Orfevre's Final Race 60,000 Show Up!

[nijinski]

http://youtu.be/Pvj1bB4ayT4


Geez did I hear announcer say over 116,000 , Hmmm.
What a way for the Japanese TC winner to go out !

[thespaah]

http://youtu.be/Pvj1bB4ayT4
I watched this live on HRTV....
One thing I noticed was packed grandstands. Not a empty seat in sight.
What the hell do the Japanese do so well with their horse racing that we here in the States cannot do?
There is just as much competition for the gambling dollar in Japan as there is here. So there goes that excuse right out the window.

[nijinski]

I watched this live on HRTV....
One thing I noticed was packed grandstands. Not a empty seat in sight.
What the hell do the Japanese do so well with their horse racing that we here in the States cannot do?
There is just as much competition for the gambling dollar in Japan as there is here. So there goes that excuse right out the window.

We need to take notes from them , they love their horseracing and they show up .
I believe this one is a Sunday Silence Grandson .

[cutchemist42]

Australia still has great crowds too right?

[nijinski]

Australia still has great crowds too right?
I really don't know the answer to that , perhaps someone here knows. .
For sure the Melbourne Cup is a huge . It"s a holiday ! :)

Well I just found this

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» RESULTS

09/11/13 2013 Stakes Day 65,047
07/11/13 2013 Oaks Day 66,757
05/11/13 2013 Melbourne Cup 104,169
02/11/13 2013 Victoria Derby 95,223
26/10/13 2013 Cox Plate 30,986
25/10/13 2013 Manikato Stakes 7,005
19/10/13 2013 Caulfield Cup 33,056
16/10/13 2013 Thousand Guineas 8,308
12/10/13 2013 Caulfield Guineas 22,287
05/10/13 2013 Turnbull Stakes 18,256
22/03/13 William Reid Stakes 25,000

[andtheyreoff]

I watched this live on HRTV....
One thing I noticed was packed grandstands. Not a empty seat in sight.
What the hell do the Japanese do so well with their horse racing that we here in the States cannot do?
There is just as much competition for the gambling dollar in Japan as there is here. So there goes that excuse right out the window.

Not really. Casino gambling is illegal there. There is something called "pachinko" which is kind of like a slot machine, but I doubt they generate anywhere close to the revenue that casinos do here. I also haven't heard anything about there being any OTBs or at-home wagering over there.

[classhandicapper]

When I saw that crowd it brought back memories of the late 70s in NY for me.

[thespaah]

Not really. Casino gambling is illegal there. There is something called "pachinko" which is kind of like a slot machine, but I doubt they generate anywhere close to the revenue that casinos do here. I also haven't heard anything about there being any OTBs or at-home wagering over there.
The Japanese can bet on just about everything. They even have wagering on powerboat racing.Nevertheless, there is no question in my mind that even with casinos, there would still be packed stands.
The bottom line is we're not doing it right. And though many Americans HATE to admit this, The Japanese obviously are doing horse racing better.

[thespaah]

Not really. Casino gambling is illegal there. There is something called "pachinko" which is kind of like a slot machine, but I doubt they generate anywhere close to the revenue that casinos do here. I also haven't heard anything about there being any OTBs or at-home wagering over there.
According to the Japanese Racing Assn( JRA) website, there are OTB's and telephone wagering in that country.
japanracing.jp

[thespaah]

Not really. Casino gambling is illegal there. There is something called "pachinko" which is kind of like a slot machine, but I doubt they generate anywhere close to the revenue that casinos do here. I also haven't heard anything about there being any OTBs or at-home wagering over there.
2012 Stats..
All meets..208 racing dates. Avg Attendance..29,761 per day.
Avg all sources per day handle....8.333 billion JPY per card....Or $80 Million USD...
You read that correctly. EIGHTY MILLION DOLLARS....Again...all sources.
That's just an average.
Here's the link....http://japanracing.jp/_statistics/2012/s01.html
Japan racing handle was $2.3 TRILLION JPY in 2012.
Now, to be fair, Japan does not have 50 or more racetracks operating at the same time as does here in the US..
One intriguing stat....in 2012 there were over 49,000 starters in all Japan racing.

[Track Collector]

2012 Stats..
All meets..208 racing dates. Avg Attendance..29,761 per day.
Avg all sources per day handle....8.333 billion JPY per card....Or $80 Million USD...
You read that correctly. EIGHTY MILLION DOLLARS....Again...all sources.
That's just an average.
Here's the link....http://japanracing.jp/_statistics/2012/s01.html
Japan racing handle was $2.3 TRILLION JPY in 2012.
Now, to be fair, Japan does not have 50 or more racetracks operating at the same time as does here in the US..
One intriguing stat....in 2012 there were over 49,000 starters in all Japan racing.

Food for thought....

In 2012, I would roughly estimate the number of US racing dates to be somewhere around 5400. (Remember tracks like Charles Town, Mountaineer, Penn National, and Parx each race 200+ days a year.).

As to live attendance, consider that Japan is about the size of Montana, and yet still has a population density about 10x that of the US. (Not sure how they stack up when looking just at larger cities, but clearly still much more dense in Japan.).



.

[horses4courses]

The big race was past my bedtime on Saturday night, but I did watch a few of the earlier Japanese races.
Impressive, to say the least.

The thing that blew me away most of all?
The purses these horses were running for.
Noticed Maiden Special Weights early in the card with purses close to $100K.
I know the US dollar has seen better days, but there's more to it than that.

Amazing....... :ThmbUp:

[thespaah]

Food for thought....

In 2012, I would roughly estimate the number of US racing dates to be somewhere around 5400. (Remember tracks like Charles Town, Mountaineer, Penn National, and Parx each race 200+ days a year.).

As to live attendance, consider that Japan is about the size of Montana, and yet still has a population density about 10x that of the US. (Not sure how they stack up when looking just at larger cities, but clearly still much more dense in Japan.).



.
Yes. All true. However the average attendance is much higher. The all sources handle is huge.

[nearco]

The official attendance for the races was 127k

Then they held a retirement ceremony for Orfevre that night under lights at the racecourse, and 60,000 people showed up for the retirement ceremony.
Racing is alive and well in Japan.

[nearco]

Not really. Casino gambling is illegal there. There is something called "pachinko" which is kind of like a slot machine, but I doubt they generate anywhere close to the revenue that casinos do here. I also haven't heard anything about there being any OTBs or at-home wagering over there.

there are OTBs in Japan.

JRA OTBs.... http://japanracing.jp/en/go-racing/beginners-guide/guide-course.html#wins
NRA OTBs... http://japanracing.jp/en/go-racing/local-otbs.html

You can also bet by phone, either calling or online with an app on your smartphone.... http://japanracing.jp/en/go-racing/jra-telephone.html

[Thebart]

There may be some things we can learn from Japan Racing as to why it is wildly successful. But in general most comparisons are truly meaningless.

The basic difference between USA racing and racing in Japan is culture. Asians in general -an Japan is a prolific example - are much much more into gambling than Americans. You can go to any casino here and glance at the Baccarat area. You will typically find two things present. First, more security because it's a big-buck, big wager game. Second, Asians will typically outnumber everyone else.

Asians are much more into gambling. Most casino employees will confirm that point. The other factor is other forms of gambling in Japan aside from horse racing are not as readily available as they are here.

[thespaah]

There may be some things we can learn from Japan Racing as to why it is wildly successful. But in general most comparisons are truly meaningless.

The basic difference between USA racing and racing in Japan is culture. Asians in general -an Japan is a prolific example - are much much more into gambling than Americans. You can go to any casino here and glance at the Baccarat area. You will typically find two things present. First, more security because it's a big-buck, big wager game. Second, Asians will typically outnumber everyone else.

Asians are much more into gambling. Most casino employees will confirm that point. The other factor is other forms of gambling in Japan aside from horse racing are not as readily available as they are here.
Culture is only part of it.
The tracks still must present a product that is attractive to the player.
That is for the most part, not done here in the US.
If the product were more attractive, more people would be in attendance and handle would be larger.
I attribute the problems to poor marketing and poor strategy.
I may get flamed on this, but I don't care.. I am in the "less is more" camp.
The biggest obstacle is too many tracks operating simultaneously seeking the same gambling dollar and similar racing stock in close geographic proximity.

[jk3521]

The thing that struck me was the terrific camera angles. It led to a greater appreciation of the athletes , both human and equine . I never see races covered in that manner in the U. S. In this country the horses are shown only as a betting tool,in other words, numbers. :(

[nearco]

The thing that struck me was the terrific camera angles. It led to a greater appreciation of the athletes , both human and equine . I never see races covered in that manner in the U. S. In this country the horses are shown only as a betting tool,in other words, numbers. :(

Every time anyone mentions the up close camera angles they use in the rest of the world, all the grissly 'cappers on here bitch about it, saying how they only want a pan camera.

In the places like Japan they make racing exciting to JOE PUBLIC. 127k don't show up for a race on a cold Sunday in December just to gamble, they do it because of the paegentry of racing as it is practiced in Japan. 60,000 showed up to give Orfevre a retirement send off. About 5,000 Japanese racing fans flew to Paris to watch Deep Impact run in the Prix de l'Arc.

If you get people to the track, they will invariably bet. All this talk about "we need to teach people to handicap".... "we need lower takeout" (the takeout in Japan is friggin' huge).... you don't, you just need to get people excited about racing, the gambling bucks will follow.

Yes, there is a certain cultural element to it, and Asians (esp Chinese) do like to gamble, and the US does still suffer and from an anti-gambling stigma from the residual Puritan under-current where things like drinking, gambling and sex are seen as "bad". But still, US racing does not offer entertainment to the average Joe Blow in the street. Tracks are not seen entertainment destinations. US Racing does not excite the US public.

[nearco]

Here's a video of the Retirement Ceremony.

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