A Dying Breed

A Dying Breed

Douglas H

ook A D

ying Breed

Douglas Hook

Douglas Hook

A Dying Breed

ADyingBreedThroughlookingatthegreyhoundracingindustryonethingstandsoutaboveallotheraspectsof thesport,thefactthatinfivetotenyearsitwillhavechangedfortheworseunlessrevisionsareimplementedatafundamentallevel.Dog racing was once highly popular with 80 licensed greyhound tracks in Britain governed by the self-regulatingGreyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) but this has fallen to about 26 although there are some unregulatedracetrackstoo.Fromthedog trainers to thebookies,moneyormoreaccurately the lack thereof iskillingwhatwasoncea thrivingbusinessas littleasadecadeago.Thishas in turndisenfranchisedthemoreyouthful influence in thestadiums fromfollowingthefootstepsof thosethatarealreadyinvolvedingreyhoundracingandwhoareonlymanagingtoscrapalivingfromeverdwindlingfunds.PhilBroome,whohasbeenattendingPeterboroughasaprofessionalgreyhoundtrainerforalmostadecadeandhasbeentrainingdogssince1989,believeslikeothertrainers,theprofessionhasnofutureunlessmoremoneyisfiltereddown.Philisperplexedthatthenumberof raceshasgoneupfromthreemeetingsaweekandeightracespernight,tofourteenracespermeetforeachof thethreedays.“Moreisless”inthisinstancesaysPhil,“becausetheprizemoneyhasn’tincreased”Philsays“soit’sspreadthin.”Hetalksof theentrepreneurPaschalTaggartwithhighregard,statingthathewasabletomodernisethetracksintheRepublicof Irelandbytransformingtheimageof greyhoundracingtoappealtofamilies,businessandtheyoungergenerationbybuildingluxuriousstadiumswithmodernfacilities.Holdingcorporatedinnersandprovidingfamilyfriendlyareaswithgoodvisibilityof thetrack.Hehastheaimof bringinggreyhoundracingtothesamesocialstandingasthecreamof thehorseracingindustryashestatedinaninterviewwiththeGuardianaboutproposedplansfortheWimbledonStadium,“ThisisgoingtobetheRoyalAscotof greyhoundracing.”Couldthisbethefutureof greyhoundracing?ConBaker,directorof racingatPeterboroughhassimilarintentionsinordertodrawcrowdsandconsequentlymoney.HesaidinalettertoGOBATA(GreyhoundOwners,BreedersAndTrainersAssociation)that“Wearea fragmentedindustrylackingastructureand,asa sport,weneedacoming together,”hecontinued,“wecanallsitdownandwatch theworldnewsandsee countriesdisintegrating,thesadthingisthat greyhoundracingisalso disintegrating.”Conhastwentyyearsof experienceof managerialrolesinthesportandwantstodotwothingsatPeterborough;firstkeepthetrainersthatthestadiumhavealreadythroughincentivesandtakingonandpayingwagestotrainerslikePhilBroome.TheproblemthatnotonlyPeterboroughhas,butothertracksaswell,isattractingyoungertrainers.“It’svery,verydifficultforpeopletostartupincomparisontoafewyearsagowherepeopleoff thestreetcouldsetthemselvesup

very difficult for people to start up in comparison to a few years ago where people off the street could set themselves up as a greyhound trainer, now they have to jump through so many hoops as well as the costs involved.” Con states “The trainers we have now are more dyed in the wool, it’s very difficult for youngsters to break through”; secondly, by attracting more people through the door by running promotions in local papers for a free meal and pound entry, with the objective of increasing the take at the tote. The table service and three courses give the impression of a restaurant rather than a dog track. Con wants to shake off the stereotypes the industry has taken on over the years and show the clean cut look of modern dog racing, where Peterborough could be seen as the future. However this would mean that some of the older track goers, who have been making a living from the sport, may feel sidelined. ‘Maverick’, a thirty year veteran of the track is number one on the ranking of bookies, this is evidenced by his premium spot at the trackside. Positioned closest to the doors and finishing line, he and the four other bookies fight it out each night to undercut the others odds to attract bets. This is a battle fought three times a week, however no matter how heated it gets between them they all have an understanding, ‘what happens at the track, stays at the track’ and he clearly has a healthy respect for his contemporaries. “Bookmaking is a bit of a dying thing. When I first started, there were nine of us in a row at Peterborough dogs, but it’s got smaller and smaller” he continuous “it’s all gone upstairs”, a reference to the track Tote Maverick feels that the number of people coming to the meets has increased but they stay upstairs only betting a pound or two using the track totes rather than using Maverick, or his peers, on the track. It is plain to see that the people that come to see greyhound racing has broken into two specific categories, the diehard gamblers outside who know the dog’s odds almost by heart and youthful families and drinkers upstairs, twenty pounds seems to be the most that would be spent, where as the diehards according to Maverick, can gamble up to two hundred per dog but this is dwindling. “All the hundred, two hundred pound customers have all got older and died and haven't been replaced.” Even the track totes upstairs are feeling the pinch as figures from the Gambling Commission show that off-course betting fell to £1.26 billion in the year to March 2012, down 15 percent from 2008, while on-course betting dropped 21 percent to £30 million. There is no denying that the industry needs to change as well as the people invested in the sport in order for it to progress and flourish. But can these changes be implemented and will the people involved accept the changes that are needed. Dog racing as we know or perceive is in this state of transition, the old being replaced by the new. For bookies like Maverick there will always be a place, but they will have to adapt to the new ways and in this they face their greatest challenge.

“People who come greyhound racing purely for the entertainment value would be surprised if they were aware of the current state of the sport itself, we are in crisis, on the brink of our own form of civil war, anarchy, call it what you

want, and the blame has never been louder.” Con Baker, Director of Racing.

10 Dog getting weighted before race

12 Phil Broomes jacket and bag

16 Scales used if the computers ever go down

18 Race colours

20 Phil Broome walking to the track

24 Trackside

26 Toy’s for the dogs at the end of the race

30 Booklet give to all the race goers

34 Maverick looking at the dogs statistics before they arrive

34 Maverick with a punter

36 Tote booth trackside

38 Checking the results

40 ‘Dyed in the wool’ gamblers

42 One of Con’s ideas to attract custom

46 Richard photographing the winners

Special Thanks To:

Con Baker Richard Symons Phil Broome

Richard ‘Maverick’ Johnson Peterborough Greyhound Stadium

GBGB

A Dying Breed

Douglas H

ook A D

ying Breed