Stirring the pot

by John Berry

Our last Mane Attractiondrew many responses from both sides of the fence, depending on how one is involved in our industry.

Owners, trainers, drivers, breeders, etc. have one view while the fan who loves the $2 action or a serious “gamer,” willing to bolster handle back to a point where it contributes to purses, for rebates, have a completely different view of things.

That’s a good thing as our aim is to improve our sport for everyone on both sides of the fence.

Maybe, just maybe, we are stirring the pot enough to begin the change in things to benefit those on both sides of the fence and invigorate what many think is a dead issue.

For example, comments were received that “time” (like in 1,000ths-of-a-second) means nothing and is a minor equation in what needs to be done.

Yet others wrote that timing is an important issue and races are won and lost in photo finishes decided by whiskers or 1,000ths-of-a-second.

It’s a start, folks.

Every stride forward just might create a new headline, or gain a new fan.

Mentioned in the last Mane Attraction were a few names that might begin the consortium of talent to really get things rolling.

Maybe Rick, Dana, Virgil, Eric, Dein and a few others can stir the post even more, as they seem to have that insatiable yearning to do something great for the sport that has been great to them.

Take thoroughbred’s Mike Repole, who has taken on the fight for thoroughbred racing.

He just bought one million (1,000,000) shares of Churchill Downs stock, which has a value of close to $80,000,000 to challenge the “old guard racing groups” that he says have held racing back.

Over the years, he made his fortune in beverages and has owned several champion thoroughbred horses, including Uncle Mo, Vino Rosso, Stay Thirsty, Mo Donegal, and Forte, all winners of the sport’s great classic races.

There are some states, most recently Maryland, that have committed to our sport, and Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky are players, too, but our industry has been hurt, in several instances, by the casino industry and politics, which have combined to use back-and-forth clout to make de-coupling a reality, breaking the supposedly unbreakable promise that, to have a casino, protection of racing must be a part of the deal.

Yeah, sure.

This Mane Attraction will not re-hash what happened in Florida and other venues as we are intent in putting the past behind us to re-create our great sport with a bunch of Mike Repoles willing to step up to the plate and, sorry, I’m one of them, leave the Mitchs and Chucks and thank them for their service, but we now use smart phones — not dial-ups.

This industry move is nothing new.

The thoroughbred industry tried to put together something over 20 years ago with an association that included successful businessmen, accountants, securities and commodities traders, authors, racing writers, television commentators, teachers, and economists, to name a handful or two.

Here are a few more of my thoughts on where we should improve.

Let me preface this by saying that those jurisdictions that are doing well because they have the support of legislatures and casinos are quite satisfied with the way things are going — even with empty grandstands.

That, literally, is in the heartland of the country.

Hopefully, things will not change for them as other more important items pop up on legislative agendas.

It’s the other side of the fence that really needs the work.

BDHC (Broken Down Horseplayers Club) members hate the drag and hate the late odds changes where a 9-5 shot a minute to post is banged down to 2-5 in the final flash.

It’s the same old excuse, we have to have that late money burst.

The other night, I tried to get into a fast-food restaurant as they closed at 9 p.m.

They locked the door as I was approaching.

And the lady signaled through the door window that they were closed.

Who runs the business? The stock market opens at 9:30 a.m., not one second earlier.

It closes at 4 p.m., not a second later.

You are out of luck, unless you want to go to another marketplace.

Set a post-time and keep it. Bettors will be much happier. The bettors will bet. They are gamblers and, if you tell them to get their bets in by 8:33, they will.

Here’s another thought, tote boards (odds boards) change every 45 seconds or so.

The final two cycles before the start should be reduced to 10 seconds and, then, the windows close. No 9-5 down to 1-5 45 seconds after the bell.

The last transmission of win odds should be before the bell or no more than a few seconds after the bell.

We might even consider fixed-odds betting, where the bettor could lock in his odds supplied by either licensed personnel or the racetrack.

It could be tested along-side parimutuel betting to evaluate whether it attracts new players without disrupting pari-mutuel pools.

Takeout for the bettors must be examined.

It is my belief that pari-mutuel takeout rates are too high and that a reduction of same, especially in the exotic pools, would result in higher handle.

States and legislatures establish takeout rates, maybe the tracks, themselves could take over and, maybe, a little competition could go a long way in attracting betting dollars.

Taxation must be addressed on winnings to minimize withholding on winnings, especially on individual races. Since many players have accounts online, perhaps this could be addressed as cumulative wins/losses are routinely kept.

How about raising the threshold on winning from $5,000 to $50,000, and, at the same time, raise the threshold on individual wagers paying up to 1,000-1.

Rebates can create excellent opportunities, maybe this industry should advertise 5 per cent cash back, just like credit card companies on television.

When it comes to late scratches, there should be an updated way to help the bettor who is stuck with the favorite by rule. After all, now that bettor may be stuck with the favorite in a race, the very horse they were betting against when they purchased their ticket(s).

Also, instead of cheapening our product when probable payoffs are posted, all W-P-S pays, Daily Doubles and Exactas should be posted in $2 pays.

So should the Pick-6.

Trifectas and Supers and Pick-3s, 4s, 5s, and 6s should be posted in $2 pays.

On the medication issue, instead of taking a random nanogram number that may have no impact on performance, an exhaustive study should be conducted on when a particular medication begins to impact a horse’s performance.

We desperately need a fans wager that is seeded with a $500,000 – $1,000,000 prize.

My thought is the Great-8 with the bettor having to pick winners from races 1 through 7 with a capper being the eighth race trifecta.

One track could host it per week with every player in North America (or the world) eligible to play.

Consolation awards would be awarded, as well, of course.

Just like the lottery.

Who would play, you ask? Who wouldn’t!

This, of course, begins on the fans side of the fence.

There are many more ideas that need study on the other side of the fence.

We are working on that for future Mane Attraction columns.

Until then, May The Horse Be With You!