I am going to opt out of this, but this is becoming pretty sad for me.

You speak about the game challenge falling away in only a few seasons, why do you want the league challenge to go the same way and give people an easy mode, do we have anything tangible to confirm that is what people want, there is really only one small trainer making noise right now and I am not even sure what is missing for him is it wins, competition, false G1's?.

Why did Doug, Stu, Jango etc actually leave, anyone asked?



Actually it is exctly your opinion that matters, since no one person seems to have the same view of whats wrong and therefore what needs to be fixed.

And finally I have looked at the results this week, the handicaps are doing precisely what they should be doing. Patience people, patience.

Josh

Happy to see this put into place, you can do it next week for all I care. I only flip mine, as Leon does, and so if he is 'stealing' wins then I need to do the same if I want to be competative (he maybe doing it for the same reason since the cycle started seasons ago). But I do not like the practise and never have.

Josh

Pretty sure Tiger Roll runs over hurdles in the same season he goes for the GN.

No i'm just being facetious there, I actually feel fine about having to nominate a horse for either fences or hurdles and the only horse I have over both codes is probably my best 2m5f chaser and 3m hurdler so is only going for graded races or non-handicaps in those divisions.

I don't see the need for trainers to have less horses than others, the data just doesn't back this up. Smallest fields are in the low handicaps, like Josh I have seen a lot of races doing 30 comms and my own horses don't compete in one single handicap - they are all weighted out of them.

The answer here is tweaking the schedule and the initial ratings so they work better with the race kit handicapping and yes, looking at some G1 hcaps that are targeted at horses that aren't out and out G1 winners. But from what i've seen this is working ok anyway, some horses have gone close off high weights but no cigars being smoked!

Let's enjoy this season as it is (i'll happily stick to my stable and not upload another 5 if it makes folk happy) and then make these tweaks for the next season. If we all fall out then there won't be appetite for a quick turnaround into a new season and that will be the most off putting thing for all of us who have played the game a lot!

Perhaps it's a me problem and not a u ( Royal u) problem. My team is about is my horses and not about me, I breed to see how my horses get on in the league but I can imagine the trainers at the top are more after winning titles. I've always said I'm not that competitive and so I don't see what people get out of winning lesser races. So perhaps I'm wrong on this one.

I stopped for a variety of reasons.
I became burnt out was one reason. Personality clashes was another. SO7 in general hasn't captured me.
I think the league is still badly flawed - not as bad as SO6 but still nowhere near what it should be.
It turns my guts over thinking that to play the league in SO7 I need to abandon the actual game and just race trial after trial in the ck.
I'd rather poop into my hands and clap than do that. That is how unexciting and unappealing SO7 league is to me to participate as a trainer.
I'm not even sure I've played SO7 this year - maybe a combined 60 mins in Jan/Feb.

Maybe my time here is over? Maybe it's time for me to move on and let other new people come through who have new vision and energy?
Maybe I've overstayed my welcome?
I do my calls now to help out Mart and for no other reason - I wonder if my/our comms are worth the time and effort - not that I've put much effort into them this season.
That is what I've been pondering of late.

On a plus, the past week I've played a little SO6 - I hope to reconnect with the stable I built over 3 or 4 years and maybe 130 seasons.
I can only see myself playing SO7 as a single player.

Gray does a tremendous job - he loves the league and the game as does Mart and Stu.

I think all your views are valid Doug and def think your opinions are helpful on here as someone who has played the game for many years.

I must admit even just playing since july has made me feel a bit burnt out with the game and I can't seem to pick it back up for the purpose of getting some new horses for the upload window.

The main issue, like you say, is the discrepancy between game and ck. If the from transferred across everyone would love the game much more and build a much stronger connection with their horses who start turning on the style in g1s and breaking records.

I hardly even get excited now by a horse winning multiple G1s as I know it means next to nothing if they trial badly. So agree that is one of the main slogs that will make it harder to build a huge following with the league.

I'll keep doing some comms as it is good for everyone who has put so much effort into the league to get the maximum enjoyment out of the races.

Yep - this is a major blunder.

I might only upload horses for the league that were great in my game - i care about those horses so much more.

Auld Lang Syne, Our Connie, Two Doors Down, Well Articulated - they were awesome in game. So were quite a few of my league squad. Wish i'd not uploaded the ones who were better in ck than in game as I have no emotional connection to those horses.

I disagree boys I think the actual game is a far more enjoyable game to play than So6. If u just play the game it's a lot more challenging and fun than 6. I could play 7 for years and not get bored. I know the CK is just a royal pain in everyone's backside but I normally can work out who's good in my game. I just breed a horse called Slowcome the Cat ( named after our old cat) and she looked special in game (Dessie her dad) and she's regally bred and I think she looked better in game than her dad. I don't rush my breeding and I like to watch a lot of them racing but u get a feel for u better horses. I'd like to think I get more right than wrong in my game.

Doug u said u would change things so what would u change. I think all ideas should be put on the table.

Of course the best solution of all would be to get Mark to disable the CK.

Then no one would be able to trial their horses and they would have to upload based on game form. Meaning everyone would have to play the game and no one would know until the league started whether their horses were really world beaters or not.

You could use the trial races, which we would increase to find out where you were at.

The racekit would have to be removed from dropbox and issued only to race runners who would have to agree not to use it to trial. Some level of trust would need to be involved but it does now anyway as no one ever suggests race runners give themselves an advantage.

Sounds like one of my wacky ideas but think about it seriously for a second. A total complete level playing field for everyone. No more hours trialling and more time for playing. As Ryan said you feel more connection to your good game horses.

Hell, it might even get Doug and Stu back playing

The wacky ideas are normally the best like square wheels

Ideally the best game horses should be best ck horses - and ground and course preferences same in game as in CK etc.

But, in lieu of that, not a bad suggestion Martin.

The race kit is definitely an advantage if it is being used for trialling!! Never really considered that.

I'm all for get shot of that thing I wonder what's more accurate the game or the CK. We know they disagree with each. The major problem with the game is if u skip a race in CK or Game then it can throw up totally different results , the game is more stable if u watch the races.

Whilst the idea of being even more blind than you are now, initially makes me bristle, I don’t really oppose the suggestion, pretty sure I will have hung up my saddle after a season though of flying blind through the fog in a plane with no controls.........

No Belladona in this model, she was horrible in game and horrible to look at.

The real answer comes via mark, but I will not hold my breath.