One of the golden rules of broadcasting is to not make yourself the story, but that may be impossible when TrotsVision goes to the next level with the help of Victorian thoroughbred friend Racing.com this Saturday night.
While the winner of the Del-Re National A.G. Hunter Cup will earn their place in history, the new relationship inked between Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) and Racing.com could be just as important for the sport in years to come.
It is no secret harness racing has struggled for consistent major meeting television coverage, not through anybody’s fault but because of the commercial realities facing industry broadcast partners.
Essentially, the more races that can be shown the more money they can make for the industry. And nobody seems to mind the payouts but with that comes time restraints on a wall-to-wall racing broadcaster.
The problem isn’t exclusive to harness racing either. Channels like Sky Thoroughbred Central were created to showcase the industry while other channels sold races.
But, of course, harness racing also wants to tell its stories and drive interest and awareness, which is why thetrots.com.au and its broadcasting arm, TrotsVision, were born.
That product has improved enormously in the last year as HRV has lifted everything from bandwidth to content to talent and solidified its strategic direction.
That goes to a new level on Saturday night when the TrotsVision coverage with even more bells and whistles goes out on Racing.com, putting Hunter Cup night on the radar of a whole new audience, some of whom might be lucky enough to have full betting accounts.
It will be fronted by a Melbourne Cup host in Michael Felgate, who has a strong harness racing background and the daily top-up of knowledge via his radio role at RSN.
That gives you a host that gallops punters can relate to but also the expertise and tipping firepower of the TrotsVision regulars.
This coverage will give harness a shot at wall-to-wall without interruption, as we more or less saw with the Inter Dominion series in Sydney on Sky Thoroughbred Central.
It won’t be perfect. Television is a finicky business, and this is the start of a journey by no means its final destination.
It does show, however, that HRV wants TrotsVision to grow and continue to be something the industry can be proud of as well as giving them options in the future.
It also demonstrates that HRV CEO Dayle Brown is open to joint ventures with those whose platforms can best advance harness racing’s interests, which is crucial in two industries (gambling and broadcasting) where the landscapes are changing so quickly.
“Showcasing our sport to the masses and attracting new fans is a critical objective for HRV and through this exciting partnership I’m sure viewers will thoroughly enjoy what is traditionally our premier racing event of the season,” Brown said during the week.
On Saturday night, harness racing fans have more options, the industry has more potential viewers and HRV has more control.
Now bring on the Hunter Cup!
The opinions expressed in The Forum are those of the author and may not be attributed to or represent policies of Harness Racing Victoria, which is the state authority and owner of thetrots.com.au.