One thing I have always wondered about the league is why we have no competition to the SOPL?

I feel that the league has a lot of fantastic features to it as it currently stands but without doubt in my opinion it's main weakness is that it has complete control of the market place.

There appears to be quite a big split at the moment about how best to play the game and how to carry the league forward. Both candidates on here have presented very good ideas but also very different ideas.

Now if I decide that I agree with one candidate over the other and that candidate loses then I'm faced with having to make compromises on how I would like the league to be played or not to enter the league at all.

Is there no way that the league software could be made available to anyone who may wish to set a league up to run in a different way. At the moment the resources and technology the SOPL has makes it very difficult for anyone to offer the gaming public another alternative.

Please do not read this post as an attack on the SOPL I have enjoyed my time in the league but feel that a new approach may be best for the league. Also I feel that the more choice we have as players the better.

Hi Kevin,

The best proposal for you is to stand for president and then put your own ideas forward, I am sure your ideas would be very well received.

Alternatively why not put your ideas to the two candidates and see if either of us like your approach. As I said in my 'manifesto' this is a league for all players not just those with administration roles.

Regards

Steve

I like the sounds of Steve's ideas. The only point i would like to make is that i'm not interested in a league starting 10 months away, i think if this season is disbanned, it should start within 3 months

The national hunt season would start first week in September.

If someone wanted to run a flat league from August/September to end of January/February (before the main one started in March 2011) I would be very happy for that to happen - but someone would need to step forward for the role.

Hi Steve

I sadly do not have enough time to be a serious candidate.

I liked your newsletter very much and this along with Jay's SOPL Times last year was one of the features I really enjoyed and I would like this to be a main feature of any league going forward as it builds a sense of community.

I also think that it's vital going forward that Maidens are handled better. In the first few weeks there should be a maiden over every possible distance so that you all your horses can achieve a rating running at the correct distance. The same needs to happen at any transfer window as it currently stands you can be forced to run your horses at the wrong distances to just achieve a rating for future weeks.

I would like to see the USRA continue but would also like to see more international races maybe the USRA could be expanded to take in more international races. I would like more use of the tracks in SO4 so races run at Tokyo and Sha Tin would be better for me than the final week 17 we currently have.

Races run at the correct track and distances would be great for me. Minor changes such as the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter and the Temple Stakes at Haydock would be a great start. Also I would really like the introductions of the quarter and half furlongs etc would make some races more interesting and realistic.

On the NHC league I find with the inclusion of novices races in the schedule you can get a lot of repetition of the same races in the same weeks. One suggestion could be to make the novice races 4yo only and the others 5yo+ or scrap the novice races and fill them with other races of strange distances such as the wonderful Moores Million races. I feel as it currently stands sometimes the top horses miss each other during certain weeks as one is in novice race and the other has been entered in the main feature.

Just a few ideas.

Best regards

Kevin

Hi Kevin,

One of the main reasons I want the seasons to run alongside real life is so that the fixture list can be expanded.

We can have more maidens in fact I want to include more maiden races and have at least four per week over various distances.
These will be included right through the season not just early doors, although many later in the campaign will be maiden handicaps to keep out high rated horses and give the lesser horses more chance to win.

Many of the maiden races this season had horses rated over 110 competing in them I want to avoid this scenario.

There will also be tighter regulations on placement of horses in maidens - I intend to draw up a table showing exactly which maidens are acceptable for certain distance horses.

I think too that the international fixture list could be improved if the schedule has more races, taking in meetings from around the world.

All races would be run on the correct tracks and as close to the real distance as possible.

My idea for novice races is to keep them to one age group maybe three year olds.

I love the Paul Moores Millions idea and I am going to encourage sponsorship of races - see 'manifesto'.

Steve

Thanks for the swift and clear reply Steve I like a lot of these ideas and I would offer any support and time to help you if you are successful in your bid.

If unsuccessful and there was enough support would you consider going it alone in forming a new league? You do not need to commit to answering that at this stage.

As I mentioned in my original post if there is someone who has great ideas for a league why can we not have both options available to all players on the free market.

No problem and thanks for your offer of support - appreciate that.

Seen as I still have ages of the flight left and there is only so much of Steve Carrell's acting I can take in one go, thought I would weigh in. The suggestions of you both are different but they are concerning different leagues. The only real contrast is Steve wants to combine the US league while Rich wants to save it.
I initially voted on the poll to disband the US, but having thought about it again, I think it should stay. I think part of the downfall of the US this season was the inter-league races. The US calender should be a US only calender with the exception of Woodbine, Hong Kong and Meydan. No UK loaded horses should be able to cross the pond for a race, so if you want to win the Kentucky Derby, upload the horse to the US league, simples. With the exception of that Wesley chap who took Royal Ascot by storm, how many US horses compete around Europe, next to none.
As for the UK I have always liked and agreed with Steve's plan but if you want to make it realistic, then you don't need US races in it. It should be UK based, with Ireland and European feature races (realistic ones, don't over do it with extra Guineas and Derby's from Germany, Turkey or Ozbekistan), Austrlian feature races to keep players from that part of the world amused, and you can all come together as should be, for the Breeders Cup, Hong Kong and Meydan.
Although I ran a few for fun this season, not a big fan of NH in general so no real views on that.

I'd much rather see Steve take charge of the UK and NH and Rich take charge of the US, keeping them separate as should be (each having final and sole power over their own leagues). than one try to manage all three or make cuts. If it came down to a vote, I'd have to side with Rich as I think, after consideration, the US should stay, and should stay separate. Having said that, if welcome back, I wouldn't come back for a while so this is more a case of being bored with very few pretty stewardess's to look at, than me feeling overly passionate about the whole thing.

I don't want to combine the US league in its entirety as such - it would only have a bit part to play in a primarily UK based programme. International races would be something on the lines of an expanded inter league race schedule but under one roof so to speak.

I have no objection at all for a stand alone US league run by Richard.

With the exception of the Breeders Cup meeting, I don't think it should have any part to play in a UK based program.

You have great ideas for the UK and the NH, while Rich has great ideas for the US. I'd much rather the two of you were given control or presidency of the leagues you want than have a vote-off between the two when to me it doesn't seem necessary, having read both your posts and ideas.

It doesn't have to be stand alone, he runs US while you run UK and NH. You can still all come together for the "cross championship" meetings like the BC, like HK, and like Meydan where in real life, the US horses take on European opposition.

sounds good , sure it could work if Rich was happy with it.

i would be happy with what has been proposed, although i must admit i do enjoy the 3 leagues running alongside each other as they are. Though obviously i havnt tasted the other way, and if there were more nhc races and larger stables it could work really well

i have to say steve, although this is a minor issue - if the current season is disbanded (i dont think it should be btw, too much work goes to waste), then surely the horses we have in it can be uploaded to the next season. reason i ask this is because my stable is improving as i am a newbie, and alot of my new uploads for week 9 are my best and i would not be happy if theyy only saw 1 run in a league. I would want the option to use them again when new season started. but once again, i think the current season should continue.

also i would like to say i hope jamie, luke, and db take part in new season.

I'm with DB on this one, let steve take contr of the uk and rich the us.
Let's get it sorted asap so everyone knows what their roles are.
Like I said I can spare a couple of hours a week to help with anything that is needed.

DB,

The US wouldn't I don't intend to have any other races than the breeders cup, I was thinking more races from Europe.

At this stage the option to run your existing horses in any new season is open to debate, although if they compete in this season then they would need to be uploaded one year older for the next. I am happy to go either way depending on consensus of opinion.

As said, I am happy for the current season to go ahead, just that I would not be prepared to do any role outside my existing one.
If people come forward to make it happen I would be more than happy.