Racing wishes for 2019
- Going onto Odds Checker without having to encounter numerous mandatory updates
- The Tote introduces accumulator entry forms which can be scanned at point-of-sale and not re-keyed at the counter
- Forty-eight-hour declarations introduced for jump racing
- The BHA introduces punishments for whip abuse which act as a real deterrent
- Camera angles at Doncaster are improved to avoid runners disappearing behind trees and showing distant rear views
- Racecourses stop advertising in newspapers which don’t cover racing
- Racing Post editor Tom Kerr drops corny photoshop front covers of jockeys and trainers in fancy dress
- Newbury and Great Western Railway liaise over train services on race days
- Racecourses join the Plumpton example and charge £2 for race cards
- Race planning reflects the strengths and weaknesses of the horse population
- Enable to win a third Arc
- Ascot relay racing on all three big-screens facing the stands, and stop using one during the race to show the sponsor’s name
- Buveur d’Air to win a third champion hurdle
- Racegoers and connections support Kempton jumps meetings in greater numbers, because the writing is on the wall with continued modest attendance and participation
- A single, unified Tote – no more Ascot Bet, no more Chester bet and a big bet introduced to capture the imagination like the Qinte in France
- Winx carries on winning Australian Group 1 races and beats Black Caviar’s tally, before coming to Royal Ascot (the latter won’t happen, but we can dream)
- Longchamp remembers the British (and Irish) are coming for Arc weekend and has sufficient bars open, quickly served food available, and enough PMU kiosks
- Goodwood reopens a second road through the estate to speed-up journey-times to the racecourse without interruption
- Settled management teams are in place at Musselburgh and Towcester to allow racing to continue
- Ticket-tout bans extended to all racecourses as well as other sporting events
- All horses and riders come home safely in every race