Collaton St Mary Dog Racing

Collaton St Mary Amateur Dog Racing


I’m not really sure how when this event first started but I do know its over 30 years ago and Carol has been to every single one with her mum and over all those years there has been different children from the family who has gone there with Carol. Many years ago it would have been her own children who she took to the dog racing but today it was one granddaughter (her young sister was at a party) one grandson and niece Princess Lucy( well I call her the princess) Carols mum and yes me as well.

One thing I have always loved about Carols family is the way they support every single year all the local school fetes and other local events as well as Paignton, Totnes and Stoke Gabriel carnivals and while I have always tried to go to as many of the events with Carol, I have missed a few over the years due to football matches and other things.

This event has always taken place on a Friday night and this year for the very first time it has been moved to a 3pm start on a Saturday afternoon, maybe this was done in the hope of getting more people to attend the event. Not to sure it really worked but it is better for me as I’m never very keen to go back out on a Friday evening after getting home from a hard and long week out on the road.

The venue was always the Collaton St Mary School field that was just across the road from the very small school that is right next to the Collaton St Mary Church. A few years back now a new school was built in the school field and while there was space left over for a smaller sports field on the same site that is also used for the school fete, it’s not now big enough to stage the amateur dog racing.

So the event was moved up to the next field on the Totnes road that is the site of the Sunday car boot sale that drives me mad most Sundays when Carol and I set out in the car on our way to one of our walks, as we always get held up in the traffic trying to get into the car boot sale field.

There are the usual things you will find at any fete such as a barbecue, stalls, ice-cream van and a bouncy castle with the addition of the seven lane racing track. The views of the other fields from this field are wonderful and it’s strange you never hear or really notice that the main Totnes road is right next to the field, the church also looks lovely from the field as its half hidden by trees

There is a TOTE running for every race and as I’m not a betting man I’m not a 100% sure how it all worked, I think I may be right in saying you buy a ticket for 20p for the dog you think will win, then money goes in the pot and all of it? Or some of it is the total prize money. As there were different amounts paid out for each race, I gather the prize fund is divided by the number of winners, I’m sure merse will let me know if I have gotten this wrong.

Before the start of each race the dogs competing in that race are all in a sort of enclosure so you can take a look and choose the dog you want to bet on.

There are nine heats in total and each heat is made up of a mixture of seven dogs with a handicap system running meaning some dogs started further down the track than others. Not sure how the handicaps are worked out, it could be done by breed or just the size of the dogs, but as there were some bigger dogs in some races that looked the sort of dogs you don’t expect to be able to run that fast clearly being given a start further down the track, it must be done by breed.

First and second from each heat go into one of the three semi-final races that consist of six dogs this time but still being handicapped, these three races are followed by the final, a six dog race where all dogs start from scratch.

The heats are all rather fun and full of laughs as one person leads the dog to its starting position and holds onto it, while the CALLER walks down the lane that dog is racing in. Some callers will have the dogs favourite squeaky top in their hand, others walk the other family dog down the lane, while some walk down the lane backwards calling the dog as they do so.

Each race a few callers end up taking to much time to get down the track and the man then comes on the PA asking the callers to clear the track as fast as they can as they don’t want the dogs having to sit there and wait to long to get racing.

The whistle is blown and off they go, well some of them as some don’t even move and some get halfway down the track and then turn around and head back the wrong way. The three semi-finals are good races as the dogs in them came first and second in their heats and know what the game is and just what they are meant to be doing.

All the times I have been to watch the dog racing the dogs on the whole have all been well behaved, there has been the odd dog who might have tried to have a go at another dog, but at today’s event there was one dog who might have killed another one if they had not managed to get him to let go of the much smaller dog he had pinned down with his teeth sunk into the dogs neck.

You will see further down a set of four pictures (I will mark which ones they are) in picture one you will see the dog in lane two already looking across at the dog in lane one. Pictures two, three and four tell their own story and after the smaller dog got his head free from the fence, he started running back up lane one. He was unaware the other dog was running back after him and in a flash the bigger dog attacked the smaller one again and pinned him down and really had hold of him so tight as he clamped his jaws on the neck of the smaller dog.

I’m not sure if the owner of that nasty dog just decided it would be best to leave, or if he was asked to leave and take his dog with him, but he got hold of the dog and went straight to his car and drove off.

All in all a nice pleasing afternoon even if it was a bit to hot for me out in the sun, just as it is for Merse the sun and I don’t like each other very much Still I really can’t complain as apart from the slight discomfort due to the heat, it was another fine afternoon spent with the lovely lady known as Carol.



The track







Had to put this one up, young grandson and niece Princess Lucy on the bouncy castle
















race acition




The four bad dog shots














Another race action shot







Nearly forgot this one the Carol shot