After the Races.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume VII, Issue 326, 22 October 1896, Page 7

After the Races.

[By

Gipsy King]

Last week a young gentleman, who is a good allround sportsman, remarked to me, “ Why didn’t you el ite the handicapper for the erratic manner in which he put the handicaps together for the -—-meeting?” This young gentleman had an animal engaged at this particular meeting, and he had undoubtedly just cause for complaint for the inanner in which his nomination was handicapped. He didn’t complain so much about his own, but it was the lenient treatment meted out to two or three of the others, and the one that he picked as being well handicapped, and with which he reckoned he had no chance, won the said race quite comfortably. However, I replied to his query by asking, “ Why should I slate the handicapper ? I am not affected by the erroneous adjustment, and have nothing to do with the horse.” “ Oh, but you are a newspaper man, and ought to pitch into him.” “ But why should you not do your own criticism?” I replied, “ You own the horse, you are the aggrieved party, not I, and there does not appear any reason why I should take up the cudgels on your behilf, when you are quite capable to do so yourself. Suppose you write your own complaint out and send it to the paper for publication.” Our young sportsman, who is not slow in tumbling to a little logic, remarked, “You are right ; and now you ; come to mention the matter, I don’t see why you s should criticise when he has done you no ; harm lam with you there, and am now of • opinion that owners should do their own criti-; cising if they want to ventilate an injustice, or complain to the club for which the man handi- ■ caps.” lam pleased to meet one broad-minded owner, and this young gentleman’s statement quite cheered me, as it has been asserted that I am the only sporting scribe in the world that holds such advanced opinions—that it should be infra dig for a sporting writer to comment on the -handicapper. Of course there can be no objection in commenting on a handicap in a cursory sort of manner and to say that you prefer certain horses to others, but no writer should have a free hand ' to tear a handicapper to pieces.

' A few years ago I strenuously advocated that | the prize money for races in New Zealand was; very, disproportionate. Take for example the j New Zealand Cup. The first horse receives 1200 . sovs, the second horse 200sovs, and the third horse i 100 sovs. Now suppose that Irish Twist, Bessie ; McCarthy, and Loreli go to the post, and that they are all handicapped at Bst - a fair weight. Again 1 suppose, after a slashing race, Irish Twist wins. By a head, and the same distance separates Bessie i McCarthy from Loreli, is it fair that after the ’ three horses have each run as good a race as the. other the money should be distributed in such ai manner? It must be remembered that Irish; Twist, who carries the same weight as the others; and only defeats them by a head, receives 1200; sovs and all bets and dividends. -It appears en- I tirely unfair that Loreli, who runs third, barely; a yard off the winner, should only receive 100: sovs. There should be a more equal distribution' of the stakes, and to prevent any unfair compe-! tition between racing clubs the Racing Conference! should decide the percentage that a second horse! would be entitled to if certain amounts were; offered. In a race for 150 sovs third money 1 could be provided for. The owner of the first! horse can afford to stand a slice off the stake,: as he receives, as I said before, all the bets and! dividends- Owners are beginning to notice this discrepancy in the amount of prize money, and it will not be long before they agi'ate for a more equitable distribution. Since ray advocacy of this innovation I notice I have two well-known: sporting scribes with me, so I need not despair.:

At Ellerslie the two totalisators are now, coupled and one dividend computed. This is a! splendid idea on behalf of the press representa-i

tives, as they now have to write on<y one column of figures instead of two, and only one dividend instead of two. But I fail to see who else can obtain any advantage fi om the alteration. Certainly not the public. They are now worse off than they were before, when they could tell what a particular horse would pay on each machine, but now backers simply have to take pot luck as to the odds they are backing a horse at. As the outside and inside machines are some distance apart, there is no one crazy enough to buy a paddock ticket and keep rushing between the two machines just to see what odds certain horses are at, and yet the public have a right to know. This can be simply arranged by removing the outside machine alongside the inside one, with the figures in each machine exposed to both the inside and outside public. In this way it is easy fora backer to see what the investments are on each machine, and he can thus decide whether he will back the horse he fancies at the odds offered on the totalisator. The betting public were not slow in coming to the conclusion that the alteration was not for their good, and the club would be studying the interests of its many patrons by removing the outside totalisators in a position alongside those in the lawn. This arrangement, is carried out with every success at other places, and I would be glad to see the A.R.C. adopt the plan.

It has been said that pressmen are a longsuffering class, and I am more than satisfied that those who have to report race meetings at Ellerslie can claim to be of this class. A sporting pressman is denied all the pleasure which the crowds go out to a race meeting to enjoy, for the reason that he is a busy man from the time the first race starts. Few know the amount of trouble there is in compiling a report properly of a race meeting. Totalisator figures, names of jockeys, overweights, time of race, dividend, have all to be obtained from somewhere, and then the report of the race has to be written, which just keeps a

man going from race to race, and he will probably have to write up the particulars of the last race in the train going to town. The duties of a sporting scribe can be made very pleasant at a meeting if he is supplied with the information , mentioned, and if he has anything like a com- j fortable office or room to do his writing in. and ; the quiter it, is the better for the temper of the , scribe. At Ellerslie there is anything but com- ! fort, for in the first place one has to climb up ; into the parapet at the city side of the stand, . where a room is provided for the press. The ; room, of course, is right alongside the stairs, and as the public ascends and descends the noise is > simply deafening. Small boys with hob-nail ; boots take a special delight in seeing how fast; they can run down these stairs, and the noise ’ would nearly split one’s head in two. The local ' sporting pressmen have refrained from com-, plaining about the accommodation, but theirl patience is now just about exhausted. The press-j room should be on the ground floor, near the, secretary’s and weighing room, so that they may i be able to obtain more readily any information ; required. At present a list of the jockeys’ names i is supplied (after the horses are lining up at the ; post generally), also the totalisator figures. We! then have to fish out from some source the over- , weights, and the time for the race we get from a, j small board—when we can distinguish the figures. ; Now, the A.R.C. contemplates making some im-, provements, which are much needed, and the; present weighing and jockeys’ rooms, etc., are to; be removed to allow for the enlargement of the; lawn. While these improvements are in hand 1: think it an opportune time for the club to, erect a press room, properlv fitted up. If a protest is entered at Ellerslie, we never; hear anything about the particulars unless we descend from our elevated position and enquire. No particulars are likely to be supplied to us. At other race meetings I have attended the press arrangements are most complete, and it is not. necessary for any of the pressmen to leave the

room for any information for their report. All particulars are supplied by men employed by the club, consequently everything goes along merrily, and the work of compiling the newspaper report is considerably lessened and gives a man a chance of looking over some of the horses. Tn is cannot be done at Ellerslie, as it is “ go ” from the jump. A race club should show all consideration to pressmen, as they have to cater for the public, who are not slow in complaining if they are not supplied with the fullest particulars. I am making this appeal more on behalf of my confrere than from any benefit I will derive from a wellappointed press-room, because I shall not have to report any more race meetings at Ellerslie. Now that I have ventilated this grievance, I trust “ Phieton,” “ Hippona,” and Atlas” will continue to press for better and more convenient accommodation.