Illinois Racing

[billk5300s]

I realize that some of you aren\'t interested in demise of horse racing posts but for players in Illinois our racing is in a sorry state. (No pun intended).  Tomorrow at 9:00pm during the evening news on WGN there will be a story about Illinois racing and how its fate is in the hands of legislators.  The tracks in Illinois are losing business to neighboring states who have slots as well as poker machines which are now in many suburban bars and eating establishments.  It would make sense to allow slots in the tracks but they keep bundling this issue with a larger gambling expansion bill which includes a casino for Chicago.

[FrankD.]

Bill,

Having lived in Chicago from 1983-1989 It\'s very sad to see Arlington reduced to a leaky roof circuit track. I was there in the old plant, the tent meets and saw the current facility open in 1989. The summer stakes program and the festival of racing on million weekend was first rate and drew the top outfits. Horsemen loved to race there and out of towner\'s shipping in for stakes were always treated very well.

Even with political stooge relief it may be too late? The product simply cannot stand alone and be profitable anymore with very few exceptions. The slot party won\'t last forever either so I\'m afraid the future holds some major contraction nation wide.

As relevant as Arlington once was I really miss the Sportsman\'s bull ring where one could earn their PHD in trips and track biases!

Frank D.

[miff]

Illinois situation pretty bad but with the exception of California, subsidies from slots keeping much of the game alive.

An example of the games current situation on display July 4th at Belmont where app only 7k people showed up for one of NYRA\'s \"big day\" cards.

Major contraction for racing may be a bitter pill but it seems inevitable and maybe for the best going forward.

[Fairmount1]

Bill Stiritz would not have sold Fairmount to the Casino Queen unless he was very very confident slots would be approved (deal is contingent on slots approval). I\'m confident you will see slots in Illinois tracks very soon.

Whether that \"saves\" racing in Illinois is another story.

[elkurzhal]

I still think racing should have never gone after slots, let the casinos have them.  They should (have) gone after sports betting and kept is exclusive from the casinos. Horse racing is a sport... Tracks should be able to create para-mutual pools on any sporting event.   Look at the explosion of the DFS (daily fantasy sports) model, which probably already out handle racing on NFL Sundays...

[miff]

The fact that racing cannot stand on it\'s own any longer is an ominous sign.Sooner or later the politicians will make a money grab at racing subsidies, a matter of time.

[Boscar Obarra]

miff Wrote:
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> The fact that racing cannot stand on it\'s own any
> longer is an ominous sign.Sooner or later the
> politicians will make a money grab at racing
> subsidies, a matter of time.

If that\'s true, it\'s only because they\'ve spend the last 40 years wringing the Gooses neck.

[P-Dub]

We have discussed the problems with racing for a long time. While other sports/gambling have promoted themselves wisely, racing has done as bad a job as possible.

If they tried to do a worse job, they couldn\'t.

Daily Fantasy is taking more and more of the younger audience away from racing. If they were interested in the first place.

You guys know I work in a casino that offers poker.  I deal poker 5 days a week, and these guys are always asking me if I play fantasy sports. Some of them are making pretty good money doing it too. I\'m always being asked for roster suggestions. They often ask me what I did over the weekend. If I tell them I went to the track, it hardly registers. Few follow up questions or comments.  Its as if I told them I mowed the lawn.

If I said I played poker, they will ask many questions. If its football season, the talk centers around betting and spreads. Baseball, basketball same thing. Constant talk about lines, totals, who do you like tonight, etc...

Racing? Yawn.

Its absolutely amazing to me how racing can\'t figure out how to market to this audience.  These guys love to GAMBLE. Look at the late Pick 4 at Woodbine yesterday. Look at the Pick 3s in that sequence. There was a 52/1 shot in there, a 17/1. Massive payouts. The Pick 4 paid $92k.

We can\'t figure out a way to get people, that love to gamble, interested in that kind of money?

I love poker, football, baseball, etc.... and I love to gamble on all of it.  My favorite?  Horse racing, and its not even close. It has nothing to do with horseys running around the track, although I love to watch them run. Beautiful animals.  Its about the gambling, pari mutuel style, where I get the chance to be better than the next guy.

I get so frustrated reading these threads. Reading about idiots like the NYRA clowns effing up Saratoga.

It takes a special kind of stupid where, in a nation that loves to gamble, we can\'t get people to gamble on horse racing.

I gotta go deal some poker. \"Sure, go ahead and start Burnett, Padres can\'t hit much.\" I\'m sure I\'ll say this to someone tonight.

[TGJB]

Job one is figuring out that fans are not customers, bettors are. Job two is figuring out what customers want.

[Topcat]

FrankD. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bill,
>
> Having lived in Chicago from 1983-1989 It\'s very
> sad to see Arlington reduced to a leaky roof
> circuit track. I was there in the old plant, the
> tent meets and saw the current facility open in
> 1989. The summer stakes program and the festival
> of racing on million weekend was first rate and
> drew the top outfits. Horsemen loved to race there
> and out of towner\'s shipping in for stakes were
> always treated very well.
>
> Even with political stooge relief it may be too
> late? The product simply cannot stand alone and be
> profitable anymore with very few exceptions. The
> slot party won\'t last forever either so I\'m afraid
> the future holds some major contraction nation
> wide.
>
> As relevant as Arlington once was I really miss
> the Sportsman\'s bull ring where one could earn
> their PHD in trips and track biases!
>
> Frank D.



There was one Sportsman\'s spring meet where outside closers were so laughably dominant, Bozo The Clown could have generated a positive ROI.

[FrankD.]

Wasn\'t Bozo from Chicago?

[Tavasco]

Job Prelude:

Restructure executive compensation to be a function of revenue & profit.

[richiebee]

P-Dub Wrote:
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> Look at the late Pick 4 at
> Woodbine yesterday. Look at the Pick 3s in that
> sequence. There was a 52/1 shot in there, a 17/1.
> Massive payouts. The Pick 4 paid $92k.

I think the 17/1 was Go Blue or Go Home. The G3 Shakertown at Keeneland has
turned into quite the \"key race\". Channel Marker, Undrafted, Power Alert, Go
Blue, Amelias Wild Ride have all won out of that race. Keep an eye peeled for
Something Extra (Shakertown winner),Tightend Touchdown, Zee Bros, Berlino Di
Tiger and Choctaw Chuck.

[Topcat]

FrankD. Wrote:
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> Wasn\'t Bozo from Chicago?

Of course . . . we try to keep any attempts at humor relevant to the case at hand.

[Topcat]

Tavasco Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Job Prelude:
>
> Restructure executive compensation to be a
> function of revenue & profit.


Fair point . . . but its unfair to any exec who has to futilely labor against any state legislature (guess who) more felonious than civic-minded.