Rachel, handle, exposure... it's all there

[Kasept]

Originally Posted by Travis Stone

Wow, Steve... did I strike a nerve? I'm not sure why... I was just saying how this weekend shows that horse racing still has a pulse in general society, which regardless of how big any industry is, general interest is a positive.

But your point seems to be that who cares if general society doesn't like horse racing because we have a core following which will for sure carry this sport. Well, these figures tell me otherwise...



And you know how much I care about this game and what I've done to grow interest... that's not really a fair or accurate statement.

Any nerve struck wasn't by your post specifically. I'm tired of the 'woe is us' mentality that pervades a certain percentage of the industry and fan base.

General interest is fine, and it creates long term interest.

The wagering numbers are deceptive. Note that they encompass a period where certain amounts of handle went off shore. They also reflect the very recent peiod where ADW/HBPA/Signal providers were in a feeling out tug of war. And you have handle loss reflected there from the synthetic travails.

There's plenty of business out there and new customers will keep coming to the game. The chicken little mentality of aging fan base has been around 50 years. Racing is like Hyman Roth... dying from the same heart attack for 30 years.