The Pune Racing Season is all set to get off to an interesting start on the morrow and a card of eight events awaits to entertain racing patrons at Pune’s picturesque racecourse. The monsoon having been under par, the track is bound to be a trifle hard. A couple of good spells of rain would be welcome, if it does not interfere with the racing action. The track, however, looks green and lush and the going will be good for the first two race days.

Addressing a heavily attended media conference at the Turf Club House in Pune on 13th July 2010, Mr Vivek Jain, Chairman, RWITC, flanked by Mr Zavaray Poonawalla and Mr Dady Adenwalla on the dais, gave an insight into the things to come. Mr Jain revealed that the 28-day Pune Season will disburse stakes of nearly Rs 7 crore, which is a new high. The highest will be the Nanoli Stud Pune Derby (GR1) which will see the stakes going past Rs 75 lakh mark.

He also said that the Club would guarantee a minimum of Rs 1 million for all Graded races. “In addition to the juvenile Millions, we will run seven such races. In effect, our best races will now offer attractive purses and will ensure participation of the highest quality,” Mr. Jain added. The Club has ventured into a new media partnership with Radio One. This is the first time that racing adverts will be heard on the FM radio channel and the ads will run every weekend from Friday to Sunday during prime time.

This is a welcome move since the sport needs to attract the younger generation and what better medium to reach out to Gen-Next but through FM radio! The print media partner for this year is the DNA Group and as a gesture to cement the bond, the Radio One Trophy and the DNA Trophy will be run during the season. The O Hotels will once again host the ‘O’ Racing Awards, which is now in its third year.

The Award function is gaining in popularity and it was refreshing to note that the ‘O’ Hotels Group have decided to continue the ‘O’ Awards for years to come. The Hotel Group has offered a range of services and special rates for the members and professionals of the Club. In keeping pace with the changing times, the Club’s IT experts have come up with major changes in the website and added a new portal that makes the pre-race formalities much easier.

This is a major step forward taken by the Club. The site will now upload race results and tote dividends in real time. A new portal linked to the RWITC website is an added feature for owners and trainers. Explaining the features of this new facility, Mr Ajit Gulanikar, said, “This new service will also enable trainers to enter, scratch and declare horses on-line, in addition to various other facilities.

This would be easier, time saving and can be done from just about anywhere. It is similar to Net banking and users can check every detail with regard to their horses.” RWITC thus becomes the first Club in India to provide such facilities to the connections of the horses. Now one can get every little detail about one’s horses at the click of a button. It can be accessed via the website www.horsein.com.

The website will be updated daily from the Racing & Accounts department. Trainers will be able to perform the following functions on the website: ENQUIRY • View status of horses in their charge like rating, VO/SS Bans, ownership, equipment, shoe/bits, race-record, vet record for last 60 days, etc. • View the complete status of all their owners in terms of account balances, BTF dues, stakes outstanding, BTF/UFL bans etc.

They will also be able to download statement of accounts for any period (starting April 2009). • Authority available will be displayed. • Horses entered in Sweepstake races will be displayed (either race-wise or horse-wise) • The schedule of Sweepstake races as well as current suspensions on jockeys will be displayed. TRANSACTIONS • Entries/Scratching • Declaration/Equipment Change • Shoe/Bits Change, Instruction to Accounts On every transaction, you will receive a confirmatory SMS and e-mail.

You will also be able to see a log of all your transactions. The paper-based method of transactions will continue, i.e., trainers have the option of using the website or continuing with the paper-based transactions. EXTRA SECURITY ON WEBSITE • Password security will be a standard feature on the website. • A hardware key is also being offered i.e., unless this key is present on the PC, log-in will be disabled.

This will cost Rs.3000/- as a one-time charge. Trainers have the option of using the hardware key for added security. The owners will now have access to the status of their horses in every aspect in a matter of seconds. For the racing enthusiasts there are lots of reasons to be present at the Pune racecourse. Most days would see contests offering great value prizes. Then you have the IGCC Oktoberfest on the lines of the world famous Munich beer festival during the Derby weekend. Last year saw a huge bunch of revellers having a blast during the festival late into the night.

Each year the season gets better and more entertaining. The weather in Pune during the season is normally wet and chilly but few would complain. It’s the best time to be in this great city and with the perfect blend of traditional and high-profile races on the cards right through the season, the Pune Meeting 2010 has all the ingredients to turn out to be a great success.