SIMON NOTT: Baaeed Who?

I was listening to the excellent ‘Nick Luck Daily’ podcast yesterday…

Lee Mottershead was talking about how Champions Day at Ascot has been a success for the industry and attendance but has failed to live up to The Grand National or Royal Ascot when it came to viewing figures. This year’s hopes rested on the participation of Baaeed on the card might spark public imagination.

At this point, I’d like to ask how many people know the name Wilfredo Leon Venero and would TV adverts trumpeting his name get you to tune in to whatever he was on this weekend?

If you are an avid volleyball fan then I’m sure you’d be already sat bolt upright, anyone else might be wearing a puzzled look. Sadly, despite what those of us in the industry might like to think, it’s the same with racing. Baaeed is going to mean absolutely zilch to the masses. Yes, we are all very excited to see the wonder horse run again, but we are already racing fans. To gain new ones is the long game. The Grand National is part of the nation’s psyche and nothing compares to Royal Ascot, there must be thousands like my mum who watch it every day on the TV for the pageantry and the hats.

I’m afraid that to those outside of racing, Baaeed is not a draw. It’s the long game, racing needs to create racing fans, get them interested at grass roots level. Then in a few years, watching the best of Baaeed’s offspring run might well be a huge event. First, the industry needs to start at the beginning. Rather than look inwards, look out. Sell the sport to people who wouldn’t ever think of going racing, encourage people to take nonracing friends to their local course. Then when they do, make them welcome. What other business would ban legal currency, stop people paying on the gate, and have no contingency plan if technology fails. How many students looking forward to their recent day out at the races will be back again after they couldn’t use their cards and couldn’t spend cash.

Racing attendances are still down after Covid, is that not because people get out of the habit of going racing and don’t get back into it. In the same vein, people are going to be feeling the pinch this winter. Make racing affordable to all, and reopen all those Silver Rings that were closed down. Most of them are still there, neglected, the ones that are still open are busy. When times are better those Silver Ring punters may upgrade to Tatts again. Let’s get people going racing again and let them spend cash, the sport can’t afford to alienate its diminishing audience.

I was at Salisbury for their last meeting of the season. There was a good crowd there, including the Silver Ring and a packed Press Room. I had arrived early to interview paddock judge Ken Pitterson, look out for that one very soon.

I’d picked a spot in the small but generally ample facilities and didn’t expect much company. Needless to say, I was quite surprised when I got back there after recording the four parts and found it packed. By the time the horses were going down for the first, it was standing room only. There were a few grumbles from later arrivals, I kept my head down as it was my first visit this season to a course I never used to miss at.

Anyway, my business was done at the course, but my plan was to edit the video and enjoy the afternoon’s racing. I glanced through the racecard and made a comment that the King had a runner today. Well, the groan that went up was quite something, even Richard Hoiles, the nicest man in racing had a little sigh, but then kindly informed me, ‘That’s why everyone is here Simon.’

I did feel a little bit foolish, so thought it prudent to go down to visit one of my favourite racecourse regulars, Sir Rupert Mackeson. Rupert sells books on the racecourse and has what you might describe as a colourful past. He’s always got something to tell me and does so with some colourful language, he doesn’t suffer fools gladly and lets me know in no uncertain terms. He’s a lovely chap though, I interviewed him back in 2018 where he described said past and finished off telling us what exactly happened to his old pal Lord Lucan.

Over in the betting ring, on the rails to be exact, betting under late Danny McNab’s moniker was another racecourse legend, none other than Stephen Little. Stephen has hardly been a stranger to the racecourse since he retired from the ring just before the Betfair revolution. He’s been around all that time, sometimes seen with a couple of phones in his hands, glancing from one to another before darting in to bet with any bookmaker that’s taken their eye off the ball.

Most recently, he was working on Australian bookmaking legend Rob Waterhouse’s joint at Royal Ascot, taking bets. I’m guessing that might have whetted his appetite for the ring again. One thing that’s been missing on both occasions was his trademark, not mink as is the misconception, but musquash, coat. Yes, I know that they are both expensive fur clobber but Stephen did correct me in my #BettingPeople interview with him so it obviously matters.

For younger readers, Stephen Little was the biggest independent bookmaker in the country back in the 1990s. He’d take £100,000 bets without blinking, twist card elastic banded to his wrist and state of the art mobile regularly at his ear. His clerk John would be writing £10,000 bets down next to £1 each-way bets taken in succession, an art to watch.

Anyway, the good news is, Stephen is writing a book and the Bad Baronet is editing it. Rupert told me, ‘Expect no punches to be pulled’. Of course, us betting fans of a certain age are going to look forward to that being published, though I’m sure that realists Rupert and Stephen don’t expect it to sell widely beyond their niche audience. That is a shame of course because Stephen’s story is surely worthy of more.

The good thing is though, when it’s out and there are piles of the book on Rupert’s stall, he’s certainly going to sell you one when you pull out cash money as will Stephen if you ask him for a bet. Racecourses, be more like Rupert and Stephen.

SIMON NOTT

Views of authors do not necessarily represent views of Star Sports Bookmakers.

Simon Nott is author of: Skint Mob! Tales from the Betting Ring
available on Kindle CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS