I really want to throw in my own opinion here but I will respectfully decline to the more learned on board.
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It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.....
http://www.drf.com/news/hovdey-minds-vacation-mouths-working-overtime
At least Mandella seems happy with his job. Dale Romans, fresh from Keen Ice's thumping in the World Cup, was quoted by Alan Aitken in the South China Morning Post as being mad as hell and not willing to take it anymore. Or something like that:
"I'm ready for an adventure, and I'm so sick of what's happened to the sport in the U.S. I'm done with it," Romans said. "I'm a horseman, and I think races should be won by the better horseman, not something else. I was very impressed with what I saw in Hong Kong when I was there, and I know that, because the vet side of racing is so tightly controlled there, it's the superior horseman who will succeed. They've never had an American trainer, but if they want me, I'd love to train there."
http://www.drf.com/news/romans-%E2%80%98i-would-never-knock-american-racing
On Wednesday, standing on the rail at Gulfstream Park, Romans attempted to clarify his comments.
"There isn't a person around who believes I said that stuff," Romans said. "I would never knock American racing."
Roman said he is tired of a lot of the bureaucracy – including audits and health care – involved in America.
"When I said I was tired and done with this, I was talking about labor boards, immigration department ... not horse racing," he said.
He\'s pulling a Trump! I said this, no, I really didn\'t say that. Too bad, I had gained more respect from him after the initial comments. Guess it is never OK to say the emperor has no clothes.
Look, US racing should and could be the best on the planet, but we just can\'t get it together on so, so many issues. When you actually follow racing on other continents, you do get an appreciation for honest racing without all the drugs.
A few things I\'d like to see:
a low low takeout
make bookies legal in all states so we could go for fixed odds
let us choose any wagering provider we want no matter where we live (that would imply capitalism in action, sorry Bernie Sanders fans)
can the IRS deductions
uniform rules in every state for drug usage and real testing with real penalties for offenders
have races at different tracks spaced accordingly on big days so you don\'t have 3 races going off at the same time
much better video quality, like what Gulfstream (with replays) and Keenland (live) do with high def stuff
let the jocks weigh more, make a minimum of 120?
blah blah blah I could go on but who cares, really