Racing: Boys looking for big Karaka Million payday

It's a phenomenon that New Zealand racing has never seen the likes of but has rapidly grown to a movement with huge energy.

Twelve months ago the Luke Kemeys-led Boys Get Paid group set Ellerslie's Karaka Million twilight meeting alight with their unique brand of fun. Drawing a big following through social media, they turned $58,000 into $136,000 with a series of winning bets across the six-race card.

Again working alongside the Auckland Racing Club, this year the boys – and quite a few girls – will be back twice as big and just as bold with a betting pool that looks like reaching six figures.

"We've got just under $60,000 with more than four days to go, so we've already gone past last year's total, we're tracking well," Kemeys said on Tuesday. "We've got a couple of other non-confirmed amounts that we expect will push the pool along, plus other people are still joining in.

"We've got our own room and spot on the main grandstand at Ellerslie which is capped at 300. What with the publicity from last year's Karaka Million and everything that's happened since, it was sold out six months ago."

Seven years ago BGP was just a seed that has grown exponentially to now be described as the best fun in racing for the younger set.

"To start with it was just five guys in a Facebook group but a couple of years ago it took off," added Kemeys. "It's grown organically with a tipping point and now I have to stop and pinch myself at times."

Kemeys will bring on some heavy hitters to provide expert advice ahead of Saturday's big meeting, among them well-known punters' club operators Ted McLachlan and Andrew Lacey.

"Frosty, the guy who got a huge result for the punters' club at Tauherenikau earlier this month, will also be on board as a guest selector," Kemeys explained. "We'll build a strategy and looking at how strong the nominations look for Saturday it will have to be clever.

"The whole structure is about making it fun, giving people a run for their money, but before they commit to it we make it quite clear there are no guarantees. It's punting at the end of the day, watching some big bets play out, it's entertainment and any dividend is a bonus."

For those who missed the cut to be part of the BGP group at Ellerslie, the excitement will be just as intense. Through the dedicated Facebook page all bets will

be notified as they're placed and a running tally from race to race will provide an accurate progress report.

"We take our responsibility seriously, a lot of it is strangers' money and we want to make it worth their while. The way we see it, we're doing our bit to promote racing, get people involved and wanting to get more involved.

"Racing has a lot of volunteers, most of them from the older set. We're doing it in reverse, while we're still young, which we think is pretty cool.

"Now we have all these people, lots of first timers, getting excited ahead of the big event. It's just like counting down to Christmas again."

For more on the BGP movement, take a listen to their feature interview with Radio Sport's Stoked Podcast.

Warning: May contain some coarse language and adult themes, recommended to ages 18+

Listen to "Stoked Ep 31: Boys Get Paid; Why the races are cool" on Spreaker.

- NZ Racing Desk