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[Middle_Of_March]

However I do think we should move the forum Yankees to the members section, cos if my experience of previous festivals iss anything to go by, their poor record will only put off lurkers :excitement:

Now I’m offended! Cheeky bastard :glee:We made a profit on them last year in only our second season doing the monthly yankees. Mostly thanks to a Envoi Allen double with Samcro at 186/1!

 

[Middle_Of_March]

Disparaging the forum yankees? MoM will be here any moment to spank your bare bottom with the Envoi/Samcro double at triple figures one of them gave us last year! :boxing:

Ha - You called it.. I couldn’t resist :glee:

 

[Brital]

Only pulling your leg but either way I think I’m confusing yours with the festival daily & aggregate ones we do closer to the meeting itself. Never had a sniff off those :welcoming:

 

[Kevloaf]

Only pulling your leg but either way I think I’m confusing yours with the festival daily & aggregate ones we do closer to the meeting itself. Never had a sniff off those :welcoming:

I believe once upon a time, a fledging new forumite managed to make a profit from one of them :angel: - I wonder what happened to him :lemo:

 

[Cue Card]

After typing into google something along the lines of “Cheltenham Antepost bets” around June last year, I stumbled across FJF. Id just started my fourth year of ante post betting, and the stats would say it went onto be my best. A big part of that was because of this forum and having access to some comprehensive, well timed information (as early as 9 months before). Ultimately it helped me make more informed decisions about how I should play the Antepost market, let alone the info on the horses I should pick and when! I’m not a big player, so doubt my “points” moved markets!

I’ll be honest, half the time I don’t even realise I’m not logged in (might explain the visitor/member ratio if I’m not alone), I get lost in digesting some brilliant posts and then having two small kids, get pulled back into reality very very quickly! And that’s before I question if I’ll add any value with my comment.

I appreciate the input of the many well informed members on here, however In my opinion it’s members/lurkers like myself who will support the growth in the long term! So selfishly I’d say avoid restricting too much of the content available to keep attracting new members yet protect what you feel needs to be in order to keep those members who are willing to share their insights/opinions safeguarded.

But I’d say unless it’s broken, I’m not so sure you need to fix it! But that’s a question for the FJ Top table...

Keep up the good work Kev and the fellow moderators

 

[Garrison Savannah]

As someone else who has zero interest in flat racing I’d be against culling profiles of posters who haven’t logged in for a few months. Between may and September I’m in hibernation!

 

[Kevloaf]

Plenty of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' kind of lines.....(which I suppose is great!)

Would that be the majority stance? I might actually set up a poll for that? Just a yes or no...?


Is there anything people feel very strongly about wanting to change?



As I'm sure you can guess, I'm keen for this place to grow and thrive... but reading people saying that might be over complicating it is something I hadn't considered :biggrin-new:

 

[ryanh97]

Plenty of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' kind of lines.....(which I suppose is great!)

Would that be the majority stance? I might actually set up a poll for that? Just a yes or no...?


Is there anything people feel very strongly about wanting to change?



As I'm sure you can guess, I'm keen for this place to grow and thrive... but reading people saying that might be over complicating it is something I hadn't considered :biggrin-new:

Polls sound good to me Kev, and it will make Q happy :excitement:

Poll 1: Do things need to change - Yes/No
If yes; Poll 2: Options on what to change

 

[Kevloaf]

I've decided that having a 'post count' to hit, to access certain areas is not the way to go. Number of posts does not directly represent quality or importance (as I am sure we will all agree, as I have the most posts :highly_amused.



Encouraging (or forcing) people to post may result in threads over run with posts with little to no benefit and that isn't going to help anyone. I will look at members who sign up and have zero posts manually... that is not going to be acceptable unless they have exceptional circumstances and that will be on a case-by-case basis.

 

[Kevloaf]

Just for the people that have said they feel they have nothing to add, I echo what others have said, please don't feel like that!


I personally learnt a lot from lurking, reading and then asking questions and got very fair responses when I joined. There is hardly anything I know now about racing (and by golly I'm still learning) that I didn't pick up from here, and I want every single person who joins, or is a silent member who feels like that, to know I was exactly the same but I asked questions and wasn't made to feel stupid.

I promise that any question asked, if it's a genuine question :distracted:, will be responded to with a fair answer on here, without making people feel stupid. If anyone does 'mock' somebody for asking a question, they will get pulled up on it, and potentially get a temp ban. Fortunately this doesn't happen on here, but I want to make it clear for people who are maybe a bit aprehensive about posting because they feel some people are "too knowledgable", that this will never become an elite forum where people look down at those who don't know as much or are just getting started. As long as I have any sway whatsoever, it'll be for people who know nothing and want to learn, right through to some of the experts we have.

 

[Lobos]

Just for the people that have said they feel they have nothing to add, I echo what others have said, please don't feel like that!


I personally learnt a lot from lurking, reading and then asking questions and got very fair responses when I joined. There is hardly anything I know now about racing (and by golly I'm still learning) that I didn't pick up from here, and I want every single person who joins, or is a silent member who feels like that, to know I was exactly the same but I asked questions and wasn't made to feel stupid.

I promise that any question asked, if it's a genuine question :distracted:, will be responded to with a fair answer on here, without making people feel stupid. If anyone does 'mock' somebody for asking a question, they will get pulled up on it, and potentially get a temp ban. Fortunately this doesn't happen on here, but I want to make it clear for people who are maybe a bit aprehensive about posting because they feel some people are "too knowledgable", that this will never become an elite forum where people look down at those who don't know as much or are just getting started. As long as I have any sway whatsoever, it'll be for people who know nothing and want to learn, right through to some of the experts we have.

Well said kev. I echo all those comments. I was once a lurker on here wondering whether to join in and so glad I did. Best forum ever !

 

[robith]

Just for the people that have said they feel they have nothing to add, I echo what others have said, please don't feel like that!


I personally learnt a lot from lurking, reading and then asking questions and got very fair responses when I joined. There is hardly anything I know now about racing (and by golly I'm still learning) that I didn't pick up from here, and I want every single person who joins, or is a silent member who feels like that, to know I was exactly the same but I asked questions and wasn't made to feel stupid.

I promise that any question asked, if it's a genuine question :distracted:, will be responded to with a fair answer on here, without making people feel stupid. If anyone does 'mock' somebody for asking a question, they will get pulled up on it, and potentially get a temp ban. Fortunately this doesn't happen on here, but I want to make it clear for people who are maybe a bit aprehensive about posting because they feel some people are "too knowledgable", that this will never become an elite forum where people look down at those who don't know as much or are just getting started. As long as I have any sway whatsoever, it'll be for people who know nothing and want to learn, right through to some of the experts we have.

100%. I'm still a huge racing n00b really and always taken aback by this forum's generosity of knowledge, patience and spirit. Rather than being intimidating I find some of the most knowledgeable poster than most approachable.

 

[Brital]

Just for the people that have said they feel they have nothing to add, I echo what others have said, please don't feel like that!


I personally learnt a lot from lurking, reading and then asking questions and got very fair responses when I joined. There is hardly anything I know now about racing (and by golly I'm still learning) that I didn't pick up from here, and I want every single person who joins, or is a silent member who feels like that, to know I was exactly the same but I asked questions and wasn't made to feel stupid.

I promise that any question asked, if it's a genuine question :distracted:, will be responded to with a fair answer on here, without making people feel stupid. If anyone does 'mock' somebody for asking a question, they will get pulled up on it, and potentially get a temp ban. Fortunately this doesn't happen on here, but I want to make it clear for people who are maybe a bit aprehensive about posting because they feel some people are "too knowledgable", that this will never become an elite forum where people look down at those who don't know as much or are just getting started. As long as I have any sway whatsoever, it'll be for people who know nothing and want to learn, right through to some of the experts we have.

Maybe a stupid questions thread?

I’ve never figured out why horses tend to go PTP, then bumpers (Flat Racing), hurdles before some end up back over fences.

Im at a loss to understand that sequence.

 

[Kevloaf]

Maybe a stupid questions thread?

I’ve never figured out why horses tend to go PTP, then bumpers (Flat Racing), hurdles before some end up back over fences.

Im at a loss to understand that sequence.

Yeah, I like that, set that up...with that exact question as well... not a stupid question at all.

 

[robith]

I always tell my team at work, the only stupid question is the one you don't ask

 

[Spectre]

Maybe a stupid questions thread?

I’ve never figured out why horses tend to go PTP, then bumpers (Flat Racing), hurdles before some end up back over fences.

Im at a loss to understand that sequence.

Tradition. Bumpers in my opinion are a wasted season for most horses at the top end. I'd only use bumpers for less mature types that really do need a season under their belts.

A high profile example would be why is Sir Gerhard not over hurdles at his age.

It's also part of the reason why French horses usually appear more forward and mature. Most haven't have been over obstacles much earlier than their British and Irish counterparts.

Whilst he uses bumpers, how many horses do you see Willie keep back for a whole year to mature? Usually when he uses bumpers for his very good horses it is a 'generational delay' thing, or racecourse experience for horses that don't settle.

 

[Deleted member 4957]

Tradition. Bumpers in my opinion are a wasted season for most horses at the top end. I'd only use bumpers for less mature types that really do need a season under their belts.

A high profile example would be why is Sir Gerhard not over hurdles at his age.

It's also part of the reason why French horses usually appear more forward and mature. Most haven't have been over obstacles much earlier than their British and Irish counterparts.

Whilst he uses bumpers, how many horses do you see Willie keep back for a whole year to mature? Usually when he uses bumpers for his very good horses it is a 'generational delay' thing, or racecourse experience for horses that don't settle.

Bumpers were a means of introducing a horse into NH racing, generally in the UK 25 years ago or so a horse would run in a PTP or two, get bought at the Summer sales, then the following season have one run in a bumper then go hurdling.
In Ireland there was always a greater focus on bumpers with far more bumpers than in the UK, so much so they used to have (may still do) eight of them at the Punchestown festival, and when the bumper was introduced at the Cheltenham festival (1991 ?) it kind of kick started a greater focus for UK trainers on the division.

I remember Colin Tizzard once say that the modern way is impatient with owners demanding instant success with the French breds and win races at 4/5/6, at the time he had Cue Card as a youngster and he was saying he doesn't expect to see CCs full potential until he's 8 or 9 and even said a number of his horses won't see a racecourse until they're 5.

Ultimately if you have a top class 5yo French bred he/she will be gone by 9/10, you have a UK bred that starts their career at 5 and there's every chance they'll be running as well at 10 as they were at 7 and will probably still be putting in performances at 12+...

 

[Redbridge]

Bumpers were for those of us that could not afford shoes.

 

[Spectre]

I get the educational aspect, but there are plenty of horses where Bumpers just aren't necessary. For me that's not about an impatient owner specifically (although it can be sometimes), it's about whether it's necessary to delay a horse's hurdle campaign. I fa horse is mature enough for hurdles at 4, 5, or 6 why the default bumper campaign? Even more so for horses that have already had a PTP campaign.

Many trainers send there horses to bumpers just because that's what you do. I once challenged a trainer I had a horse with and asked him why he wanted to run my horse in a bumper rather than get on with a hurdles campaign, and he had no answer other than a bit of mumbling and fumbling. You'd get the same mumbling and fumbling from many more trainers than him if you asked them.

 

[Deleted member 4957]

I get the educational aspect, but there are plenty of horses where Bumpers just aren't necessary. For me that's not about an impatient owner specifically (although it can be sometimes), it's about whether it's necessary to delay a horse's hurdle campaign. I fa horse is mature enough for hurdles at 4, 5, or 6 why the default bumper campaign?

I don't disagree Spectre but graded bumpers pay just as much as graded hurdle races in Ireland (or at least used to), if the pot is there many owners/trainers will be incentivised to target it...