FREE ADMITTANCE?

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 130, 18 June 1937, Page 9

FREE ADMITTANCE?

Minister's Suggestion To Racing C|ubs TO POPULARISE SPORT The possibility and advantages of free admission to the outside gate of racecourses at least were suggestod and discussed by tbe Hon. W. E. Parry, Minister of Internal Affairs, in a rccent talk on sport generally with a Taranaki reporter. A view that is a novel one to most racegoers was expressed by Mr. Parry. "I tbink myself, ' ' be said, "that many of our racing clubs would eubance tbe popularity of their meetings and would better cater for the enjoyment of the public if they considered allowing free admission to certain of their gates. I noticed that this was sometimes done in the soutb. At the big meeting of the Metropolitan Trotting Club at Addington, Christchurch, during Grand National week the club admitted the public free to the course just before the totalisator closed for the last race. Happy crowds joined the already thronged course, and the scene was one to gladden the ycecutive of any racing club or Tacegoe®." Club's Share of Investments. The opinion was expressed by Mr. Parry that a race meeting was on a sligh'tly different footing from, say, a football or cricket match. At such games the controlling body received only the admission money, while at a race meeting the club took a share of all the investments after charging for admission. After all, he said, the great bulk of the public received enjoyment attending race meetings. Eacing formed a part of New Zealand's national life; all liked to see highly trained horses in action. If admission at the outer gate at least were free, the public v. ould bo the better catered for and the breeding of fine horses, which had sadly waned, would be eneouraged. Mr. Parry expressed the conviction that the results accruing would be greatly beneficiai to the public, the clubs and to the standard of racing generally. After interviewing the Minister the reporter had several inf ormal talks with rtgular racegoers on the subjeet. One and all were enthusiastically in favour of the idea. They did not consider the general outside gate charge too high, but they felt that the throwing open of a course would prove a gesture to which the public would respond instantaneously. They drew attention to tho large numbers that watched races from outside courses and the numbers that stayed in town to put their investments through /illegal channels. Extension of Idea. Another point raised was the relieving of congestion at the outer gates of many courses. One inan of considerable experienco was of the opinion that the clubs could even extend Mr. Parry 's idea with advantage to themselves. He felt that the only privileged persons should be the members. He was firmly convinced that if clubs built large and commodious members' stands, well equipped and up-to-date, they could soon obtain such a strong membership that they could then afford to allow the general public to be admitted free to the whole of the rest of the course. It was suggested that rqciprocal agreements might be concluded betwepn clubs in certain districts for an intorchange of these members' privileges. In this way a racing enthusiast would lcnow that if ho desired the. privileges at the meetings in the district hp would have to become a member of his own local club. In this way, he thought, clubs would experience little difficulty in gaining sufficient revenue from members' subscriptions to cover general running expenses.