The Future Of Club Racing

[sherry]

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ive been asked to pass this on off terry black who runs westerhope handicap. ive copied the e mail she sent me and im going to post it on here. il then say a few ideas ive said to her today and hopefully some more of you can give us some ideas. thanks.

Hi Carol,Please pass on to as many people as you can. _*The Future of club racing is in your hands.*_ Where have all the dogs gone ? Is club racing a thing of the past ? How long can we last without your help ? Handicp racing has been around for many many years 41 years that I know of. Club racing was and is still great. Weekends are special days. Years ago everyone looked forward to the weekend. There was an abundance of clubs in the North East. The reason they closed down, ? Yes lack of members.As dogs got older the members retired with them.Some of you today will not remember club racing as it was. On a Saturday and Sunday morning everyone was on a high, Winning the handicap then was as great as getting a racing championship now. There were as many heats on a Saturday and Sunday morning as there are at a good open race now. Match racing was every week, as much as a fiver was taken. A lot of money then. The bar was packed out after the racing ,when the winners of the day recieved their prize money a game of bingo always followed . Everyone liked a drink and It was a good job the dogs knew their way home as the owners were always a little worse for wear. But the bar was full again by 7.o clock and sometimes a few arguments took place when talking about what had happened during the racing that day. I surpose nothing much has changed now. Then yards per lb racing came on the seen, at first there were only a few opens a year but as interest grew more and more opens were called for.No one can blame people wanting to have a racing champion but after you use your club to train your dogs ,it is then that the club loses you. The clubs that remain are still run by trully dedicated people, nothing is a problem for them, they come religiously every racing morning. It is great to get together, a cuppa , a few sweets a joke even a pork pie goes down well. But what is missing is a few more dogs, I know the opens will start to die down for the winter and a few dogs may appear but we still need more to survive.The clubs have bills to pay, renting the track for the year is not cheap. Some have to pay whether they are there or not. *So I ask you all out there to put your thinking caps on and give us some ideas of how we can carry on to be there for you.Please dont let club racing die. You can e-mail me at terry8jane@blueyonder.co.uk Many Thanks for listening. Terry Black at _Westerhope_

 

[sherry]

just a cople of ideas ive thought of.

1. have an agm each year and try and get some ideas from your members

2. midweek racing during the summer (no good 4 me as i work)

3. try and get some local maybe the free paper involved

4. put results in the whippet news each month i also put them online ( u never know whose reading both)

in the north east REGION we only have 2 clubs (wallsend) @ westerhope and the rising sun (@ wallsend) neither have a vast amount of dogs but we r managing to survive there was 6 today @ w/hope im lucky 2moro i think i have 11 which is good 4 us but i know once the bends start we may lose some. im sure terry wud appreciate any comments anyone will have either via here or e mail her direct. cheerz carole

 

[JOHNG]

club racing as been on the decline for a good few years now.

one reason in my opinion is that know one wants a club dog anymore the majority want an open class dog. and you can't open race without the clubs,

one idea try and put different formats of racing on to suit all types of whippet

i.e. yd/lb + scr + time handicap

or try and contact some of the pedigree whippets in your area to come along and race.

 

[sherry]

THANKS JOHN IL PASS THOSE SUGGESTIONS ON. WE DID HAVE A LAD COME WITH 2 PEDIGREES BUT HES NOT BEEN 4 A WHILE NOW

 

[kate lynch]

i completly agree with this statement :thumbsup: when my dad always goes on about when shildon track was open like 190 dogs would turn out on a sunday morning then once it was over everyone was off down the local pub i mean now we go to an open and dont even see 90 dogs turn up.

however i do beleive alot of people have been put off dog racing because off all the backstabbing and bitching and also genrally alot of the people have grown a little old and not able to manage dogs any longer.

its a sad shame to see dog racing going down hill as a younen :lol: but i do enjoy what i do see of it, and i like to go to opens race the dog and have a natter n a bit of fun and got to say i have met people that are now my life long freinds that i would of met otherwise and i dont know what id do without them :wub: soo yerr.

my ideas.

1. try to put an open on every weekend

2. every club should have an open to raise money for that club in order to keep the track open.

3. if clubs need trophies why not ask people if they want to sonsor trophies or put a trophy on like we did with son of bitch and buffalo bill and that will save the club money.

8) 8)

 

[Trojan]

I personally think the amount of 'opens' we now have has had a big impact on the decline of clubs and the fact that now most people are happy to travel, gone are the days where the locals 'walked' to their local clubs for a run most people now own a vehicle so can travel to which ever track they want to. The racing calendar is now overflowing with opens. additionals, top ten, fed and bwra so people are not attending clubs the same, i think if we cut down on opens maybe clubs would get better attendances again.

Clubs were once the place we gathered for social gatherings a drink in the bar afterwards etc now its the open circuit

 

[Karen-Coral]

I personally think the amount of 'opens' we now have has had a big impact on the decline of clubs and the fact that now most people are happy to travel, gone are the days where the locals 'walked' to their local clubs for a run most people now own a vehicle so can travel to which ever track they want to. The racing calendar is now overflowing with opens. additionals, top ten, fed and bwra so people are not attending clubs the same, i think if we cut down on opens maybe clubs would get better attendances again.Clubs were once the place we gathered for social gatherings a drink in the bar afterwards etc now its the open circuit

I totaly agree years ago opens were a special event and you would be very lucky if able to get there as cars /vans were limmited to those with plenty of money and the people racing whippets were working class who liked a few pints at there local where the local WRC club members would meet and run dogs ------

Maybe hire a mini bus and a few would go to an open sharing costs -------

They only traveled --if lucky once a year-- on holiday to Blackpool./Skegness/Morecambe--or the likes. Money was tight--

But then you maybe had 15 or more local clubs on your doorstep i know we did in the North West only a 15 minute trip away at most an hours trip---inter club racing was popular great team atmosphere at these meetings --

You would never dream of a weekend away in caravan just whippet racing unheard of let alone ten days in Devon

----ten days in Scotland!!!

BRWA Champs straights Measham was the place if you qualifed/or Halifax--for bends---far to many opens on now and far to few dogs as a result--soon no clubs --then no opens --no BWRA no FED-- sad !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!but true--

steve

 

[sherry]

hmm yes there very well may be too many opens etc but wot we r looking for is suggestions on bringing people back to the clubs. weve had a lovely morning @ the rising sun this morning with 10 dogs on the card 1st £15 2nd £10 there was 3 time trials, quite a few run ups. then a few of us went in the pub 4 a coke where there was a leek show going on in there. weve had 2 puppy greyhounds coming 4 a few weeks now the lad who has them used to have whippets. u never know maybe he cud b persuaded into getting back into it.

another suggestion from a member this morning was to put a puppy handicap on which i know has went down great @ aycliffe so again il pass all your comments on. keep them coming.

@ the rising sun we have top dog and top bitch which gain points all year to become top dog.top bitch maybe we cud have handicap champion or something like that?

i think advertising wherever we can can only do whippet racing good.

 

[sherry]

we were chatting this morning about this. we used to run 4 a trophy every month @ the rising sun then also have dog of the month etc. 4 a start i have no idea where all the old trophies went and they were old so one of my suggestions is to have 4 trophies a year spring/summer/autumn/winter which then make them more special to win. dog of the month is prob a no/no as sometimes the same dog cud win twice in 1 month or there may only b 1 or 2 h/caps that particular month. graded racing used to go down well but dont know if that wud work when u have 1 or 2 owners with 3 dogs each in the h/cap which means their dogs cud b in together???? all just ideas im thinking of. i myself am goin to try and get in touch with local papers etc and c if there wud b any interest in doing a feature as i know some of u have done.

 

[stormy weathers]

Personally I think the only way you gonna get more ppl club racing is cutting down the number of opens, even if you do advertise and get more ppl involved once they get their dogs up and running they are going to go open racing aswell. Everyone would much rather open race than club race especially if the distance you have to travel is the same. We mostly club race but again thats due to our location.

So other than cutting opens I really dont think there is much more anyone can do.

Valerie

 

[Trojan]

Personally I think the only way you gonna get more ppl club racing is cutting down the number of opens, even if you do advertise and get more ppl involved once they get their dogs up and running they are going to go open racing aswell. Everyone would much rather open race than club race especially if the distance you have to travel is the same. We mostly club race but again thats due to our location. So other than cutting opens I really dont think there is much more anyone can do.

Valerie

:thumbsup: My point exactly Valerie, if there wasn't an open every week. people who wanted to race would attend the clubs :thumbsup:

As for differing formats Manton at least once a month ran for a trophy with a different format(see pre 2009 fixtures list most formats were on there) still didn't work, advance and retard handicap system nope... yd/lb or 2ft/b abc was what was asked for to enable ALL dogs at last two runs but still hasnt improved attendances. Free presentations as incentives nope, not sure what more can be offered by clubs, if people prefer to go to opens and not clubs nothing more can be done is my personal opinion but when you work your .... off for a club and don't get the support thats when it becomes disheartening :wacko: Sorry this was the wrong time for this to be put on just been down to the club this morning, got the traps and lure out, sorted the draw, 3 races a dog in each race, ran dogs as Sadie was trapping, I was judging mum was doing lure, then the equipment has to be put away again !!!!! What we have to remember though is most of us find a club to train our pups, readyto go out into the big wide open circuit, to gain the champs we all strive for, but what happens when the clubs are no more !!!

Erm...... here i am having a moan but guess what bet i'll be there doing the same next week (w00t) Rant over for now, dinner is calling which i have had to make too :angry: :lol:

 

[sherry]

unfortunatly we cant stop the opens and when u think about it the straight season is only april to sept with 1 in march and 1 in oct but then u have the (dreaded) bends which seems to me to last 4eva but thats only coz im not keen lol well im going to try and think of ways to try and up attendence @ the 2 clubs here. ive enjoyed the h/cap this morning there was some close racing. i enjoyed it y/day even though only 6 dogs. i think the h/caps r a lot more social than opens as u have more time.

anyway like ive said any useful suggestions is wot im after. cheerz :thumbsup:

 

[wild whippies]

I agree open racing does hinder club racing. My own gripe being those that come along, train their pups then are never to be seen again until they've got their next up and coming youngster that they wish to train with our regular club dogs / pedigrees.

Dogs that don't make open class standard get a bum deal IMO. Their owners can either break their hearts letting them get beat in opens or get bounced about by every dodgy dog that comes along for trialling or free up space at home for something faster by selling them on.

There's 2 ways to go IMO:

Carry on, club attendances will run down and I suspect regardless of trialling passports there will be an increase in dogs tackling because some of these club dogs might be encouraged to race in opens where'll they'll become increasingly frustrated. Some dogs won't ever be passported properly because they never got the opportunity to clearly pass a slower dog. There'll also be another group of racers who'll take time out for a few years because their current dog isn't good enough or they'll sell on and get something else in that's faster. I personally think this results in less dogs running and less newcomers coming into the sport

Or we could promote club dogs, to me it's the only way your going to give anyone the incentive to keep a slower dog especially if they're wanting to race.

Ideas?

A top trainer award for dogs that trial with these up and coming open class dogs. Clubs keeping a points system for these dogs and awards being given for the winning dog within the club and a ''Top Ten'' feature being promoted in WN. I think prizes should be subsidised by both the BWRA and NNWRF as it is those organisations that have to endure a pile of hassle when dogs are not competently trained for racing.

Club opens to have on the day of their events a club dog racing class, a lurcher racing class and a peddy racing class, all done on time handicapping open to any dog from any club in the country.

Organisations and open event hosts to be informed about dogs being disqualified from an event. Disqualified dogs must return to club racing for re-training and no entry to any event without a written statement from the club assuring it's honesty.

I think our club does well for several reasons:

If it can chase a lure, it can run.

Many of us within the club have dogs that are not open class and prefer to keep our pets and run them at the club.

The vast majority of our club racing is on a time handicap.

For the straights we have a lurcher show that's always well attended, our George Hartley Memorial has pedigree racing and both the Valentine / Sailaway Open and our BWRA Bend Bonanza have races for peds, lurchers and even a dash for terriers. All of which have a good spread of trophies, velvet jackets and other goodies to be won.

 

[sherry]

THANKYOU JAQS THERES SOME GREAT IDEAS THERE IL PASS ON MUCH APPRECIATED :thumbsup:

 

[Doreen Hopkins]

Some great idea's on here. I just wondered what other clubs would do if they had a member/members

whose attitiude to other club members was creating such an atmosphere that some members stop coming to the club

to race their dog, whether it be a club dog or an open class dog.

Me being stubborn ( or bloody minded ) can ignore this kind of attitude, but unfortunately some people

can't and it deters them from coming to support the club.

regards

Doreen

 

[sherry]

Some great idea's on here. I just wondered what other clubs would do if they had a member/memberswhose attitiude to other club members was creating such an atmosphere that some members stop coming to the club

to race their dog, whether it be a club dog or an open class dog.

Me being stubborn ( or bloody minded ) can ignore this kind of attitude, but unfortunately some people

can't and it deters them from coming to support the club.

regards

Doreen

im not really sure wot u cud do there. we @ the rising sun and westerhope tend to be friendly clubs i think if we had some kind of problem then maybe the commitee wud have some kind of meeting. theres nowt worse that a bad atmosphere. weve had our arguements @ wallsend but we always seem to sort them out. maybe a commitee member cud have a queit word with those causing the problem or do it in a jokey way.

by the way thanks for the pms with suggestions ive got some great ones now which il put together and send in a email to terry and between us we may get more dogs. thanks everyone :thumbsup:

 

[halloween]

Just thought i would add my bit, in the 70s and 80s there were sometimes 3 opens on a weekend and some during the week . Club racing around here attracted 30+ dogs,saturday,sunday,wednesday and thursday. There are LESS opens now and i don't think that opens are the problem. In my view more people are needed in the sport and instead of people "getting rid" of dogs because they aren't open class why not try keeping them and enjoy club racing instead.

 

[sherry]

Just thought i would add my bit, in the 70s and 80s there were sometimes 3 opens on a weekend and some during the week . Club racing around here attracted 30+ dogs,saturday,sunday,wednesday and thursday. There are LESS opens now and i don't think that opens are the problem. In my view more people are needed in the sport and instead of people "getting rid" of dogs because they aren't open class why not try keeping them and enjoy club racing instead.

yes thats great in theory ( e always keep our dogs) but wot can we do to make people want to race @ the handicaps??

 

[sherry]

im thinking of putting together some kind of club magazine featuring our regions 2 clubs with write ups on each dog, club results that kind of thing. then maybe if we get some people just coming to have a look then we can let them have a copy of the latest magazine/leaflet type thing. u know how much i love writing. and i get bored in the winter lol

 

[chartpolski]

If a dog had to have a certain amount of runs at it's registered track before it was allowed to run in the Championships... you would soon see more dogs in the local handicap !! Perhaps something the BWRA may think about ?

Cheers.