. But that is not going to stop me trying!

One of our biggest challenges is ensuring that owners have a rightful place at the very centre of our sport. If not, we will be in a sad position where bookmakers and promoters ‘own’ our sport and the talents of our greyhounds are used solely as a betting product. I think it’s fair to say that most owners believe that the bookmakers’ wish for non-stop racing – morning, noon and night – is not good for the sport. I call it roulette racing – where nobody cares about the dogs’ names or who their owners are.

I cannot help feeling that it is tough on the owners who provide the product and have invested such large sums of money to be excluded from the running of the sport. I need to address this balance and ensure that owners’ voices are heard at the highest level so that, together, we can bring about some much-needed change.

As well as anti-social racing times, other topics that I have put on the table include the increase in graded racing: dogs being overrun, lengthy kennelling times, track maintenance, clocks, trap draws, tactical seeding, compulsory trials for Cat 1’s and a revised Cat 1 selection process.

I’d also like to see more racing on a Saturday night starting at 19.30 with a maximum of ten races per meeting. This would help with the shortage of the dogs and reduce the number of dogs being overrun.

I have also referred to the sport needing more graded and open puppy races. The sport needs a novice system to encourage breeding. For too long I have witnessed pups being placed straight into graded racing with older more experienced dogs and losing their way before they have been given a chance. This is no way to introduce a young dog to racing. If breeders, trainers, and owners knew there was a system for novices I am sure this would have an enormous impact on the sport.

Of course, prize money is a ‘big-ticket’ item. The recent increase announced by ARC, Entain and GMG is very welcome and is a definite step in the right direction. But it needs to go further, for both graded and open racing. It is understood that greater prize money will attract new owners to the sport but, most importantly, it will aid breeding and allow trainers and kennel hands to be paid a decent living wage including pension, holiday and sick pay.

Another issue that’s high on my list is the treatment of owners and trainers at the tracks.

For example, I would like to see a dedicated owners’ area and incentivised bar at every stadium. I am aware some tracks are already doing this whereas other are sadly letting owners down. I would also like to hear owners’ names mentioned more as they do in horse-racing. Our owners are vital to our sport; they need to be given the recognition they deserve and shown how much they are valued. Likewise, as owners, we should celebrate when tracks are doing it right – feedback to them and let them know it is appreciated.

We also each need to sell our sport better. Marketing and promotion are crucial. Tracks and promoters must become more inventive with their marketing. As a sport, we need to enhance the customer experience if we are to attract new younger audiences. Entertainment sells!

We are starting to see improvements that I applaud, but much more could and should be done. I, for one, thought GBGB’s recent ‘Back on Track’ video was fabulous and captured the energy and excitement of racing – let’s hope that more content like this is developed across our sport.

Greyhound racing is a marvellous product, and it can be even better. But this role isn’t just about communicating owners’ gripes. As people deeply invested in this sport – both financially and emotionally – owners are committed to seeing our sport thrive and have some fantastic ideas for driving our sport forward.

I’ve lost count of the number of times an owner has had a lightbulb moment and suggested the sport tries something new. Now is the time to mine the owners’ community for these ideas and bring them to fruition. As we emerge from Covid, sports across the globe are re-evaluating how they operate and now is the time for greyhound racing to do the same.

 

I hope the new Owner’s Portal on the GBGB website will deliver a positive experience for owners.

In the future, this will hopefully be developed and used to advertise upcoming events and to capture owner ideas and views. I have also been working on updating the GBGB website to provide more useful information for owners, including a FAQ page for anyone looking to start their journey as an owner. This will go live within the coming weeks.

We would have no sport without owners. The tracks might be willing to supply trainers with lower graded dogs, the trainers may buy their own dogs, but either way neither would pay big money for the top open dogs, which would then mean the breeders would stop breeding and the sport would be effectively finished.

If any of these proposed changes are to succeed, we will need the support of the entire greyhound community as well as the GBGB and bookmakers. There needs to be a willingness from the GBGB Board to accept that mistakes have been made in the past and that some challenging questions need to be asked and answered. Existing owners need to feel cherished if they are going to be retained and new ones gained.

We all need to do our bit and stop the internal squabbles. If not, we will never progress. This is a process requiring negotiation, understanding, compromise and patience.

There is so much more on my wish list, but this is my starting point. I have arrived with an open mind, a willingness to work hard and an unwavering commitment to get owners heard and listened to. This is just the start….

 

Winners’ Corner

Open racing

Open performance of the month must go Space Jet for winning the St. Leger at Perry Barr and in doing so breaking the track record. To win the stayers classic really is something very special. The performance was truly remarkable coming from last to first showing tremendous track craft as well as all all-round pace and stamina. Will Space Jet get further? We don’t know yet, but I suspect this lady could well be challenging a certain Lydia in the months to come. Congratulations to owners Margaret Terry and Kurn Rushen and trainer Matt Dartnall.

I must also offer up a very special mention and congratulations to Candy Man, the owner Matt Walker and trainer Carol Weatherall on winning the Cat 1 Birmingham Cup – a thoroughly deserved success. Finally, I’d like to mention Warzone Tom who was foot perfect at Romford beating a very high class field in a Coral Champion Stakes Trial Stakes in very fast 35.29.

 

Graded racing

It’s not very often you see a graded bitch win five on the spin, but that’s exactly what Senahel Split has just done at Hove. She won a D4 at the end of August and has gone through the grades winning a D1 on 5th October. She started her winning run clocking 16.54 and in her last race clocked 16.31 – huge congratulations to the Stophers Racing Syndicate and to trainer Gemma Davidson. What makes these performances even more extraordinary is that she started out running over 540 at Crayford!

I would also like to give a big shout out to Hollyoak Hazel who has won her last four graded races at Central Park for the Hollyoak Syndicate and trainer Ray Butler. She started her winning streak back on the 26th of July and completed her four-timer on the 5th of October. In between she had a break but has returned in top form.

 

Last but certainly not least, I’d like to mention and offer my congratulations to the following on reaching the incredible landmark of 150 races:

Feora Neptune An April ’16 brindle has been a marvellous servant for trainer Dave Lee and the Canine GOA Syndicate winning races both on the flat and over hurdles at Crayford.

Proper Peasant has been running at Doncaster for three and a half years for owner and trainer Ron Hardy having reached the heights of A2 at her peak.

Turnthatphoneoff  This April ‘16 dog is a credit to his owner Glyn Linder and trainer Irene Barnard who will be hoping for success in race 151 at Yarmouth on Saturday evening.

Wouldn’t it be nice if tracks were to start making presentations for greyhounds when they reach these very rare landmark races?

Final thought, there are some very special ladies lighting up our sport just now.

Thank you.

Paul Carpenter

GBGB Owners’ Practitioner Director