There are some in the corridors of power who seemingly do not find enough merit in re-introducing permit racing simply to enrich the lives of those who would like to train their own greyhounds from home.
But if the industry is not driven by altruism, it might at least consider self-interest. I therefore present the case for the re-introduction of permit racing:
1) LIFEBLOOD – The ever-biting trainer shortage comes about for two reasons. i) the decline of the ‘Lister, Savva, McEllistrim’ generation. The group of trainers who entered a booming industry as far back as the 1950s, are retiring or in cases of the slightly older, have gone to meet their maker. ii) the traditional first rung into training, previously accessed by the flapping tracks and permit racing, have gone.
You could actually argue that there was a third route into training, one taken by many current trainers, the company run kennel complexes such as Northaw. They too, are long in extinction never to return.
There is no questioning the link between permit racing and further progression to greater involvement. Just check the professional trainers list.
Tomorrow’s new Pelaw Grange permit holder is Newcastle’s future professional. Read Henlow/Crayford or Harlow/Romford.
2) KENNELS – GBGB racing is currently facing a crisis. It has to enhance trainer’s kennels to comply with Government demands and doesn’t have nearly enough money to do so.
But what about greyhounds at home? The £90m colossus that is Dogs Trust might insist on floral painted kennels scented with lavender but when they eventually get round to homing their pitiful number of dogs, do they insist on floral painted semi-detached abodes in leafy suburbs? No, just a safe clean family home.
My email from Simon Franklin this week highlighted one of Yarmouth’s most successful category one winning trainers who can’t afford to upgrade his racing kennels and may be forced to give up. He could be followed by literally dozens of others throughout the industry.
GBGB regulations may require kennel improvements costing five times the value of the dogs in them!
3) PRIZE MONEY – There is no doubt that the industry is tremendously underfunded. All available resources must be channelled towards professional handlers.
In the interim, since permit racing was scrapped, the industry has evolved. For year, only the biggest kennels would be paid runner bonuses – the additional cash that tracks pay trainers based on their number of runners.
(Runner bonuses are usually ignored by the internet trolls when they attempt to draw a link between BAGS payments and prize money)
In recent years, even small professional handlers and many greyhound trainers qualify for bonuses on as few as 20 runners within a month.
Permit trainers are unlikely to qualify for anything bar the basic prize money available.
4) SAVING STADIUMS – The runner shortage is badly hitting the smaller tracks, particularly those without the stability of a long terms BAGS contract.
As an example, the recent prize money increase announced by Henlow will surely stretch the track to its limits. Crowd numbers simply do not run to that level of prize money but promoter Kevin Boothby is seemingly desperate.
His plight would be shared at Harlow, Pelaw Grange, Doncaster, Shawfield and even some of the others who use BAGS cash to subsidise their other meetings.
Kevin hopes to stage a fourth meeting per week throughout December for the Christmas party crowd. He is at best an optimist. Last Saturday, the track had 24 runners spread between seven races for its ‘third’ meeting (the non-RPGTV card).
What harm would it do for some of those empty traps, or even complete races, to be filled by permit trained dogs?
The books are probably betting to around 160%, the tote will still rake off their 29% and they won’t be troubling the betting shops.
There were very few issues with permit trainers during their previous era, but if a novice handler turned up with an overweight or lame runner, the scales or track vet would deal with it. If the dog was inconsistent, the racing manager always has the right to say ‘thanks but no thanks’.
Nobody is suggesting that a permit trainer waltzes into a BAGS race, but we had permit runners on BAGS when my father was joint promoter at Cambridge in the early 1980s. Betting monitoring was nowhere near as sophisticated back then but nobody got cleaned out.
Besides – what is the difference between a permit trainer and a greyhound trainer? A kennel!!
5) INDUSTRY REVENUE – Permit trainers are good for business and not just by supplying runners. They bring additional income to the tracks in terms of betting, food and drink. They invariably bring along friends and family to see the pride and joy compete.
In the wider sense, they provide turnover for the feed and accessories industries, they buy pups or racing dogs (often the slower ones) to aid breeders and they help professional trainers in two ways. It is quite common for professional trainers to offer b&b for permit hounds when their owners go on holiday and many permit trainers finally get their hands on a decent hound, they will turn it over to a Mark Wallis or Charlie Lister in the hope of getting the very best out of it.
6) WELFARE – of all the areas that the industry would benefit by permit trainers, welfare is top of the list.
In the first instance, permit trainers are not a burden on homing charities. Nobody gets shot of their family pet at the end of its racing career.
Secondly, in a situation recently highlighted by Romford’s Phil Simmonds, permit trainers are not under pressure to have dogs permanently available in the way that BAGS trainers are. If he can only run once every ten days, through age or injury – no problem.
**Thirdly – a significant number of welfare issues relate to professionally trained greyhounds.
They are in a minority, but the scenario is a familiar one. They rent a kennel in the hope of attracting owners to pay kennel bills. They end up buying their own dogs and cannot make ends meet. I was recently quoted a figure, that unfortunately I cannot verify – that 60% of BAGS runners are owned by their trainers.
Still on welfare – is a greyhound in a better environment in a family home, waited on front paw and back paw, or in a kennel of 80 greyhounds and three staff?
Is its security better being in a family home or in a lock-up kennel?
I rest my case. . .
** The above has been written following a claim that a GBGB officer has been incorrectly quoted – I apologise for having clearly not remembered a discussion as clearly as I thought. I have amended the article at the first opportunity however I stand by my personal assessment of the situation.
