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Captain's Blog - 21st July 2011

I am Epsom bound this evening, not because I am a big fan of the teeny bopper band 'The Wanted' but duties beckon for a six race card with Chris Dixon as my guest. Unfortunatelty the cards have cut up somewhat and the Racing is not particularly competitive but most of the young girls who will be at Epsom to see their idols will not notice.

I have no problem with bands at Racecourses at all. Some people are very stuffy about it and do not believe that their evening of hardcore Racing should be spoilt by the presence of thousands of people who are there just for the band. I think it adds to the atmosphere. A full racecourse buzzing with excitement is surely better than an empty one with a few die hard fingerless glove paddock watchers wandering around. Equally at the end of the day Racecourses need to make money and having a band is a good way of doing that. Some feel that they should not have to pay the inflated entry prices if they are not going to watch the band after the Racing. Please tell me how a two tier price structure could be policed? Bands are here to stay folks so we should pay the entry price and get on with it, after all it might do the paddock watching brigade good to let their hair down now for a change.

I think I am set for a wet evening in the Epsom paddock as the forecast is not that good. This of course will probably mean that the stands side is the place to be as it has been of late at the track. It is not quite a case of first to the stands side wins but if you are three or four horse widths away from it forget it. This is a bias that has existed for years at the track when it rains and as such is a punters friend because we all know about it and it is always there like a grand old friend every time it rains at the track. Its existence is recognised by the track executive and they do not try to eradicate it and thereby create a nightmare for punters and connections of the horses as well.

Time for me to get a few chores done before having a look at the Epsom card and listening to a few Wanted numbers.

Today's Selection

2:45 Sandown - Stagecoach Danman