“I am going to start my own podcast” is hardly an utterance of startling originality. According to Forbes, there are now over 800,000 active podcasts, with over 54 million episodes currently available. I am quite aware that I am not the Edmund Hilary of new media; there are no technological frontiers being breached here.
So, when I launched Nick Luck Daily on July 1, I was a bit more sheepish about it than the title might suggest. Sheepish because I am a bit of a Luddite tech-wise, and because I genuinely had no idea what the appetite for it might be.
That said, I believed strongly in the idea of a brisk and breezy daily audio offering for racing fans, and happily that vision has been shared by the team at TRC, as well as our supporters at bespoke bookmaker Fitzdares and the Racehorse Owners’ Association. All of us were keen to provide a daily racing fix that could be readily consumed and enjoyed over breakfast, in the car or train to and from work, during a lunch break, or even riding out in the morning. We were equally eager that, while naturally slanted toward the UK and European audience, we should be striving to reach as many parts of the world as possible.
Guest commentators
To that end, we have announced a partnership with U.S. In the Money Podcast impresarios Jonathon Kinchen and Peter Fornatale, which will allow us to broaden our listenership and to offer a window into one another’s world.
While the Nick Luck Daily episodes come in on average at just over 20 minutes, their regularity offers us so much scope to explore so many areas of the industry, while the medium itself affords the opportunity to publish additional reaction and specials when the occasions demand.
I am very lucky to have been able to call on a fabulous roster of guest commentators to provide insight into the events of the day: Lydia Hislop, David Yates, Rishi Persad, Lee Mottershead, Cornelius Lysaght and Jane Mangan all bring a wealth of experience, context, skill and good humour.
Similarly, contributions from racing professionals in these first three weeks have encouraged me that this is a project that even my wife may grow to love. Steve Cauthen, for example, was superb in his experience-led analysis of Emmet McNamara’s Derby ride; Frankie Dettori gave typically generously on the contrast between a jockey’s life during lockdown and since the resumption; Kieren Fallon spoke movingly about his son’s Group 1 success; and Chad Brown was both modest and informative talking about reaching 100 Grade 1 wins so far in his career and looking ahead to Saratoga. And I haven’t had to twist too many arms unduly.
Happily, Nick Luck Daily has already charted on the Apple Charts in both the UK and Ireland Top 20 for Sport, and has consistently been the top-charting Racing Podcast since it began.
I really hope that you will join me on the journey, give feedback, and tell me exactly what you want and from whom. In the meantime, if you haven’t found us yet, we’re available to download on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play and SoundCloud.