PHILIPRISING Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 INTERESTING article on the future of greyhound tracks - many of which are or were associated with speedway, here ... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-20968535 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orion Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 (edited) This can't be true ...Racers and Royals told me that there were more tracks opening than closeing and the sport was booming . Edited January 12, 2013 by orion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iris123 Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 He must have read that on Sportowefakty lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racers and royals Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 (edited) This can't be true ...Racers and Royals told me that there were more tracks opening than closeing and the sport was booming . Towcester racecourse opening this year-Coventry re-opened under Harry Findlay.Haven`t seen any Bookmaker owned tracks closing recently.It`s just the cowboy operators GRA and Stadia uk closing tracks.Yes the sport is facing difficult times but the independant owned tracks such as Yarmouth,Nottingham,Doncaster,Kinsley,Peterborough know how to promote the business and are doing ok-await your response. Edited January 12, 2013 by racers and royals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orion Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Towcester racecourse opening this year-Coventry re-opened under Harry Findlay.Haven`t seen any Bookmaker owned tracks closing recently.It`s just the cowboy operators GRA and Stadia uk closing tracks.Await your response. Who cares who's opening and shuting the tracks ..the bottom line unlike you said more tracks are closeing than they are opening read the figures . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 (edited) I tend to agree with Racers and Royals. Stats about closures/openings are skewed by which time scale you take. Afaik last year Oxford closed and Coventry opened. Oxford was deliberately run down by GRA and if promoted properly would prove a profitable exercise. Greyhounds are not without their problems and the loss of Sky coverage is a rather large cloud on the horizon. The Blue Riband event of the Derby is held at another GRA track which is being run down with a view to cashing in on development and it looks the battle for the 'Stow is now lost. But tracks like Yarmouth, Romford, Sittingbourne continue to thrive. Edited January 12, 2013 by salty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman2006 Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 (edited) Towcester racecourse opening this year- Towcester Opening a Track. Jeez that will be a stiff old track. Hope the Dogs can stay well!!! At least they won't have Jockeys up to Wrestle them to the floor. Edited January 12, 2013 by Starman2006 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mickthemuppet Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 INTERESTING article on the future of greyhound tracks - many of which are or were associated with speedway, here ... http://www.bbc.co.uk...ngland-20968535 Rather a poor story put out by the BBC It says,I quote : With the closure of Milton Keynes,Portsmouth,Oxford there are no greyhound tracks left in Central Southern England. What about Harlow,Romford,Sittingbourne,Swindon,Peterborough,Mildenhall,Crayford. and Brighton. There might even be more. The trouble with greyhound racing is now you can only treat it as a fun night out. When greyhound racing (like Speedway) was at the height of it's popularity after WW2 the Tote on tracks only took out 4% commission. Now it is around 30%. The bookmakers work on far higher percentage profits at greyhound meeting than they do at horse racetracks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parsloes 1928 nearly Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Rather a poor story put out by the BBC It says,I quote : With the closure of Milton Keynes,Portsmouth,Oxford there are no greyhound tracks left in Central Southern England. What about Harlow,Romford,Sittingbourne,Swindon,Peterborough,Mildenhall,Crayford. and Brighton. There might even be more. The trouble with greyhound racing is now you can only treat it as a fun night out. When greyhound racing (like Speedway) was at the height of it's popularity after WW2 the Tote on tracks only took out 4% commission. Now it is around 30%. The bookmakers work on far higher percentage profits at greyhound meeting than they do at horse racetracks Well, does seem a bit contrived to come up with a region never before described called 'Central Southern England'...!!! Guess they're referring to the loss of Reading and now Oxford. Places like Sittingbourne, Harlow, Crayford, Romford, Peterborough are too far east to be called 'central' but certainly Swindon would HAVE to be included in such a mythical 'region'..! Romford is indeed thriving : really big crowds on Fridays and Saturdays since the demise of the 'Stow. Amazing really that a track can run on those two successive nights and get big crowds on both. And it ALSO stages meetings on Mondays and Wednesdays too! Hardly a sport on its uppers! And I know what you mean when you say "the trouble with greyhound racing is now you can only treat it as a fun night out" but wouldn't it be great if more people regarded Speedway in the same way..: as a FUN, entertaining night out...? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman2006 Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Rather a poor story put out by the BBC It says,I quote : With the closure of Milton Keynes,Portsmouth,Oxford there are no greyhound tracks left in Central Southern England. What about Harlow,Romford,Sittingbourne,Swindon,Peterborough,Mildenhall,Crayford. and Brighton. There might even be more. The trouble with greyhound racing is now you can only treat it as a fun night out. When greyhound racing (like Speedway) was at the height of it's popularity after WW2 the Tote on tracks only took out 4% commission. Now it is around 30%. The bookmakers work on far higher percentage profits at greyhound meeting than they do at horse racetracks You forgot Poole.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racers and royals Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Well, does seem a bit contrived to come up with a region never before described called 'Central Southern England'...!!! Guess they're referring to the loss of Reading and now Oxford. Places like Sittingbourne, Harlow, Crayford, Romford, Peterborough are too far east to be called 'central' but certainly Swindon would HAVE to be included in such a mythical 'region'..! Romford is indeed thriving : really big crowds on Fridays and Saturdays since the demise of the 'Stow. Amazing really that a track can run on those two successive nights and get big crowds on both. And it ALSO stages meetings on Mondays and Wednesdays too! Hardly a sport on its uppers! And I know what you mean when you say "the trouble with greyhound racing is now you can only treat it as a fun night out" but wouldn't it be great if more people regarded Speedway in the same way..: as a FUN, entertaining night out...? Isn`t it strange that yourself and others are saying the same thing yet we must be all idiots because Orion is never wrong-When he last broached the subject i asked him to name any tracks that were closing apart from the ones owned by the cowboys the GRA and Stadia UK which he never did-i wonder why ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orion Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 (edited) Isn`t it strange that yourself and others are saying the same thing yet we must be all idiots because Orion is never wrong-When he last broached the subject i asked him to name any tracks that were closing apart from the ones owned by the cowboys the GRA and Stadia UK which he never did-i wonder why ? As i said before what does it matter who closes the track ? i said that more tracks are closeing than opening and the sport was going downhill( and you told me i was wrong ) and this has been confirmed by this statement not that it needed it . Little point in added a stat and asking a question that has no bearing on the point i made .You were wrong move on . Edited January 12, 2013 by orion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman2006 Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 I love it when Onion gets angry!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 2013 - Towcester opening - as far as I'm aware no closures confirmed as yet. What do they say about statistics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orion Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 2013 - Towcester opening - as far as I'm aware no closures confirmed as yet. What do they say about statistics? i guess that's why people take notice them over a long period rather than 11 days . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Last 12 months - Coventry opened, Oxford closed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedibee Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Last 12 months - Coventry opened, Oxford closed. how many times has Coventry opened and closed again a few months later ?, it has never been successful as a dog racing venue despite the primary sport for the stadium having to arrange it's race program to suit dog racing . and how long will the dog racing doors stay open this time ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 The promoter this time, Harry Findlay, is chucking money at it. Tote retentions roughly half of other tracks should make it an attractive night out for punters. Hope it works out for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greyhoundp Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 I am a former greyhound owner/Trainer, as per my name, yes figures are missleading, especially when taken over a short time span, if we look over say 3 years, what stadia have opened succesfully ? I am afraid to say i can think of none, but yes Coventry has reopened, but it was an existing stadium, so can we class it as new ?, and Towcester is planned to Open in 2013. Closures, and this is off the top of my head; Oxford, Portsmouth, Walthamstow, but what is really worrying is the threats hanging over Wimbledon, Belle Vue, Hall Green, Swindon, and to a lesser extent Birmingham & Poole, the only reasons the latter two are a little safer is that they are Council owned, but be assured Both The GRA and Stadia UK are only in this to sell Stadia, and line there own pockets, and top up pensions, the income they receive from greyhound racing itself, will barely cover the wage bill of these 2 organisations, so they have to sell stadia from time to time, so that they can continue. Whoever thinks Greyhound racing is thriving is living in cloud cuckoo land, Owners are down, Trainers are down, Spectator figures are down, Indeed there is a shortage of dogs themselves, Yes there may be an odd exception to this, but they are the exception rather than the rule, Stadium Closures continue as before, and as in Speedway the spectators are very much the same who went racing 10 years or more ago, except for the Saturday night 6 packers, and they are only in it for a piss up, and good night out, before they go Clubbing, very few if any attend on a regular basis from these promotions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orion Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Whoever thinks Greyhound racing is thriving is living in cloud cuckoo land, There is couple on here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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