What If...

I have no background in marketing or finance. I am not familiar with the inner workings of the industry nor do I have a clue regarding the mechanism of ADW's and federal v. state gambling regulations. I am ignorant of social networking protocols and the voodoo that is this mythical beast known as the internet. The fact that I can turn on my computer and make it to this page on a daily basis is a victory for me but I am learning.

If you have ever seen a dog look at a clock you have a general idea of my frame of reference.

So I throw this out there fully expecting that it will, at best be ignored(if viewed at all) and at worst mocked in the dark dimension of the blogosphere. On the bright side, I am pathologically antisocial so I am fine with all that?

As is no secret, racing needs to do three things immediately:

1. Appoint a commissioner with supreme executive power.
2. Ban all racing medication and drugs. Zero tolerance. Progressively punitive fines and suspensions with a lifetime ban on the third offense. Not 13 or 72.
   
3. One racing jurisdiction. One set of rules.

Anything less than this, run for the exits.

Now, if this can be done and that is a big if, then the industry leaders can turn their attention towards other matters...but first get the thing going in the right direction. Forget about marketing the sport and increasing its fan base. Focus on fixing the problem. The industry is flawed and no amount of PR is going to get it whole. Too much is being thrown around as the panacea...there isn't any one. You can't build a lasting tower if the foundation is defective.

Once the hemorrhaging has stopped then all those ideas that are floating about out there can be gradually brought into the fold. This will not be fixed in a few years. The short attention span generation might not tolerate this but it has to be done. This industry hinges on the principles of evolution and natural selection NOT nanotechnology, the blidget and speed dating (all good things in their own way).

What if, and this is by no means the list topper, racing created two conferences. East v. West. In this country racing has pretty much split itself up that way anyway so a formal division of the product would not be that much of a stretch and Californians are already their own breed.

Follow....

Create a racing circuit, a tour if you will. Cooperation is needed and that is probably where this thing goes off the rails but if American Idol can be a hit then anything can happen.

1. Shorten the racing season. Arlington does not need a 120+ day meet and neither does anyone else. Reduce the number of races and you get larger fields. Like I said, I have no background in marketing or finance but I imagine that simple math still applies.
2. Create a series of races agreed upon by all tracks/or whoever, so that nobody cannibalizes anybody else's product. Set up the races so that each division, i.e. sprint, turf mile, etc... gets an even spacing of their premier events among all the member tracks; this could tie in with point 1, where each track has a 2-3(or whatever) week meet and the venue changes so the horses travel the circuit. Something similar to what Formula 1 has. The series would be sponsored by someone-not Hooters.
   
3. Make the Breeder's Cup the goal. Apply the rankings that the TBA has set up or something along those lines. Again, I am not the marketing guy.
4. Create an inter-conference showcase, like the Sunshine Millions but for all horses. East v. West. Keep that as the January goal. Some races would need to move their date but that's the price of progress, i.e. The Clark might not run in November or whatever.
5. Tie the Claiming Crown into this somehow and make it a national tour along with the graded stakes series.
6. Smaller tracks would either card very short meets that would follow the "Pro Tour" and cater to the claiming types or they would shut down or become concert venues or state parks. There are too many tracks for the number of sound horses.
7. Streamline the wagering process. Reduce take-out. Make it a standard percentage nationwide and maybe incorporate a revenue sharing agreement a la NFL to split all proceeds among the racing circuit. The commissioners office could be in charge of this pool and would then allocate whatever percentage to some federal fund that the respective states could dip into based on percentage of handle generated or whatever metric you want to use. The remaining funds go to purses, track employee benefits, drug testing, horse care issues and whatever else.
8. Market the BLOODY crap out of this thing. Get sponsors and some legitimate broadcast agreement; if anybody suggests televising human interest stories instead of the GI Manhattan, shove a hot poker up their ass. Again, though I am not the marketing guy that last one might boost ratings.

And finally....Preserve the nobility of the sport. Incorporate whatever else into whatever else but maintain the purity and the pursuit of that ideal, that embodiment of excellence that through the years has been called: Man O' War, Whirlaway, Citation, Native Dancer, Ruffian, Dr. Fager, Personal Ensign, Buckpasser, Forego, Kelso, Secretariat, Spectacular Bid, Ouija Board, Cigar, Evening Attire...

Blue blooded blather

Takeover Target, not pictured, tore a tendon in the Golden Jubilee Stakes GrI, at Ascot and is returning home to Australia. I would post the interview I did with the horse after he sustained his injury but I am worried that people wouldn't like me.

As a man of influence and prestige, I am of course beset upon by myriad institutions to lend my good name to their enterprise; in that vein I have consented to reach down into the flotsam of advertisers at my feet and promote a Horse betting site on this internationally demanded blog. (I'm just glad at least one person stumbled across this thing and made the mistake of assuming that people read it...thanks Melanie)

Seeing how I am one of the racing elite now (that's our baby in the picture), I feel qualified to throw my proverbial hat in the ring of public discourse on the racing industry.

How does one get heard? There are ideas out there, we are not starved for those and yet the people with those ideas are shut out of any and all meaningful discourse by the so-called caretakers of this sport. What explains this obdurate refusal to open up to the concerned following and welcome the helping hand we are desperately waving?

Alex Waldrop posted a moving piece about the importance of cooperation and forward thinking and Kumbaya-like harmony amongst the racing executives. Talk is cheap-or writing at any rate, present company included. If the meeting was so important, why was it not disclosed beforehand? (Was it?) Where is the video of the meeting itself? Why couldn't you link the minutes of the meeting in your blog Mr. Waldrop? Why is there not an open forum of discussion? Why don't the racing jurisdictions adopt one set of rules and enforcement procedures? What IS the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?

It does not cease to amaze me how much I don't know about the inner workings of this industry and the petty turf wars waged on a daily basis by the anarcho-syndicalist communes we laughingly refer to as the industry leaders. The ship is sinking and they are fighting over whose flag gets to fly on the transom.

Might as well fly the white one.

They call it BLOODSTOCK for a reason

I found this a few days ago and have no idea what to make of it.

In theory it sounds like a brilliant idea but the practical execution of it is beyond me, then again I didn't understand SIV's and CDS's and I hear those were a resounding success.

The site portrays the setup as a fractional ownership of racehorses but then there is trading involved. It is in the beta phase I guess but it still does not make sense to me. In the fractional aircraft business one does not trade one's share in the aircraft. The whole purpose of the fractional ownership program is to allow one to share a corporate jet for a "fraction" of the cost required to own one entirely. In turn, one gets some fixed number of hours to use the aircraft throughout the year and does not have to deal with the hassle of managing the aircraft maintenance and staffing issues. There are also a contract and a monthly management fee involved.

How would you assure the integrity of your transaction? I guess corporate aircraft are not fungible but I wouldn't imagine that horses are either. Any ideas?

Sound and fury

Class will tell.

The House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection concluded its hearings today sans "Babe" Dutrow. He was a vet scratch apparently, feeling under the weather. Maybe he could have used a shot of Winstrol. The chairwoman Jan Schakowsky stated that the committee had not received word from Dutrow that he would not make the hearing. Dutrow claims he informed the committee of his planned absence. I wonder who is not telling the truth?
Update: Dutrow apparently was telling the truth. (10:15 in Paulick's live blog) Sorry Babe.

The panel, by and large, expressed its frustration with the industry in general and its eagerness to ban the use of medication in racing. A consensus was reached on the need for a governing authority for horse racing and the dysfunctional status of the current system, with the glaring exception of Alex Waldrop, president and CEO of the NTRA. Like the entertainment director aboard the Titanic, he claimed-with a straight face worthy of Oscar nomination-that the industry was best positioned to regulate itself and was making great inroads towards achieving self governing credibility. (My words, I'm not a journalist so I'm paraphrasing.) You bloody wanker, have the brass to step up to the plate and admit that you and the entire industry are useless and detrimental to the sport in general. Nobody wants to be told what to do but have the simple decency to admit that after so much time to fix your own mess you need to let someone in to do it for you. Piss off.

But I digress.

Curiously, TOBA has a new owner video thing on the Bloodhorse and in one of their presentations Dr. Chip Johnson, DVM, states that he, as a vet, has a truckload full of great stuff to make your horse run faster. WTF?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?? In the intro to the whole series, the moderator states that the purpose of TOBA is to increase the economics and integrity(IN THAT ORDER)of the sport.

Dutrow with his absence and Waldrop with his shrill cry of "...nothing to see here" prove that in the end, this whole charade was the classic "...tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."

Class will tell.

If I die before I wake...

There are days when I am sickened by humanity and its detritus.

A few days ago the U.S. Supreme Court rejected an appeal by an Illinois based slaughterhouse to remain open. And there was much rejoicing.

I have nothing against eating horse meat, per se but the inhumane treatment of the animals and the callous disregard of the owners is an offense of leviathan proportions.

Every horse should have a home and someone to love them and rainbows and candy. Horses, thoroughbred or otherwise, deserve better than we give them and while the situation for them will never be ideal we at least owe it to them to make it DECENT. It is unconscionable that situations like this occur, and this is just one we know of.

How hard would it be to require breeders to be the home of last resort? They get a cut of any winnings that that horse accrues throughout its lifetime, whether they own it or not. Why would it be off the wall to require them to take the horse back if/when nobody else has a purpose for it. There could be a flat surcharge(tax), payable to the breeder whenever they sell any horse that would mitigate the financial hit they would incur if that horse does come back but it should not be large enough to create a breeding incentive. Make them responsible for their actions. Breeding for the sales are we? Breed this. We have too many horses every year? How quickly would we get the population under control if the breeders were responsible for their stock?

We have too few horses to fill races? Maybe most horses shouldn't be running. Maybe we have too many tracks and too many racing days. Maybe the quality of the product would go up if we cut back on production. Maybe I am talking out of my ass.

I love horse racing. It requires horses and those horses have to come from somewhere. I just think that there might be a better way to do all of this: the breeding, racing, training, betting and regulating.

The horses deserve a good run for their money, because every bloody time, whether we deserve it or not, they give us a good run for ours.

Which one of these is not like the other?

Since I can't come up with any brilliant ideas of my own, I am happy to steal some from better minds.

Much has been posted in the last few days regarding the state of the industry and the upcoming congressional hearings, the battle for ADW revenue and across the board purse cuts at several tracks. The product, in its current incarnation, is flawed.

History and tradition are all well and good but there are times when new blood is needed. Baseball lowered the mound and brought in the DH (nobody consulted with me on that), hockey put that glowing thing on the puck...well nevermind that one, american football brought in instant replay and even football experimented with the golden goal.

Horse racing, meanwhile, has only adopted higher takeouts and anabolic steroids.

What if, the jockey club or whoever is in charge of such things, allowed...wait for it...promotional logos on the jockey pants and saddlecloth? I know, they did that already but they could do it more. Allow the jockeys and whatever owner wants to, to place ads on the silks and pants. They could agree to a certain percentage of that ad revenue to go to the owner but most of it would go to the tracks purse structure. Work out the details...I'm just the idea man.

Don't like the ads on the silks and pants? What if they clipped it into the horse when they shaved them?

What if BMW Oracle formed a racing partnership? Exxon Mobil? National Geographic? Viagra? Would they own any geldings....?

Talk amongst yourselves.

A long, hard look

I don't play three card monty; I don't like being setup and I can't follow the cards fast enough to beat the con. I'm balding but I don't buy hair restoration cream no matter how many quadruple blind tests it has undergone. I don't play the lottery, I, generally, don't lick electrical outlets and I am never, ever sick at sea. So I take more than my particular exception to the august body that is the United States Congress, when they decide to step into the arena of horse racing and lay down their Solomon-like wisdom on matters great and small.

Genius may have its limitations, but stupidity is not thus handicapped
-Elbert Hubbard

Why am I supposed to believe that "This time it's different"? How many times do we have to touch that hot stove before we realize that it's hot? This dog and pony show, catering to the same audience that makes American Idol what it is, is a farcical ceremony as are the various industry wide committee's.

A committee is a cul-de-sac down which ideas are lured and then quietly strangled.
-Sir Barnett Cocks

Nobody needs to discuss what the problems are; everybody knows. Medication, drugs and what laughably is referred to as the industries fines (indulge me) and suspensions program. Enough already.

We are to blame. You...me.

We all know that this goes on day in and day out and yet we continue to patronize this sham. If any of us really gave a shit we would show up on BIG race days by NOT showing up. Don't bet. Take a pass. Stick it to these industry hacks like they have been sticking it to us for all these years. If there is no betting, then there are no purses and no racing. No racing, no money and no job. Pocket book politics. That's the beauty of the system, we have it within our means to effect change in a very real way.

Otherwise we might as well go piss into the wind.

Before I go admire my self-righteous ass in a mirror, let me just say that I am WAY psyched about the Churchill card for tomorrow and can't wait to throw some money down on it.

What's next?

Is it too early to have my Kentucky Derby horse?

Lyin' Heart (89 BSF last race) out of, duh...Lion Heart; he was as game as they come.

Lion Heart was brilliant speed and while he didn't want the Derby distance he gamed them all for second. I think he would have run away with the Met Mile. His son, carries some stamina breeding on the dam side via Green Dancer and Nijinsky II and while he is inbred to Raise a Native, it is 5x5 so perhaps that avoids the weak bones.

Lyin' Heart is perfect in two starts and is coming to Churchill, according to Asmussen. He is pointing for the Bashford Manor July 5. Go Baby, go.

Your package has been lost...

Photo: Anne M. Eberhardt


UPS does not deliver. Hooters shows up flat. No drugs, no horse.

Dick Dutrow GUARANTEED a win on the walk out to the paddock but Da'Tara intercepted his package and delivered him a big tall cup of Shut the hell up. The last few months Dutrow has been nothing short of abrasive in his assessment of Big Brown's abilities and his equal disdain for the rest of the sport. Big Brown was clearly not himself today and he left his trainer nose deep in a big, deserving bag of shit.

ABC and ESPN were equally classless in their post race coverage, concentrating solely on the loser and giving nothing but short shrift to the winning connections.

The old adage, class matters, applies to more than just the caliber of the horse. The connections should display some as well and Dutrow/IEAH seemed to have forgotten that this sport as well as life is humbling but here and now, at the end of all things, I don't really hold Dutrow's bravado against him.

Dutrow, until today, had the best horse. A maverick, he usually steamrolled through the competition; today just wasn't his day. Most people, dealt a hand like Dutrow's, don't have the brass to walk up and place a bet. Dutrow, called in all his markers and put it all on the line. The dice roll funny for everyone. He will have other days; it's margin call today.

Most people don't like arrogance because it reminds them that they have very little to be arrogant about and the schadenfreude is pervasive. Dutrow called his shot and swung away.

He should not second guess himself or shy away from the media, neither of which I think he will do. I am reminded of a scene from James Goldman's play, The Lion in Winter, when Geoffrey scoffs at Richard while they are waiting for the axe:

Geoffrey: You fool! As if it matters how a man falls down!
Richard: When the fall is all that's left, it matters a great deal.

Godspeed Big Brown...may you enjoy the breeding shed.

Rubbin', son, is racin'...

In an absolutely brilliant ride by Johnny Murtagh, Soldier of Fortune powers home in the Juddmonte Coronation Cup at Epsom Downs on Friday.

After tracking a pair of his stablemates, Song of Hiawatha and Macarthur, through the first 9 furlongs, Johnny Murtagh moved on Soldier of Fortune, alongside 5-4 favorite Getaway, keeping the latter on the rail as they ran up on the tiring pacesetters. Stephane Pasquier had to take up on Getaway to keep him from running up on Macarthur, losing valuable ground and momentum inside the 2 furlong pole. Youmzain, ever the bridesmaid in these events, closed strongly to take the place 3/4 length behind the winner, Macarthur held on for the show. I think the stewards handed Murtagh a three day suspension for the tactics but they did not take his number down. I can't find any evidence of this and I'm too lazy to look that hard.

The Epsom Derby is tomorrow, going is good throughout with a nice day in store for southeast England. Here are the entries:

Epsom 4:00 VODAFONE DERBY (GROUP 1) (ENTIRE COLTS & FILLIES) (CLASS 1) (3yo) Winner £802,443.95 1m4f10y GOOD No. Form Horse Trainer RTF % Wgt Jockey 1(12) 1223-4 Alan Devonshire 28 M H Tompkins 64 3 9-0 Paul Mulrennan 115 106 2(1) 831-41 Alessandro Volta 28 A P O´Brien 74 3 9-0 J A Heffernan 122 97 3(9) 34-53 Bashkirov 27 A P O´Brien 74 3 9-0 David McCabe 99 101 4(2) 43-127 Bouguereau 27 P W Chapple-Hyam 70 3 9-0 Alan Munro 122 115 5(10) 1-1 Casual Conquest 27 D K Weld 58 3 9-0 P J Smullen 5 134 120 6(6) 2215-1 Curtain Call 45 L M Cumani 77 3 9-0 Jamie Spencer 127 115 7(13) 221-21 Doctor Fremantle 30 Sir Michael Stoute 88 3 9-0 Kerrin McEvoy 2 128 126 8(15) 18-2 Frozen Fire 23 A P O´Brien 74 3 9-0 M J Kinane 133 128 9(8) 211-21 Kandahar Run 35 H R A Cecil 50 3 9-0 Ted Durcan 122 112 10(11) 710-52 King Of Rome 28 A P O´Brien 74 3 9-0 J Murtagh 121 96 11(7) 0-5303 Maidstone Mixture 110 (13J) Paul Murphy — 3 9-0 Michael O´Connell - - 12(3) 111-22 New Approach 14 J S Bolger 57 3 9-0 K J Manning 3 137 131 13(17) 1214-2 Rio De La Plata 27 Saeed Bin Suroor 73 3 9-0 L Dettori 132 126 14(4) 817-43 River Proud 27 P F I Cole 26 3 9-0 DOUBTFUL 129 122 15(5) 10-1 Tajaaweed 29 Sir Michael Stoute 88 3 9-0 R Hills 132 128 16(14) 2-11 Tartan Bearer 23 Sir Michael Stoute 88 3 9-0 Ryan Moore 4 135 128 17(16) 4-22 Washington Irving 27 A P O´Brien 74 3 9-0 C O´Donoghue 119 109 BETTING FORECAST: 4/1 Casual Conquest, 9/2 Curtain Call, 5/1 New Approach, 6/1 Tartan Bearer, 8/1 Doctor Fremantle, 10/1 Tajaaweed, 14/1 King Of Rome, 16/1 Frozen Fire, 20/1 Kandahar Run, Rio De La Plata, 40/1 Alessandro Volta, Washington Irving, 150/1 Bouguereau, 200/1 Alan Devonshire, 500/1 Bashkirov, Maidstone Mixture, SPOTLIGHT VERDICT: Aidan O'Brien and Michael Stoute have won this four times in the last seven years and between them they have nearly half of today's field, but they may be upstaged by Dermot Weld who has an equally fine record on the international stage. His CASUAL CONQUEST (nap) looked a colt of huge talent and potential when running away with Ireland's most significant Derby trial at Leopardstown last month and he will be very well suited by today's trip. The Stoute trio all came through their trials successfully but there has to be a stamina doubt about Tajaaweed, so Tartan Bearer and Doctor Fremantle look his main players and both have solid frame claims. In contrast, only Alessandro Volta of the O'Brien quintet comes here with a win to his name this season but it is his Lingfield victim King Of Rome, who has a highly unlikely profile for a Derby winner, that Johnny Murtagh has surprisingly opted for and it will be a good result for Ballydoyle if any of their contenders make the frame. New Approach and Curtain Call are easily most interesting of the remainder.[AC] Copied from racingpost.co.uk I like Tartan Bearer at 6-1.