Introduction

Whether it's once a year on the Grand National, or every day in the local betting shop, ‘having a flutter’ is one of the most familiar aspects of racing to many British people. One of the most striking things about my fieldwork in betting shops and on racecourses was the intensity of winning reactions. I would chase triumphant air-punchers all over the racecourse to ask, ‘How did that feel?’, until I was no longer surprised to hear the response ‘Yeahhhhhhh! Better than sex!’ Betting is clearly a source of great excitement and pleasure for some, but can also be the downfall of others.

Rather than attempting to uncover the inherent properties of gambling I shall discuss betting on horseracing (punting) as a practice which can fulfil a variety of purposes for the different constellations of people to whom it is significant. The particular contexts that I shall attempt to reconstruct are those of the betting shop and the betting ring. This chapter draws particularly upon fieldwork spent in the betting rings of a number of British racecourses, and in betting shops. I became a regular at two betting shops in Newmarket, where I enjoyed the nickname of ‘Flaps’, based (so I was told) on my arm movements during a race. I have never been a particularly successful punter, although I did virtually double my university grant on one memorable occasion at Huntingdon racecourse, and would have to admit that I am not immune to the excitement of the betting ring.