The Great Derby Paradox

[jms62]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

I think that on marquee days the everyday issues that plague the sport just aren't apparent. We have big crowds, big pools and big, competitive quality fields. Most days we have small crowds, small pools and small, non competitive lacking in quality fields.

Some of the underlying issues in the sport that aren't being addressed are we have track ownership in many area's that is looking to marginalize their racing operations to the point where you have to question how long they until they try to separate themselves from it. Ironically CDI is one of those companies. Greenwood and Penn Nat'l gaming or Delaware or MNR have no love for pari-mutual gambling or racing. Hollywood is already doomed. Who knows what the plan for the Stronach tracks are post-Frank. This is a core issue that the average viewer watching the Derby telecast would find hard to believe.

The day to day fields in most locations are just not that good. There are a number of reasons for this and foal crop seems to be the favorite excuse but of course that is a weak argument being that this trend started long before a huge drop off in the numbers.

Takeout/pricing is still out of whack compared to competing forms of gambling.


I think that racing made huge mistakes in the late 80's/early 90's when simulcasting took off. What full card simulcasting did was take racing from a regional sport to a national sport and the truth is that the game never really learned how to adjust.

What mistake was that? What do you think they should've done?

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by jms62

What mistake was that? What do you think they should've done?

They completely underestimated it. The bigger tracks stupidly more or less gave away their product for close to nothing and the smaller tracks were naive enough to not think that their fans eventually wouldnt rather bet on the better product rather than the inferior live product.

That is the obvious flaw. What is less obvious is that at the point when it became inevitable that simulcasting was going to change the game, the tracks and horsemen and regulators failed to adopt similar rules and regulations so that the same $ increments were used universally, that stewards were using the same rules in making DQ's, that wagering rules regarding scratches, late scratches, shoeing changes, etc. were basically the same. It would have been easier to do it then than now and a lot of these things still aren't fixed.

In 1985 it didn't matter for the most part what happened in other jurisdictions. Now 90% of the handle coming from places other than the actual racetrack.

[justindew]

I don't think the issues are as in-depth as some might suggest. It's really pretty simple. The takeout, combined with the perception on the part of the public that if you don't know who is cheating you are at a disadvantage to those who do know, give the casual gambler the impression that there are easier ways to win money.