It is the same shameful story. A race going void for paucity of acceptors. It is happening for the last two weeks and despite the owners and trainers being cautioned by the stewards and stipes of the Bangalore Turf Club (BTC), it is the same record which keeps playing, '`never mind the egg in face, no horse is fit to race''. Not impressed with the approach and attitude of the members of Karnataka Racehorse Owners' Association (KROA) and Karnataka Trainers Association (KTA), the management committee of the BTC on Monday decided to open up the reserved 20-45 category to outstation horses. The decision of the BTC stewards and stipes on Monday jolted the owners and trainers and later in the evening KROA dashed out a letter to BTC, asking the club to hold their horses and maintain status quo for the next 15 days and provide them an opportunity to solve the issue. The KROA in addition made it clear that if BTC don't agree and reverse their decision to open up the 20-45 class, KROA will be forced to stop entries for the races to be held on June 17 & 18.

Not impressed by the KROA threat, the management committee of the club spearheaded by chairman Shivkumar Kheny decided to stick to their guns. The KROA and KTA soon realising that they will end up losers if they don't address the issue decided to initiate a dialogue with the decision makers of the club on Tuesday. In a meeting to sort out the issue, the club made it clear that the onus is on KROA and KTA to provide the required runners for the race failing which the Club will have no option but to open up the category for outstation horses in their effort to frame more races on each race day. The trainers and owners promised the mandarins of the club that henceforth they will ensure that no race goes void. The entries were later put in the evening and it all looked nice and good till it came to the acceptances stage, the next day. It again was the same shameful story. A couple of office-bearers of KTA were frantically making calls and sending out messages to their fellow trainers to help save the embarrassment. One race again ran the risk of going void and another, Meydan Plate for horses in the lowest class scheduled for Saturday was pushed in the card framed for Sunday.  It was a sad scenario taking into account that 550 racing horses are stationed at this campus and the trainers cannot get 70-80  horses on an average to frame the eight races on a given day.

The BTC with an intention to put an end to this boiling issue again called for a meeting with the management committee of KROA and KTA on Wednesday evening. The authorities sought an explanation on what went wrong again. The trainers, it is learnt had done their home work and provided all the right reasons which opened the eyes of the  mandarins of the club. The trainers and owners pointed out that more than 150-200 horses are under the care of the top five trainers at this centre and they are just not racing enough horses to facilitate the issue each week. "The guys with big strings race 6-8 horses on an average each week-end and it is left to small trainers with limited strings to keep entering their horses and also pitch in to avoid a race going void," said a trainer under condition of anonymity.

The trainers also pointed out that the club need to instruct their officials not to impose long-time penalties. Many horses under this scope, be it a bad starter or horses who have sustained injuries to be passed fit, cannot be entered for more than two- to- three weeks and this effectively means lesser number in racing. The officials of the club assured the KTA representatives that they would ask the big trainers to race more number of horses under their care and provide a good platform for racing at this premier racing centre.

This apart the club also made it clear to KROA that they need to tell their trainers to get cracking and furnish the required entries to frame eight to nine races on a given day in summer. A BTC official disclosed that the club can easily frame a nine-event card if BTC open up the 20-45 class for outstation horses. And BTC revealed that they will do that from July 1, if the owners and trainers again falter on the final assurance given to solve the issue.