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BTC embarks on a tricky course

  April 21 , 2014
   

The Bangalore Turf Club has embarked on a major experiment with regard to the race track with the Summer Season set to start three weeks from now. The turf club authorities, in their wisdom have decided to discard the use of traditional tan bark on the track. The new person appointed as the Clerk of the Course is going to prepare the track using a mix of red soil and manure and possibly a bit of sand. Whether it was advisable to go in for experimentation when the prestigious summer season is due to start is something that is debatable.

Fresh tan bark had been used on the track for well over two decades. Each year`s residue has resulted in the height of the track going up by a few inches. Importantly, the track has stood the test of time and horses have relished the cut in the ground as against hard, dry surfaces prevailing elsewhere in India during the winter season. There have been fewer breakdowns of horses as compared to other centres. The club has been able to conduct racing even if there is continuous rain preceding the race day. The dry days and the dry track have also not posed problems for horses. Why then discard traditional wisdom and go in for experimentation especially since the summer season is a short one and there is little cope for rectification in the event of the experimentation failing. Mind you, rain is an integral part of the summer reason. The season could also be called summer-monsoon season for the sudden change in character in weather as well as underfoot conditions.

The Bangalore Turf Club Managing Committee in its wisdom has opted for the change ostensibly on the advice of many including the paid consultants. One is not sure whether the advising person is aware of the conditions that prevail in Bangalore right through the year. RWITC conducts its racing during the monsoon season on the monsoon track at Pune while its winter races are held at Mumbai where the track is hard and cannot take much of rain. While Kolkata and Hyderabad conduct their racing at the same centre, they have two tracks to take care of the different seasons. The same goes for Madras where they conduct racing at Ooty and Chennai. Only Bangalore and Mysore are the centres which have racing right through the year and on the same track. Maintaining the track for both seasons is itself a herculean task. Mysore is lucky in a way because racing doesn`t come under as much critical scrutiny as in Bangalore and the track conditions are often overlooked. The officials at Bangalore are definitely at a disadvantage. They have the onerous task of maintaining the track besides being targets of continuous abuse.

If one digs up the Bangalore Race track, the top layers don`t contain anything other than residue of tan bark. Though the race track looks green, there is overwhelming presence of weeds. The turf club spends crores of rupees every year on running racing including stake money and administrative expenses. But the club has not bothered to relay the track except bringing consultants to give their advice. Dick Robert from Australia had been summoned by the club though his services were not continued. The Australian reportedly had advised against use of tan bark. Recently, the club also sought the services of a company called Central India Turf and the company reportedly quoted a very high price for consultation charges itself. The club is used to keep the track in its present state with hardly any investment on it and is loathe to put money on the same as indicated by several years of inactivity. If at all change is required, ad hoc measures won`t help. A total revamp is the need of the hour.

There are many people who are happy at the new experimentation believing that tan bark was the biggest evil. Tan bark provides good cushioning to the track. Horses historically have been proved to enjoy cut in the ground. In recent years, several days of racing had been affected by heavy rain and cancellation of racing due to water accumulating at the 700 metres mark which almost severs as the collection point of water percolating from the back stretch as well as the homestretch. The immediate need was to attend this problem and creating better drainage facility. Instead the club has gone for superficial makeover.

There is flip side to the experimentation. If things go right, the promoters of this move can pat their backs. But because of rain and lack of tan bark, if the track goes awry and racing gets affected, one cannot even imagine what sort of backlash it triggers. It may have been a better idea to go for experimentation during the winter season where rain is not a factor and dry, hard track would have helped the cause of those who were for change. The Clerk of the course Raman has opted out this time because the club has mandated that no tan should be used. The onus is now on the inexperienced Shiva Prakash who has got a Post Graduate degree in Horticulture. Preparing a grass track that looks fine and preparing a race track that has to take the pounding of horses are separate things. One hopes that for the sake of change alone, the experimentation comes off failing which the summer season would see many victims.

 
 
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Total Comments : 1
Posted by Sudarshan on ( April 22 , 2014 )
Half measures are not going to help. The authorities should dig up the track after the summer season, relay it so that we will have a brand new track for the winter season. For this prpose even if we don`t have racing for four to five months, it would be fine. In any case, there would be three months gap between the two seasons and the same can be extended by another month. Track is of paramount importance for good quality racing. Hope authorities are serious about their act.
 
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