Southern Harness Racing is taking the positives from its innovative meeting at Winton last weekend.
The organisation, which administers all of Southland’s harness clubs, programmed a race day, in conjunction with the Winton Harness Racing Club, designed to appeal to punters and revive declining turnover.
Studying the high points of turnover at previous meetings led to a card of mobile racing with a limited front line and 10-horse fields filled with horses rated closely together.
The trial did not result in an immediate boost in turnover, but it provided enough positives to be considered a success.
One of the main factors for that was the even and fair racing on the track, Southern Harness Racing chairman John Earl said.
“The positive that came out of it was that five winners came off the front and five came off the second row of the mobile.
“There were very few judicial problems and the racing was very fair.”
“And the winners came from everywhere — three horses came from nearly last before the home turn.”
Sunday’s meeting is hoped to be the starting point for providing a consistent product to punters.
Offering fair and competitive racing through mobile starts and small fields that feature few hard-luck stories should provide a consistent betting race punters can invest on with confidence, Earl said.
Southern Harness Racing will look to replicate a meeting like Sunday’s one again after the busy Christmas and New Year racing period is over.
“We have got the people talking and I take my hat off to the clubs down here,” Earl said.
“They are willing to change things and they are willing to try things to drive turnover.
“We want to change things because what we are doing is clearly not working.
“Doing nothing is not an option.”
A cold and wet day was believed to have hindered betting turnover at Winton on Sunday.
Competing with another domestic harness racing meeting and a thoroughbred meeting could have also impacted turnover, Earl said.
Another innovative concept aimed at driving turnover and interest in harness racing will be unveiled at Addington tomorrow afternoon.
Addington will host a 10-race card in less than three hours that is being branded as harness racing’s equivalent of twenty20 cricket.
Races will be split by 18-minute gaps, rather than the usual break of 30 minutes.
Much of the promotion of the event will be targeted at on-course patrons.
The make-up of the fields for tomorrow’s meeting has parallels with the Winton meeting.
Races will all start under mobile conditions and will be limited to 10 starters.
Six horses will start on the front row of the mobile and four on the second line.
