Risks of bodyweight on raceday exceed benefit

My goodness! I must admit to being a little taken aback at the response my blog has generated in such a short space of time. I would like to thank you for 'clicking on' - especially those of you who have taken the time to post your comments and suggestions.

I have received a number of remarks about our calling a halt to the weighing horses on raceday with the weights only now recorded on declaration day.

While I will pass the comments to the Racing Division for a more detailed reply, I have to say here that this was by no means a decision taken lightly. Racing control discussed this matter with trainers, owners and all the relevant staff. In the interests of both the horses and the sport, the unanimous conclusion was that the risks of producing these bodyweights on raceday exceeded the benefits.

In any case, the difference between the weights on declaration day and on raceday is typically less than 12lbs. Also, the weighing process, especially in Sha Tin, was causing several horses a degree of stress and this often led to late scratchings – something that is not in the interest of our customers either. As a result, we felt it best to stick solely to the declaration day weights.

Another topic that has surfaced in your comments has related to future betting initiatives that may be undertaken by the Club. It's true that we are conducting a study of takeout rates and reviewing our bet types and, incidentally, it's worth passing on that I was out for dinner one night with the CEO of TAB Corp from Australia. One of the topics discussed was the very popular Flexibet concept introduced in Australia last year. Flexibetting enables the customer to decide how much to spend on certain bets and accept a percentage of the dividends. It means betting to suit the budgets of smaller players. Customers can back combinations they otherwise may not have afforded, but still collect a proportionate share of the payout if their judgment is correct and this is something the Club wishes to investigate further.

Elsewhere, I was pleased to meet a former HKJC team member today when I attended our press conference announcing the details of our continued partnership with SaSa for the SaSa Ladies' Purse. There I met with the artist Tracy Ip, the former Miss Hong Kong. You may not know that before Tracy became famous, she worked as one of our Guest Relations Officers at Happy Valley and Sha Tin. We sure picked a winner when we hired Tracy and it's great to see how well things have turned out for her.

I'm looking forward to the racing this evening at Happy Valley. My favourite horses for tonight's meeting are Marvellous (No.3) and Feel-So-Good (No.8) in Race 4, Super Honey (No.4) and Top Top Light (No.7) in Race 5, Double Luck (No.5) in Race 6.

Finally, my blog will carry an RSS feed from now on. This will make it easier for you to keep up with my news in the future.