Sittingbourne introduce their first handicap race on Saturday with the racing manager Jess Packer confessing he has never even seen one ‘in the flesh’.
He said: “I have seen them on TV and in the betting shops but this is new territory for me, and the trainers. It was something that Roger (Cearns – promoter) wanted to do to bring some variety.
“We actually have a decent kennel strength at the moment, around 220 plus, so they weren’t introduced on that basis. Some of the trainers are a bit weary, particularly with pups, and I have promised to work around their inhibitions. If it all goes to plan, we’ll introduce a couple for each Saturday meeting going forward”
The track have only filled two opens for Sunday, though Packer remains unconcerned.
He said: “We have deliberately reduced the number as a cost saving exercise; we are not deliberately turning dogs away. In fact, we had enough entries for one and a half opens this week, and I had to move things around to make it up to two.”
