Assessments - Horseplayers

Now it is our turn in the barrel. Obviously we are not a part of the problem here, stick with Magna and The Jockey Club…
Actually we are 29,000,000 problems. We have a couple of uniformly bad habits - we are resistant to change, we tend to be
cheap on anything besides wagering, we are opinionated to the max, and we become irate if anything in the industry hits the
stupid threshold (which it does about daily).

Horseplayers are notoriously resistant to change - any change. You name it, saddlecloth colors, Trackus, online wagering,
name changes for races, synthetic tracks, field size, bet types, PDF documents… We are not the most progressive lot. Part
of the issue is the loss of history and tradition, part is the adoption and familiarization with the new technologies and part is
just good old fashioned stubbornness.

Many of us are cheap; in fact horseplayers are the primary source for copper wire, a byproduct of attempting to get that last
penny away from them. In their minds track admission should be free (except on special race days), programs should be free
and that DRF newspaper at $4.50! Soda Pop should be a buck, hot dogs a buck and $2.00 for parking. Raise any prices and
you would think they were running kittens through a wood chipper.

Horseplayers opinionated? Where the hell did you get that from you donkey! There are really only two opinions, mine and the
wrong opinion. The problem with opinions (especially horseplayers) is that we dig our feet in when challenged and refuse to
be open to other options. Change in a sport that is populated from top to bottom with strong opinions is going to be
problematic at best.

We should be irate when the industry does something stupid, but we need to do something other than bitch, and we need to
be cognizant that these are money making operations that don't function so well when they are not making money. If we have
a problem with a policy or a behavior we need to voice our concern, loudly, clearly and with a level of respect for the recipient.
Today, with e-mail, all it takes is finding the address of the recipient, which is not that hard. Can't stomach the slaughter of
horses? Then get involved, write your congressman, the NTRA, make a blog entry, but do something! What did your
congressman say when you e-mailed him? Oh, I didn't e-mail him, THEN SHUT THE F*CK UP! You are whining -
complaining without being willing to take action.

Now the facts, horse tracks are very expensive facilities to operate. Think about the size of them alone, the water, electricity,
maintenance, landscaping, payroll, insurance, taxes, etc. - they are NOT a Motel 6. So we want tracks that look like Del
Mar, Saratoga and Keeneland, but they need to charge the same prices as Yavapai Downs (stay away from the Nachos,
trust me).

We need to acknowledge that profitability is a good thing, without it the entire industry staggers like a wounded giant. DRF
needs to make money selling their PP's, YouBet needs to make money from online wagers, Santa Anita needs to make
money from operating a major track, owners need to make money running their horses, trainers need to make money from
getting/keeping horses ready to run, jockeys need to make money to have decent talent on that $5M horse's back… Without
profitability for every sector, horse racing would be in trouble - wait a minute we ARE in trouble, and the problems are
caused/magnified by the fact that so many sectors in the industry are losing money.

If we acknowledge that we want tracks like Santa Anita or Saratoga, then we have to be willing to pay for them. Many of the
Internet bettors think that they shouldn't have to pay for the premium tracks because they are not at the track. Then get
ready for a whole bunch of Presque Isle Downs, because that is what is economically feasible today. The great tracks were
built from 1900 - 1940 and could not be built today, the cost would be astronomical. What is the value of the land under Del
Mar, Santa Anita or Golden Gate? What would the construction costs be to replicate Belmont or Keeneland? So these
beautiful monuments to horse racing have a cost, one that we have to be willing to pay in order to keep them operating. They
are also the source of our memories, they are constants in a changing world - they have extraordinary value to us as
horseplayers. Can't we acknowledge that they cost a ton to operate and that we need to pay the freight to make sure they
continue?

One of the ideas I will put forward is to charge an "admission fee" for those that want to bet on the premium tracks online.
Pay an admission fee, when I'm not even at the track?? Are you crazed? Well yes I am, but aren't you receiving something of
value by way of the upper echelon race cards and the beautiful backdrop for the races? And since less than 15% of all
wagers on a track's races are actually done at the track… Want free? Then you get Presque Isle, Mountaineer, Charles
Town, Philadelphia, et al.
What sets us off are the stupid little things - like charging a quarter to make a bet, OTB "surcharge fees", idiots ahead of you
in the teller line that have the Form open and are leaning back looking at the tote board while spewing 85 dime supers, tellers
that have severe hearing deficits (Mort here has been with us since the track opened…) or buying a $5.00 hot dog that is
absolutely nasty. We can effect change, but have to be realistic in our expectations about the level of product in comparison
to the cost of the product.