CRIST: (Updated: Bruno proposal)

[SentToStud]

Originally Posted by Hickory Hill Hoff

I guess our friends both "Freddy Mo" & "Benevolus" can't answer this!
I said it once and I'll say it again; The on-track race product that NYRA puts forth is the best anywhere. All others interested in the franchise are ONLY interested in the slots side...our friends above must not be true fans of thoroughbred racing or they would see this. What do the others know about running thoroughbred racing.....PLEASE ANSWER ME THIS, NYRA DETRACTORS!

I think Kirkorian's group would have been a good choice. And in addition to running the slots, the racing side (NYRA or whomever) would have benefited from having a successful gaming executive from outside the NYRA 'family' running racing, or at least having a significant presence on the financial oversight side.

These top gaming firms (Kirkorian/MGM and Wynn, etc) are arguably far more astute and vigorous at financial management than anyone NYRA has ever had in place.

That's the difference between a non-profit and firms like Wynn/MGM. They know how to make money and are VERY good at watching the store.

The kind of thing that happened a few years ago when NYRA non-bid a 900k contract (against their own regs) for services provided by a relative of a key NYRA exec simply would not happen with more qualified management.

Does that help?

[parsixfarms]

Originally Posted by SentToStud

The kind of thing that happened a few years ago when NYRA non-bid a 900k contract (against their own regs) for services provided by a relative of a key NYRA exec simply would not happen with more qualified management.

I actually believe that there's some merit to a lot of what is in your post about the value of some outside "fresh" minds getting involved in the business side of things, but let's not kid ourselves, "sweetheart deals" occur in the private sector as well.

[sumitas]

This conservative chest thumping is all politics and no reality. In reality, the for profit tracks put as little as possible into the racing side of the business. Track conditions are inferior unless mandated by a state like Cali, for example. A for profit would damage horse racing in NY State by taking profits at the expense of the horse racing industry. Now the casino side I can see a for profit model I suppose. But definately not horse racing and the Albany Republicans should be ashamed of themselves for their unbridled greed.