I have been thinking of ways to enhance the league experience, make it more challenging and give an extra dimension for the top trainers but at the same time give the lesser and new trainers a shot at the big prizes from the start. Having not entered any horses but just being involved on the periphery I may well be talking out of turn or making suggestions no one is interested in. Trouble with me is once I get a bee in my bonnet about something I have to explore the possibilities so bear with me for this could be a long read and will either be dismissed out of hand as bonkers or heralded as the idea of a genius. (Hoping for the latter, expecting the former) !

The flat side of the league from my brief experience lacks just two things at the moment. The first is continuity and history (I know that is two but it is one really) and second is the fairy tale of a low grade trainer scooping a really big win or being able to emerge from the lower echelons to the top quicker than the top boys can pull away.

So how do we do it.

Well it relies entirely on the top trainers being sporting and generous whilst in return getting a new challenge.

We set up an SO6 Online League National Stud

The top 5 or so trainers all agree to put a retiring league horse (must be a G1 winner) into the stud. Then everyone who enters the league gets to send a mare/mares to the stud to be covered by one of the resident stud horses.

The amount of mares you are allowed to send would be dependent on how many winners you had in the previous season. Exact figures could be agreed but would need to be on a sliding scale ensuring that the top boys got at least one nomination and the bottom/new trainers got no more than about 3 to 5.

What is in it for the Ghostzapper, Thunderspark, Paul Rhodes type trainer - two things, one the opportunity to see what they can do with each others bloodlines and two it starts a new competition to be breeder of the champion sire at the end of the season.

Sounds wacky but if you then let the lower trainers breed later with the horses they get you should end up with stronger stables and bloodlines throughout the league. This would benefit the trainer who hasn't got quite so much time to dedicate to trawling single player auctions looking for a superstar. You would also get a sense of continuity and history and also an interest for the big boys in the lower races to follow the career of the horses their horses have sired.

So what does it need to make it work. The co operation and sportsmanship of the top trainers and a volunteer to set up a game to house the stud do the breeding bit, sim through a full season and into an agreed point in the 2yo season and then transfer them all back. All of the horses would race in the league as 2yo.

The second part of this plan and one that could be implemented separately is that ALL trainers should agree to an agreed % of their horses remaining in the league for the following season.

Sounds mad but could be interesting and as Everton hadn't got a game this weekend and the NFL has finished my mind has gone a wandering !

Something similar was suggested a few years ago by Keith Beaky

Id be Happy to Participate i have a copy of all of my horses from this season
and would be happy to make them available for a National Stud should this be
possible to do and its the way people want to go its a great idea IMO but im only
1 person.

I Love Bloodstock & Breeding more than racing itself would love watch horses by my
Sire running in lge even if i dont train them and a champion breeder comp is a great
Idea

Obviously you would need at least the top 5 trainers to join in maybe more
also you would need an impartial person to run the stud

also bear in mind only 6 horses per year can be bought into a game and of
late it has not been possible as ttf files go blank i dont know if this in intentional
Im sure with Marks help this all could be simply solved

I support this idea.

The details can be worked out as to how this can be implemented but the I like the general idea.

I don't mind sending mine. We have a problem because Mark has put some sort of security in this game so u might not be able to transfer horses.

Plus if this happens then I think the trainers who put the horses up for stud cant show a picture of any of the horses so u wouldn't know what the bars of the horses are, just like real life u don't know how good a horse is u just got to look at the form.

great idea
also many years ago .. all top trainers sent horses to other trainers in like a draw .. so they could race them in there own stable
anyone remember this ? maybe like selling race ?
memory is going lol too much rum

I am not Totally against the idea but it could take us down the route where Trainers are passing horse files with each other and the top trainers passing each other horse files if somehow it was done Openly and could be monitored I would maybe say yes but we should only allow one shot each Trainer say Doug could a pick a horse from 5 horses Nominated in Flat with what he think is his best Mare and he could do the same one shot at the Jumps and whatever turned out From the pairing is it.

Gray

I for one would not be up for this.
I am content with my position as a handicapper and do not have the time available, one 2 year old and another on way (+ wife), to donate the time needed to get to the top. But any successes I do have I would rather they were down to me.
Getting rid of the ttf and possible breeding changes in SO7 may well create a more level playing field. It is only right that those that devote the most time get the best results but closing the gap a little would be nice.

I'm of the same opinion. I don't get many winners but I would prefer them to be from what I have completely bred myself. Will give anything a go though if that's the way we go

This idea could lead to cheating and I don't think the league should go down that route again.
Plus I'd rather bred my own, this idea would just take the fun and skill out of it.

why do all people say cheat ?????????????????

No one is saying Cheat Del lol Someone was asking for peoples opnions on allowing Top Trainers letting other trainers using some horse files.

Gray

I'm sorry but what? Mark has nerfed transfer files? Leagues lost a player if so

It's an interesting thought. Even more so that the bred horses can only compete as 2yos. Not sure where this would leave hunt horses.

Depending on the standard of mares sent to the stallions - I or whoever could nominate five mares for the stud and because of their bars I may still only get 0-85 standard 2yos lol

At the moment though I sit in the same camp as Mr Follis and Mr Pommard.

I think we should still keep this open for discussion.

I have been pondering it I have come to the opinion that this should not be the way forward I have been playing this game for a few years now I have apart from the beginning like other new trainers been around top ten playing the game has a fun game I have never been a hard breeding trainer if I was I be like other trainers who have come to the top won the group races and then fade away never to be seen again Andy is a example Got to the top gone the duke ? last season not been seen since When Clare Grogan won my first Group 1 Race the other week that was years of enjoying and playing the game i think Trainers who want to compete at the top should play the game the way top trainers Play and not get a quick leg up I am sure if James Follis won a group 1 because he used other trainers horses wouldn't be has good has if he did it the hard way by himself.


Gray

Agree with the above, I do not think it is a good idea with the sharing of top breeds and being a lower level trainer, I would prefer to have bred my beast (if there is ever one) through my own game.

Although, I am in favour of returning horses, maybe if some 2yo, 3yo horse winners (G1's) had to come back the following year, stopping top trainers from just filling up a new advanced stable, that way lesser stables would have a chance at getting closer and would stop an individual or individuals from picking up all classics in one season knowing full well they would have to come back a year later & a year older (more thought into stable & race planning management)

I imagine we are unlikely to implement any of these in the forthcoming last SO6 league, so maybe we look at waiting to see what the AI & Breeding of SO7 brings..