Derby Day handle down 5%, 8% on race
 

http://therail.blogs.nytimes.com/200...g-declines/?hp

13 races versus 12, but I think that is actually a positive sign in this economy. Gambling in general is down over 20% so clearly people still wanted to bet this event rather than spend it elsewhere.

Personally, my handle was down almost 95% year over year (not counting wagers I placed for others.) Not because I didn't want to, but because I didn't feel I had an edge this year on most of the races and didn't have my normal bankroll, either. What did everyone else do? More? Less? about the same?

About the same. I really didn't expect to be home much of the day, but the weather did us in. A couple of small bets during the day. Thought I was looking ok at the top of the stretch of the Derby, but ended up like almost everyone else. Down in flames with all my derby bets. Only money I will be getting back is the triple syndicate I went into Friday at work that included IWR.

I wagered about $200 on the card. Down about 500%.

Two edits

I did notice that the lines for the windows were much shorter at CD yesterday than in previous years.

Much less of a drop relative to casino gambling.

By Beth Jinks
May 7 (Bloomberg) -- Las Vegas Strip casino gambling
revenue fell 12.3 percent in March from a year ago, less than in
previous months, as the industry reported signs business may be
stabilizing.
Casino proceeds in the biggest U.S. gambling center dropped
to $456.1 million in March, Nevada’s Gaming Control Board said
today on its Web site. Last year’s 11 percent drop was the
steepest since record-keeping started in the mid-1980s. Revenue
fell 23 percent in February and 15 percent in January.
The three biggest publicly traded Strip operators this week
reported signs Las Vegas may have stabilized. MGM Mirage , the
largest casino operator on the Strip, said that convention
cancellations had slowed and occupancy recovered in April. Wynn
Resorts Ltd. cited improving booking trends and stronger
weekends. Las Vegas Sands Corp. Chief Executive Officer Sheldon

Adelson said month-to-month performance had increased “and the
trend upward has been established.”

Considering two of the horses expected to draw the most money scratched or pulled out within a week of the race, I'd say that the money wagered doesn't really represent a decline in interest. When Quality Road backed out, I went to a backup, which I bet with about half interest. The defection of QR and then the IWR scratch also meant my in race exotics were cut in half.