This subject will have been covered before, no doubt in far greater detail and eloquence than you shall read here though that part matters little. Most fans of racing will have heard of the weight for age or sex allowance.... So here we go, in broken English or from my point of view, this is what I think of the sex allowance.
Initial Phase
Self explanatory really, to encourage the best Fillies/Mares to square off against the best Colts/Geldings then an allowance of say - 3lbs - to the females would appear sensible? I would say so, everyone wants to see the best taking on the best, though we automatically have an issue here... At least an issue in terms of society and the view people (not horses) take of females being inferior... It's not that deep, at least for me, it just isn't that deep. There are many reasons as to why a horse should be in receipt of weight, whether it be dependant on age or sex, although there has to be a limit otherwise this allowance lends itself to looking rather unfair.... And it has, on numerous occasions.
Phase Two
This would be where a Filly/Mare takes advantage of the weight for sex allowance, open Group1, member of the fairer sex goes in and beats the males.... Great, great for the racing audience, great for the breeders who now have a Mare capable of commanding a fortune in the sheds, great for the TV personalities and the journalists who get to write line after line of joyous nonsense.... Seriously though, it is great, at least initially when a Filly/Mare strikes at the very top table, versus the ''Boys''
Phase Three - We repeat Phase Two
See now we are into unfair territory, we are now potentially seeing the same Filly/Mare lining up against the very same Males she turned over when receiving weight. So we line up again, once more the said ''She'' is entitled to an allowance, that very same allowance she has already taken advantage of. By this point you could end up with a superior horse on the ratings taking on inferior horses, at the very highest level, receiving weight.... Don't believe me - Then take a look at Enable versus Crystal Ocean, take a look at Magical versus Sir Dragonet, there are many examples of this (Have a look at Winx) and all of them undermine the point to Group1 racing... Well, at least to my eyes.
Summary
I don't mind there being an allowance, initially perhaps this allowance is integral to the participation of the Fillies/Mares in open races. As a racing fan, I absolutely want to see the very best taking on each other and preferably, on a regular basis. All that being said, I don't want to see horses beating other horses in a manner that could (It DOES) question the legitimacy of victory. My simple fix to this is about as simple as simple can get, once a Filly/Mare takes advantage of the weight for sex allowance, then that allowance should be no more.... Don't forget, the current system is not just unfair on the Males, one could counter that it also deprives legitimate arguments for Fillies and Mares in the ''All Time'' debates.
Thanks for taking the time to read through, I hope you don't misinterpret what I'm trying to say, there is genuinely no attempt on my part to ruffle anyone's feathers.... Just as I see it.
Just before I was about to post this, a few people had questions about my earlier ramblings, so to clarify/repeat.... I agree that Fillies/Mares should be entitled to an allowance throughout the pyramid. So for example, Mare wins a Listed race with an allowance, the next time she runs at that level, the allowance disappears.... And so on, throughout the grades of racing. An allowance should not be an edge that becomes detrimental to the chances of other horses.... The ''Fair'' or ''Level Playing Field'' theories cease to exist when loopholes are deciding races.... Those playing fields people like to quote, quite clearly become hill-like.