Gov. Cuomo watching??

[miff]

Two horses euthanized and  a couple eased.Garbage winter racing in NY borderline disgraceful,short fields with over raced cripples.Maybe they will consider closing for 6 weeks or so in future.

[20k]

Wildcat Smile took a bad step. So did RG III. Tough stuff
but they were in it to win it

[richiebee]

Miff:

They would not need to close for 6 weeks if they would replace the inept Campo
regime. Campo and whoever is allocating stalls at NYRA over the last 5 or so years
(and this person answers directly to Campo) have done nothing to preserve the
quality of racing at NYRA, especially in the wintertime.

Last Saturday\'s card featured five maiden races out of the first six on the card.
Sunday\'s 9 race card drew 59 runners, an average of 6.6 per race. Two of these 59
were humanely destroyed and a third was distanced. As such, its rather insulting
to hear Andy \"Super Shill\" Serling tell the public that NYRA racing office is
doing a fine job.

Campo and crew should actively be recruiting trainers from off the circuit (I\'m
thinking NJ (which seems to host fewer and fewer racing days each year) and
possibly Canada) with quality horses to race here in the wintertime. Of course
this might mean cutting the stall allocations of a lot of high volume/low
percentage trainers such as Pat Kelly, Gary Sciacca and the Guyana gang
(Shivmangal, Persaud et al.) Tough call because guys like Sciacca and Kelly have
supported the program for decades, but at this point they are leading over a
bunch of manes and tails, not quality horseflesh.

Live racing, to an extent, drives the wintertime simulcasting business at
Aqueduct, so I do not foresee a six week wintertime interregnum; a four day race
week with better quality horseflesh might be more feasible.

[miff]

Bee

By winter,most of the NY horse population is raced out.NYSRWB mandates the number of dates.In their lust for revenue,they want as many race days as possible. While a 6-8 week winter break may spell the end of quite a few smaller outfits,it may ensure better overall quality for thr shorter race year.It may also discourage the breeding of crooked legged NY bred mares which are producing much of the horrific garbage seen in NY winter fields.

Tough to find worse NY fields than NY Bred maiden claimers.

Mike

[richiebee]

miff Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bee
>
> By winter,most of the NY horse population is raced
> out.

Miff:

That is why the Racing Office needs to be more proactive in wintertime, and try
to entice outfits from NJ and Canada (for example)to race here in wintertime.

NY Bred maiden claiming fields include lots of animals which never should have
been bred...slow mares, stallions with questionable credentials. Unfortunately a
lot of these animals are occupying stalls which could be upgraded if Campo wasn\'t
coasting along allocating stalls to the usual high volume low percentage suspects
each year. The only positive aspect of this is that many of these backyard breds
will rarely run fast enough to injure themselves.

As bad as the NY bred MCLs are, the claiming horses at the lowest levels at NYRA
are equine pin cushions. Unlike the backyard breds, many of these bottom claimers
have some back class and still have the will to compete, sometimes to a tragic
end.

[miff]

Bee,

57 horses going today at Aqu, disgraceful.Hardly worth gas, tolls, Belt traffic, even on a nice day.Still think a 6-8 week winter hiatus resolves this.


Mike

[Boscar Obarra]

miff Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bee,
>
> 57 horses going today at Aqu, disgraceful.Hardly
> worth gas, tolls, Belt traffic, even on a nice
> day.Still think a 6-8 week winter hiatus resolves
> this.
>
>
> Mike

didnt look at the card. wow.  better double those purses again.

[magicnight]

I don\'t think they are allowed to double the purses for this level of beast.

[richiebee]

miff Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bee,
>
> 57 horses going today at Aqu, disgraceful.Hardly
> worth gas, tolls, Belt traffic, even on a nice
> day.Still think a 6-8 week winter hiatus resolves
> this.
>
>
> Mike

Mike:

The problem with the six week interregnum is that the New York Greeders will
continue to produce backyard breds at the same insane rate. So you are going to
have six weeks less of racing, but the same number of NYB races? Talk about fugly.
The end of quality racing at Belmont and the Spa (and some will say that this has
already happened) for sure.

So many problems, plenty of solutions (get me an hour with Flay/Repole, I will
give them an earful), but NYRA racing department gets paid same amount whether
they produce a quality product or the crap we have been subjected to the last 5
or so years, so no motivation for change.

Need a new sheriff in town, one who has no ties to the low strike rate/high
volume usual suspects who fill races with non contenders. One who will stand up
to the big outfits and tell them they cant use Belmont as a 2YO in training prep
facility. Someone who has connections on other circuits and can bring some new
shooters in.

[miff]

After presenting race cards bordering disgraceful, NYRA looking at 4 day race week with 8 races during Inner meet.

[Boscar Obarra]

You mean it wasn\'t my imagination?

[richiebee]

The sad thing is that if NYRA went from running 45 races a week to 32 races a
week, very few people would notice. It would hurt NYRA\'s bottom line
(concessions, parking, simulcasting taking a hit) and maybe only then that the
current NYRA approach (emphasis on NY breds, lack of effort in trying to get
quality horseflesh from other circuits) will be exposed for the colossal failure
that it has become.

Reducing the weekly racing menu actually makes sense at this point, given the
fact that the foal crop is decreasing each year and the average thoroughbred who
is sound enough to race makes only (guessing) between 8 and 9 starts per year.

I\'ll give NYRA an outside the box idea which will work even if they stay with five
racing days per week. RACE ON TUESDAY. The fact that JB has to discount Thoro -
products on Tuesday reflects the reality that the nationwide racing menu on
Tuesdays is rather unappealing, filled with Parxes and Turf Paradises and Beulahs.

NYRA would be heavily bet on Tuesdays, especially if they promoted it heavily and
implemented \"reduced takeout Tuesdays\".

[miff]

While early,New NYRA singing same old PR song.Horse safety out front again/still in the wake of mainly cheap over raced unsound winter stock going bad chasing after inflated purses, shocking!lots of small cheap garbage fields running for big money relative to the caliber of the horses.

The talk of a synthetic surface gains momentum with the pragmatic new chief(old chief, Charlie Hayward said never to synth after hearing from horsemen/gamblers)

No player initiatives,talk of reduced takeout, greater transparency!Shame.

Mike

[miff]

Not surprising, another strictly political appointee by Cuomo who\'s strangle hold on racing/gambling in NY State continues to tighten.

DRF:
New York gambling agency gets acting head in Williams
By Matt Hegarty

Robert Williams, the current director of the New York Lottery who is a former legal counsel for the New York State Racing and Wagering Board, has been appointed as acting director of a new agency combining regulation of all forms of gambling in New York, a racing official with knowledge of the appointment confirmed on Tuesday.

Williams was appointed to the post by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who holds the power to appoint five of the seven commissioners on the New York State Gaming Commission. The commission is scheduled to become active on Feb. 1, with the power to regulate all forms of gambling in New York, including horse racing and casinos.

The appointment was first reported by the Blood-Horse website.

In addition to his position with the state lottery, Williams is currently the head of the New York State Racing Franchise Oversight Board, which holds broad authority to review the operations of the New York Racing Association. From 2005-07, Williams was the executive director of the New York State Committee on the Future of Racing, a job that required Williams to evaluate proposals to take over NYRA’s franchise to operate New York’s three most prominent tracks. NYRA retained the franchise after filing for bankruptcy and handing its deeds over to the state.

The operations of the existing New York State Racing and Wagering Board will be folded into the New York State Gaming Commission. The previous chairman of the racing and wagering board, John Sabini, resigned earlier this year.
 

4 Comments


Mary Raymond8 hours ago
Sabini resigned & no one saw it coming I bet. Hah hah. Open the flood gates, there\'s more to follow.........­.Bert D.
Reply 0



 Bruce Epstein12 hours ago
NYRA heading for big trouble. No folks with any knowledge of consumer needs in racing.
Just dependant on the low level player to make the numbers. Best of luck, you\'ll need it.
Reply 1 reply+1


 Mary Raymond8 hours agoThey\'re in trouble for years & don\'t care. Why should it bother them now? Saved by the slots this time around. Consumer needs & NYRA don\'t belong in the same sentence. Have you been to AQUESUCK lately? Don\'t waste your time..........B­ert D.Reply 0



 William Eisele13 hours ago
this could be detremental for n.y.r.a.
Reply +1

[alang]

NYRA has cancelled six cards over the next two months.

The dates are:
February 6
February 13
February 14
February 27
March 6
March 13

10 races will now be scheduled for each Saturday.