The old days are officially over, writes Jonny Turner.
Well, they certainly are for the harness code across the Southland border.
What caused it, to some, is probably not a big deal.
Earlier this week, this newspaper reported how a collaborative scheme had brought online video coverage of all of the province’s trials and workouts.
Possibly nothing major — but I would argue much differently.
The move is a vital step in making racing transparent in the area. For me, that transparency is the the most crucial thing in making racing in this country sustainable.Whichever code, wherever the races, offering a transparent betting product is the only way to sustain the customers.
The importance of this is widely recognised now, but it has not always been the case. Go to any race day and the tales of yesteryear are as easy to find as losing tickets.
The heydays, the good old days, the glory days. When grandstands were packed, there were queues to get in the gate and you wouldn’t want to show up without your number ones on.
What I wonder is if it was not that generation that took racing completely for granted.
Because as easy as it is to find tales of how good things used to be, it is just as easy to find tales of an old-fashioned stitch-up.
Horses being pulled up, horses being set up and hidden away for a punt, and there’s even the odd tale of a ring-in.
Sure, they certainly did not all happen around these parts, but everything was not sweet and innocent all of the time in the South either. When many of the older generation tell these tales, their eyes light up.
I will admit these stories do make for incredible and daring tales.
Thirty or forty years ago, racing saw highly competitive times where there was an opportunity to do almost anything to win a race.
But I wonder how many owners and punters who were on the receiving end of these dodgy antics were put off the game.
And, even more importantly, I wonder how many of their children got told not to bother following the horses. Walk down the street and ask anyone if their family is involved in racing and a typical response is that they are not but their family used to be.
There could be a hundred reasons why and I believe this column touches on one of them.
The good news is that now, racing information is as free as the air we breathe.
Trackside cameras, social media accounts, news and marketing desks, radio shows and, of course, your trusty local newspaper — if you live in Otago, where racing is afforded strong local coverage — offer a wealth of information.
Trainers, drivers and jockeys even have their own media people updating their websites — incredible when you consider where racing came from, a place where keeping a secret was the golden rule.
The new era relies upon industry participants freely giving up their time and I can’t thank the ones I talk to enough for that.
Long may it continue, this merry-go-round of updates, news reports and video footage.
Racing still has its integrity challenges and there are plenty of stigmas too for the industry to defeat.
Perhaps the next challenge is for the thoroughbred code. There are still plenty of jumpouts that go unrecorded and unpublished — largely outside of this province.
Its seems at the moment, though, it would be nearly impossible to keep anything a secret.
