MY CALL - THE BLACKMAN SAGA - A BREATHTAKING INABILITY TO UNDERSTAND THE REAL WORLD

By David Fowler | Tuesday, July 24, 2012

David Fowler is the principal thoroughbred caller for Radio TAB. David, who is a keen form student and punter, has enjoyed a lifetime involvement in the racing media. His personal blog, ‘My Call’, appears exclusively on HRO.

Some people and organisations may as well put a neon sign on their head which says "criticise me".

Their inability to understand the real word can be breathtaking.

The RISA organisation forcing the name change of Blackman to Lady Blackman clearly illustrates this.

One complaint from the politically correct type saw a review committee formed and the name changed because it could be misconstrued by some people.

Give me a break!

RISA's chief executive Myles Foreman has had to be the fall guy for all this nonsense.

I feel some sympathy for him if he has to justify all of this for the organisation.

Does RISA have a board of directors?

If it's his call, he has absolutely no idea.

Racing rarely attracts attention in the mainstream section of newspapers, but this dumb decision even raised the ire of well known media personalities like Andrew Bolt.

Blackman was named after the renowned artist Charles Blackman … a great gesture by the owners.

Does Mr Foreman appreciate the pronunciation of Blackman is different to "black
man"?

Does Mr Foreman appreciate this decision is offensive to people named "Blackman"?

Obviously not!

This politically correct crap happens in all corners of society but we only understand the absurdity of it all when it strikes in our own backyard.

I'm well down the line in making a comment on it, but it deserves repeating as long as possible to highlight its stupidity.

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Wet tracks are becoming the bane of Brisbane punters.

Or should it be tired tracks?

Ipswich experienced a brilliantly fine day last Friday but the track was hopeless.

Rated a heavy 10, the times recorded were the slowest I've seen in years with several runners simply giving up on the testing surface.

Jockeys nearly pulled the pin early in the day.

But Ipswich must race again this Friday … and the next and the next.

Eagle Farm and Doomben are not placed as badly but they are also taking longer to dry out after the high level of rainfall and winter conditions.

Eagle Farm was rated a slow 7 on Saturday but there is no question it played to a heavy 8.

The times posted and jockeys' private comments reinforced that generally considered point of view.

Why did stewards not reassess the track to a heavy 8?

When doing future form try and remember the July 21 meeting was worse than slow.

Eagle Farm and Doomben both have to play host to a heavy schedule of racing each year.

And it is no point looking to other tracks in the southeast like Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast which also have to race weekly.

It's a problem that doesn't present an easy solution.

Until next week

David Fowler