IS THE “TRAINER” REALLY TRAINING?
A thought on training and instruction
Continue Reading September 25, 2009 at 6:08 pm Leave a comment
FUTURE OF ELLIS PARK IN BALANCE
Posted: Tuesday, September 08, 2009 6:31 PM
Ellis Park owner considering options for 2010
by Frank Angst
After reducing its summer schedule by 20 dates and still seeing a drop in average daily handle, Ellis Park owner Ron Geary is considering his options for 2010.
Ellis Park cited increased competition from Indiana and other racing states that supplement purses with expanded gaming in its decision to cut racing days from 48 to 28 days this summer. The Henderson, Kentucky, track saw total all-sources wagering handle fall 40.3% to $46,674,643.
Despite the cut in racing dates, the track did not fare much better in average daily handle, which fell 16.9% to $1,666,952. Geary is considering not racing at all in 2010, offering a similar amount of dates as ’09, or cutting dates further.
Geary said he is monitoring the Kentucky Legislature to see any potential movement on added gaming at Kentucky tracks as well as moves in states like Indiana, where Indiana Downs and Hoosier Park could siphon more horses from Ellis.
“I’ve said it’s a lot easier to handicap the races than it is to handicap the Kentucky Senate,” Geary said, noting that he was encouraged by the August election of Democrat Robin Webb, who supports the addition of video lottery terminals at Kentucky tracks.
Geary said Ellis will submit its request for dates to the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission by the October 1 deadline.
Faced with the potential loss of the track, local fans did support racing at Ellis this summer. Daily on-track attendance increased 22.4% to 3,698 in ’09 and on-track handle for the live meeting averaged $205,646, up 16.7%.
“I have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from our local and regional fans,” Geary said. “They have been coming to Ellis Park for many, many years and are begging me to find ways to keep the track going.”
Racing leaders for the meet included trainer Buff Bradley, who finished with 11 victories. The leading owner was a tie between Elvie Cobb and Carl Short with five wins each. Jockey Jon Court won the riding title with 33 victories while Freddie Lenclud finished as leading apprentice with 17 wins.
The bottom line is that most american race tracks will not be able to compete with those that have evolved to racing/gaming entities. With such advancements as online commodities, the racing industry must progress to involve multiple attractions such as slots to get people in the door. A good example is watching how Gulfstream Park has made advances to keep up with the global gaming industry. With all of it’s new services and additions, it will be interesting to see how the winter meet compares to those in the past.
THE POLYTRACK FILES
Del Mar Race Course
Continue Reading September 10, 2009 at 5:11 pm Leave a comment
RACHEL PROVES TO BE “ALEXANDRA THE GREAT”!!
She has indeed done it! The girl has beat the boys this weekend in the 2009 Woodward Stakes at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday. What an incredible end to an amazing career. We love you “Alexandra the Great”!!!
WATCH WITH ME!!!
Hello to all!
I am in the process of uploading my virtual stable of all my horses i broke and trained this winter–so we can all watch together their progress as race horses. I recieve updates everytime one of them breeze, race, and their results. I thought it would be a great idea to make this public, so we can root them on together!!
Feeds coming shortly.
DEBUT WIN, DEBUT BLOG
One of the greatest moments of my career is watching one of my horses cross the finishing line first. Ushuaia is a fillie I had the opportunity to train daily at Payson Park this winter. Unraced, I molded and shaped her into becoming a performance race horse with many many miles, gate work, and breeze work. It is even more rewarding when they are able to get the job done, on the first try. Way to go mama.
Ushuaia is featured in the video below.
Quarter Horse Racing Tonight
On a side note:
If you happen to be in Lexington tonight, the Red Mile is hosting Quarter Horse racing tonight and tomorrow. Come out and see some of the best!! It should be a lot of fun.
Keeneland Training Almost Over
Well, it’s about that time once again to wrap up training at Keeneland Race Course. All of the top barns must be emptied to make way for the september thoroughbred auctions. I personaly will be moving down to Miami — yes, yes, I know what your thinking—it’s a bit early to be making the Florida move, but I have exterior engagements awaiting me there. I’m thinking it will have to be Calder for a little while; then I can move over to Gulfstream in November; but it’s gonna be a hot one. At least I know everyone there at Calder–I did ride races there–even if it was just for a season.
I will be posting my virtual stable of all the horses I broke over the winter, so you can keep up with me on their progress and careers; who knows—maybe we’ll get lucky!!!
Memorable Racing Footage
browsing youtube and found this wonderful compilation of archived racing footage. loved it and decided to share it on my blog.
Man O War
This is archived footage of the legendary Man O War
