How much money will a Race Night make?

Race Night at Dalton

I am often asked by prospective customers about the earnings potential of race nights. It is impossible for me to answer this question because there are many factors to be taken into account. All I can say with confidence is that holding a Race Nights is a great way to raise funds providing it is planned and set up properly.

The secret of success is to ensure that your costs are covered and you are in profit before the event takes place. You do this by selling horses and jockeys in advance. Finding race sponsors in advance and selling side bets such as the Tri-Cast card, in advance. If you do all of this then any money you make on the night is a bonus.

Race Night Income

Here are the ways you can get money in:

sale of horses
sale of jockeys
race sponsorship
side bets
raffle
admission tickets
selling refreshments

Race Night Costs

Race Nights are fun!

Your costs are likely to be:

hall hire
printing
food
prizes for owners of winning horses
hiring the race night operator
paying out on the tote after each race

Balancing the books

As your aim is to make money you need to ensure that income exceeds expenditure. Look carefully at ways of reducing your costs. Often a member of the committee knows someone who can print off the race cards for you free of charge, or they can be done on a home PC. Prizes can be donated and you might be able to get a deal on the food from a local supplier.

To see an example of how it might work go to Race Night Income on our web site. This gives you an idea of what can be achieved.

Unknown Factors

Some of the figures are known and won’t change. You know what your costs will be. You know how much money you will raise if you get all of your races sponsored and sell all of the horses etc. What you don’t know is how many people will turn up on the night and how much money they will spend. That is why working hard before the event takes place is so important.

You must get as much money in as you can before the Race Night tales place and urge as many people to come as you can. Selling tickets helps but keep pushing to get them to come.

Have a Crowd Puller

It you can think of a real crowd puller to attract more people even better. Do you have a friendly local celeb who might agree to make an appearance? Can you offer a special free prize draw with a star prize which can only be won on the night? These are all things worth considering.