Seediest Place

[Teach]

What is the seediest place you ever made a bet from? There were two that stand out for me in my nearly fifty-seven years of making pari-mutuel bets; maybe you have a few of your own?

About twenty years ago (boy, how time flies), my wife and I were visiting her sister and our brother-in-law on Sannibel Island off Fort Myers, FL. It was quite a treat, especially during the harsh New England winter.

Well, I had this “Jones” for some betting action. But where? I ain’t gonna take “Alligator Alley” to Miami. Then, I noticed this dog track south of Ft. Myers in Bonita Springs (It was halfway between Fort Myers and Naples). I remember taking my brother-in-law and my nephew to the track.

As I recall, we initially went into the grandstand (if you can call it that!). It was the most seedy racing place I ever saw (In my life, I’ve been to quite a few low-life places). Dirty. No, filthy. Gross. I immediately suggested to my brother-in-law and his son that we pay a couple extra bucks and sit in the clubhouse. Which we did. As I think back, it was the kinda place you have nightmares about. And all because I wanted to bet the Donn Handicap.

The other place that stands out was in a place called Danielson, CT, right off Rte. #395 south of the MA border. As much as I like to gamble (I'd probably walk over hot coals or shards of glace to make a bet), my wife likes to shop. There was a big race in New York that afternoon. In a day and age before ADW, I suggested to my wife that we compromise. I’ll take her shopping at a TJ Maxx in Auburn, MA about a half-hour from our house and then I’ll head south into CT and make a few bets at a CT OTB in Danielson. My wife agreed.

Well, I leave my wife off at TJ Maxx to look at Eileen Fisher, Nine West and Elie Tahari while I journey a half-hour south to an OTB parlor I’d never been too.

When I arrived, what a revelation! The betting parlor was in this shopping mall. The place was hole in the wall. It was near one of those gas stations that have signs that are so high you’d think they were halfway to the moon.
Anyway, I park my car and walk over to the betting parlor. There are people outside smoking along with dozens and dozens of cigarette butts strewn all over the ground. I go in. It’s crowded. Not so much the fact that there are so many people there. The place is small. Tiny! If someone’s got a contagious disease, we’re all dead. Sleazy. Dirty. Grossitating!

Well, I believe I made one bet. I wasn’t staying in this place any longer than I had to. Oh, another surprise. All we could do was to listen to the race. No video! It reminded me of something out of the movie “The Sting”. Fuhgettaboutit! I was soon headed north and on my way back to Auburn, MA to hook up with my wife to see if she had just bought out the store.

[Robert Goren]

Aksarben in last year was very seedy. I think they knew they were going to close for a couple years and did not spend a nickel on the place. It was a shadow of its former self.

[alydar]

Some of the NYC OTB's I went to over the years were pretty bad.

[classhandicapper]

Some of the NYC OTB's I went to over the years were pretty bad.

I always considered getting back to my car with my money part of the gambling action of the day whenever I went to the OTB on Hillside Ave in Queens.

I may have a topper though.

I was in an OTB in Manhattan one time and the manager and one of the better looking female clerks disappeared into his office for awhile (if you know what I mean). While that was going on another clerk was selling porn at his window.

[elhelmete]

Am OTB at a defunct dog track in Coeur d' Alene Idaho.

[horses4courses]

I was 10 years old, in the fall of 1968.
Running bets for my grandmother up on Lower Baggot Street
in Dublin, Ireland, to Kilmartins' Bookmakers.
What a seedy, hole in the wall, joint that was.
Various aromas were in the air from time to time -
none of them pleasant.

Two small holes in a wooden partition that separated
the female staff who graded the tickets from the customers.
That's where you placed the bets at. At any one time, there were
5 or 6 people standing around staring at newspapers
attached to wooden spring devices on the wall.

No past performances - just a list of horses, runners, and riders.
No commentary on the races - just a woman announcing from
somewhere in Dublin that a certain race was "off" at a certain time.
There were a few clipboards up on a shelf. That's where results
were marked on some printed sheets.

The Stone Age of bookmaking........

[thaskalos]

It has to be the Oakbrook Terrace OTB that I visited one day last week. What the heck happened to that place...it was the state's most profitable OTB, only a decade ago.

[ReplayRandall]

Las Vegas has a very seedy place just off Fremont St. downtown. Right behind the Pioneer club, in all its glory sits Leroy's Race and Sportbook. When you first enter, you will immediately be engulfed by the smell of urinals and cheap cigars. Eyes of every bust-out and pickpocket in Vegas will follow your every move as you slowly walk through yesterdays trash on all tables and floors, dingy would be a compliment to describe the 20 year old blurred, nicotine stained monitors for your viewing pleasure. I never would have walked in the joint but was doing someone a "favor" by picking up their friend who, for some reason, liked to wallow there.....A truly unforgettable experience in the late '80's.

[devilsbag]

I was in an OTB in Manhattan one time and the manager and one of the better looking female clerks disappeared into his office for awhile (if you know what I mean). While that was going on another clerk was selling porn at his window.

Wasn't sure what you meant with the first part, but yours truly wrote "$5 to show on the X" on many OTB bet slips. Strange looks when instead of a mutuel ticket the clerk would slip a hermetically sealed three pack of adult magazines under the bullet proof glass. Hustler and High Society were usually the outside two, and the middle one was an old Turf and Sport Digest. Hit the jackpot one day...the three covers were: Seka, Nina Hartley, and Ruben Hernandez.

[Tom]

WROTB in Newark, NY.
I was happy to get out with my life, let alone win a damn bet! :D

[wisconsin]

Has to be Sanford-Orlando dog track in Orlando. 2002-what a dive place it was.

[mabred]

I'm at the Naples Dog Track as i write.Now it's a poker room / simo parlor

and dog track.A lot has changed in 20 years.Quite nice.Come on Down

and no snow..

mabred

[Robert Fischer]

Has to be Sanford-Orlando dog track in Orlando. 2002-what a dive place it was.

I was there once (maybe in '01?). I had fun, but I was a young knucklehead, and I hit something. Probably was a dive. :D

Maybe that's the seediest one I've been to?
I also remember stopping in a NYOTB and the place was a dump, and there were some tough characters, and the 5%? surcharge was the icing on the cake!

[Delta Cone]

It has to be the Oakbrook Terrace OTB that I visited one day last week. What the heck happened to that place...it was the state's most profitable OTB, only a decade ago.

I used to frequent that place...haven't been there in a couple of years. When I was there it felt like a funeral home. It wasn't dirty, just quiet.

[parlay]

Was in Bridgetown this past December. I was walking though town and suddenly saw 2 OTB'S. I walked into the seedier looking one just to see what was going on and for some unknown reason my wife followed me in. She took one look and ran out, and i quickly followed. It was a zoo, so bad that even i wouldn't go there if it was my only option.

[thaskalos]

I used to frequent that place...haven't been there in a couple of years. When I was there it felt like a funeral home. It wasn't dirty, just quiet.

It's now the dingiest-looking OTB that I've ever been to. And I get around...

[Prairie Bettor]

Aksarben in last year was very seedy. I think they knew they were going to close for a couple years and did not spend a nickel on the place. It was a shadow of its former self.

How about Atokad even in the good years? LOL

I was there several times in the early 80's and it was interesting to say the least. Never went back once Canterbury opened.

[ultracapper]

Am OTB at a defunct dog track in Coeur d' Alene Idaho.

To the west of that about 120 miles is the OTB parlor in West Wenatchee, Washington. My son was there playing in a baseball tournament when he was 13 or 14, and my wife and I wanted to place a bet on some "big" race at Emerald Downs. A friend owned a horse that shouldn't have been in this particular $30k added stake race, but we wanted to show our support with a losing ticket to show him when we got back to Seattle. Anyhow, it's a biker bar with one pari-mutuel window back in a little room with about a half dozen tables and one pool table. The place stank beyond belief, and the guys playing pool seemed very at home in this particular sty. My wife drinks a couple beers and decides to get acquainted.

God, she can be a fool sometimes.

[jahura2]

Has to be Sanford-Orlando dog track in Orlando. 2002-what a dive place it was.

Continuing a theme here. the seediest place I ever wagered at was the now defunct Key West Kennel Club in the '70s They used to grade the track with a rusted pickup dragging a square of chain link fence weighted down by cinder blocks.
Scary place even during the matinees.

[ronsmac]

I always considered getting back to my car with my money part of the gambling action of the day whenever I went to the OTB on Hillside Ave in Queens.

I may have a topper though.

I was in an OTB in Manhattan one time and the manager and one of the better looking female clerks disappeared into his office for awhile (if you know what I mean). While that was going on another clerk was selling porn at his window.I don't remember the OTB on Hillside Avenue but I went to Hillcrest High School right up the street. Did you ever catch the bus at Parsons and hillside that took you straight to Belmont Park? The neediest place I made a wager was Caliente in Tijuana Mexico.

[horses4courses]

It has to be the Oakbrook Terrace OTB that I visited one day last week. What the heck happened to that place...it was the state's most profitable OTB, only a decade ago.

Wow....that surprises me.
I worked for Inter-Track Partners in Chicago for a year (92-93)
That branch at Oakbrook Terrace was a big producer for them.
Times change....

[cj]

I haven't been in a decade, but Rosecroft was pretty bad. I never, ever got excited when I won and would come back during the day to cash tickets.

[thaskalos]

Wow....that surprises me.
I worked for Inter-Track Partners in Chicago for a year (92-93)
That branch at Oakbrook Terrace was a big producer for them.
Times change....

I was a regular fixture of that place between 2000-2004...and the place was MOBBED. You'd get the shock of your life if you walked in that place today.

[ArlJim78]

In addition to dirty and seedy, do you ever notice that no matter what you will see the same people in those places practically every day? I used to frequent Hazel Park a lot back in the 80's (what a dump) then went back a few times for old times sake about 20 years later, and some of the same people were there! looking like they were wearing the same clothes too. creepy.

[thaskalos]

In addition to dirty and seedy, do you ever notice that no matter what you will see the same people in those places practically every day? I used to frequent Hazel Park a lot back in the 80's (what a dump) then went back a few times for old times sake about 20 years later, and some of the same people were there! looking like they were wearing the same clothes too. creepy.
Were they still betting...or were they just keeping warm/cool? :)

[TucsonGreyhound]

I don't remember the OTB on Hillside Avenue but I went to Hillcrest High School right up the street. Did you ever catch the bus at Parsons and hillside that took you straight to Belmont Park? The neediest place I made a wager was Caliente in Tijuana Mexico.

This is the winner, without question.

I recall Caliente having about a dozen OTBs in Tijuana, most of them were actually fairly nice relics with the big chalkboards, ample seating and windows. They had a couple in lobbies of hotels that were nicer than your typical Las Vegas book. Some of my fondest memories were taking the trolley down from San Diego and spending a Saturday afternoon at a neighborhood OTB throwing back $2 Dos Equis and eating street tacos while mixing in some dog and horse wagers. A couple times I cabbed it down to the actual Caliente dog track which was a little sketchy.

BUT, they had a couple OTB's which have to take the award for seediest OTB place. In particular the "Last Chance" OTB which was just off the border. It was open-air, from what I recall an aluminum roof and infested with flies and rodents. There were typically about 100 people jam packed in there, with maybe a small handful who were actually placing bets, the rest being homeless vagrants. I was a big, young dude back then and probably cared less about my safety than I should have, but I still felt a little uneasy walking around with anything more than $100 on me around there.

[AlBundy33]

Has to be Sanford-Orlando dog track in Orlando. 2002-what a dive place it was.

Agreed. And it was a dump the only time I went there in 1995.

[MutuelClerk]

Does it have to be a race track? A couple blind pigs in Detroit many years ago playing poker, craps. 4am. In hindsight, not the smartest thing I've ever done.

[gaz]

hazel park near detroit in 94

[AndyC]

Racebook in downtown Tijuana in early 70s.

[KidCapper]

Night racing at DRC. Back when the windows were separated. Betting & cashing in different lines......you could feel the eyes of people watching you cash a winner.....laying 8-5 whether you made it to the parking lot with your winnings... :)

[AlBundy33]

I feel the love for my hometown tracks (Hazel/DRC). :D

[baconswitchfarm]

My worst track is without a doubt Thunder Ridge harness track in eastern Kentucky. It would be condemned if it was any other business. Worst otb is a tie. The simulcast in Juarez Mexico just across the bridge from El Paso Texas is super seedy. The otb in a basement of a downtown hotel in Fargo North Dakota is the dirtiest , filthiest, smallest otb on earth.

[Ocala Mike]

An actual "horse room," like something out of "The Sting," in Biloxi, MS during the summer of 1964. I was stationed at Keesler AFB and looking for some action. This place was right on the main drag downtown, so obviously legal, but quite off-limits to base personnel. It had the old fashioned teller's cages, chalkboards for the entries, and bare wooden floors; practically nobody in it, but I got a bet booked, which lost. Results came in by wire, I think.

MS was a funny state at the time, totally dry and gambling-free in most counties, but wide open in the counties along the Gulf Coast, including Harrison (Biloxi/Gulfport). Might be the same today, for all I know.

[Redboard]

Atlantic City racetrack(RIP). I went there once around 10 years ago, it was the year before they opened Favorites(OTB) in nearby Vineland. No live racing at the time I was there. Very dull monitors and half of them didn’t work.

[Exotic1]

I always considered getting back to my car with my money part of the gambling action of the day whenever I went to the OTB on Hillside Ave in Queens.

I may have a topper though.

I was in an OTB in Manhattan one time and the manager and one of the better looking female clerks disappeared into his office for awhile (if you know what I mean). While that was going on another clerk was selling porn at his window.

Some of NYC OTB's were right next door to porn shops. You sure you were in the OTB?

Just joking of course.

[dnlgfnk]

Was in Bridgetown this past December. I was walking though town and suddenly saw 2 OTB'S. I walked into the seedier looking one just to see what was going on and for some unknown reason my wife followed me in. She took one look and ran out, and i quickly followed. It was a zoo, so bad that even i wouldn't go there if it was my only option.

Thanks, Parlay, for erasing 23 years of regret.

Honeymooned in Barbados. We went to Bridgetown, she for the duty-free bangles, me for the track or maybe an OTB to help pay for them...but I never made it.

The nearest grocery, a few meters outside our resort boundary, featured the only racing I would see that week--several cockroaches in broad daylight sprinting across the bread shelves. Also, I tossed a salamander down the toilet at 2 AM, stopping up the works. I thought they were amphibious?

[BELMONT 6-6-09]

I always considered getting back to my car with my money part of the gambling action of the day whenever I went to the OTB on Hillside Ave in Queens.

I may have a topper though.

I was in an OTB in Manhattan one time and the manager and one of the better looking female clerks disappeared into his office for awhile (if you know what I mean). While that was going on another clerk was selling porn at his window.

I have to laugh because I have been to a number of OTB'S in the City ( I work for the City), and I have to say the joint on Hillside and 179th is one of the worst. ha ha the smell of the customers is your first obstacle and once inside watch for the pick pockets!! Fun day get in and get out after making the phone deposit

[NJ Stinks]

It was March 2000. I know because I remember the headline in the DRF that night when we got to the track. It said Greenwood Lake was injured in a workout and possibly off the Derby trail. I had just bet the horse in a Kentucky Derby Future bet and so had the guy who was with me that night! But I digress....

I was working in St. Louis for a week along with other guys from Jersey. One night we rented a limo to take us from our downtown hotel to an Italian restaurant on the Hill. After we got to the restaurant I spoke to the limo driver before going inside. I asked him how much it would cost roundtrip if a couple of us went to Fairmount Park. He said he'd have a price for me when he picked us up after we ate. But I digress....

The next night we arrived at Fairmount Park at around 6:00pm. There was live racing there that afternoon and place was a pigsty. Trash all over the floor and trash cans that were overflowing. We cleaned off a couple tables but there was nowhere to put the garbage. We played simulcasts until 10:30pm and in that time no track employee ever came around to clean up anything. Anyway, my buddy and I still joke about the time we took the Limo to The Dump!

(In all fairness I must add we arrived at Fairmount Park before dark and I thought the racecourse itself looked really nice.)

P.S. In case you were wondering, the quote from the limo service was $70 roundtrip (about 17 miles each way) and we were urged to give the driver a nice tip. (Yea, I was tempted to just tell the driver to never make a Kentucky Derby Future bet! ;) )

[clemkadiddle]

See a few of us from the Detroit area...expressing our fond memories of Hazel Park and the DRC...

The seediest place I bet from is the one I have been betting from for years...Northville Downs.

I remember before the state lottery and casinos when it was the only action in town...harness racing (yuck). Big crowds, long lines, pay to park and to get in...cold beer in every corner nook bar...

Not anymore...dump (understatement)...even worse before smoking was banned. I would walk up to within 10 feet of the door back then and the smoke was just billowing out on a Saturday afternoon. The so-called no smoking areas featured jerks that were smoking anyway. Now these assholes are going to some of the closed off places or vacant downstairs to light up and avoid going outside. (Pussys...go outside in the cold and smoke like men...)

The place is falling apart. Don't drop your pen or you will find out the hard way that the carpet isn't vacuumed under the tables.

The fixtures in the lavatories are corroded and dirty. I'd rather urinate on the fence outside...speaking of outside...the old tote board has seen much better days.

The owner says he gets 3 calls a week from developers to buy the prime real estate it sits on. He doesn't sell in hopes of the asshole legislators finally getting some testicles to approve gaming at the tracks. If that happens...and I doubt it because Michigan does not know how to support racing opting for kissing the backsides of casinos...the owner will definitely reap much bigger rewards; he will sell to someone that will actually sink some money into it. (Which I would very much like to see.)

...and then the idiots toyed with the idea of running a thoroughbred meet...a half-mile oval with no chute for at least a 5 furlong around 2 turn race...unless they pushed it back into the barn area...

...and since no money is being invested, they needed to replace the rail...no wonder they balked at the last minute.

...and all this with the current thoroughbred industry in Michigan in dire straits...I would not bet on that circus. I would rather much bet on the horse flesh from the major tracks than spend a dime on that garbage (which currently "runs" at Hazel).

Northville sucks...but it is only 6 miles away...and I only bet 1 race a week and usually don't stay around for it.

[Shemp Howard]

Penn National simulcast room.......especially on a night when FatsO is running something.

His "partners" give most people the heebee jeebees.

[Prytanis]

The OTB on 28th street off 7th ave in NYC
I was working in the garment district, so I had no choice but to go there on my lunch time and bet a few races ,if I couldn't make it to the track.

[Milkshaker]

I wouldn't say it was seedy--I actually kinda liked it--but the first time I ever went to Hawthorne I somehow managed to cash a nice score. It was after dark in the winter, and I felt compelled to go into a stall in the men's room, remove a shoe, and put the money deep inside my sock before heading out in the dark to catch the shuttle bus to the subway. Just a "victim in waiting" kinda vibe for me.

[horses4courses]

Also, I tossed a salamander down the toilet at 2 AM

There was a time I might have thought that was code for something else :lol:

[Zaf]

I haven't been in a decade, but Rosecroft was pretty bad. I never, ever got excited when I won and would come back during the day to cash tickets.

Yep was there once, a long time ago, the worst.

Z

[thespaah]

Before the makeover to the Empire Casino and Racetrack, I'd have to say the Yonkers Raceway lower level grandstand was about the nastiest racetrack I'd been to.
The place was filthy. The paint peeling. The smoke( and I smoke) was like a San Francisco Bay fog bank. Even though the place was crowded typical Sat nite crowd was over 15k, there seemed to be one degenerate for every 5 bettors.

[taxicab]

I'm in Nor Cal,so everything out here is decent enough.
Once I was in Chicago and I went to an OTB on Lake St.
The neighborhood was fine,but the parlor was rundown and dirty.
It could of been a nice enough place if they would of put some time and effort into it........that was 2006,perhaps it's nicer now.
Of course the next day we hopped the train to AP,easily the most beautiful track I've ever been to........nothing else is even close.
I used to get through Detroit a bit.
I always enjoy Grandstands at live racing venues.
I never upgraded to a Clubhouse/Turf Club quicker then DRC.
My wife is from Puerto Rico......she says they have some flat out dangerous OTB's there. :eek:

[appistappis]

in the late 70's in montego bay Jamaica at a, I'll call it, an off track betting shack.

[Hoofless_Wonder]

I'm no Track Collector, but I've been to a few places, one that was the seedy runaway winner. A few comments:

I disagree with the OP's opinion of Bonita Springs. When I went to South Florida in 1987, I thought both Hialeah and Bonita were very nice - though my frame of reference at the time was Fairmount Park. Bonita had colored lights in the fountain in the infield, a decent crowd, and excellent service. I've been back there over the years, and it went downhill for sure, but still isn't close to being seedy.

Rosecroft - bad part of town, but not so seedy. Went there quite a bit in 1994-1995.

My List:

Honorable Mention: Greenetrack Dogs, Eutaw, AL - 1987 - went once. Not so seedy, but very poor. Expected a crowd similar to Fairmount, but found the grandstand filled with about 1000 people, and only 20 or so of us white. Didn't feel in any danger, but definitely out-of-place. Only venue I've been to with fried chicken livers and gizzards on the menu. The dollar bills returned by the tellers were very, very worn. Crowd was friendly though, and having a good time.

5th Seediest: Sunland Park, 1988 - before casinos inflated the purses, very run down.
4th Seediest: Bluegrass Downs, early 1990s - smoke as thick as a battlefield in the grandstand, in stark contrast to the fall leaves of the trees on the backside and decent racing surface.
3rd Seediest: 2002 - Capital OTB, Springfield, IL - the stench of urine and tobacco smoke, dirty latrines, and horrible service make this one of the worst - was glad that ADW wagering was putting it out of business.
2nd Seediest: OTB, Lake Havasu City, late 1990s - in some bar on the west side of town, very run down, patrons looked as tough as any crowd I've ever seen.

The Seediest: OTB in San Luis, Mexico (near Yuma), late 1980s. Talked my dad into going here one day, expecting something similar to the OTB in Algondones, which is near by. Total dump. Peeling linoleum which hadn't been mopped in years, two TVs, no live signals for American horses, beat up, beat up and beat up some more. Four people in the place, with me trying to bet Aqueduct. No Forms, no programs, only scratch sheets. "We'll let you know if your horse wins, senor". Check. While coming back through the border crossing:

Border Agent: "Did you purchase anything during your visit to Mexico?"

My dad: "No. We went to the OTB to bet the horses, but they weren't on TV."

Border Agent: Eyes growing wide, "You went in the OTB?"

Me: "Yeah, not a nice place."

Border Agent: "No kidding. We hear gunfire coming out of there a couple of nights every week...."

[horses4courses]

I'm in Nor Cal,so everything out here is decent enough.
Once I was in Chicago and I went to an OTB on Lake St.
The neighborhood was fine,but the parlor was rundown and dirty.
It could of been a nice enough place if they would of put some time and effort into it........that was 2006,perhaps it's nicer now.
Of course the next day we hopped the train to AP,easily the most beautiful track I've ever been to........nothing else is even close.
I used to get through Detroit a bit.
I always enjoy Grandstands at live racing venues.
I never upgraded to a Clubhouse/Turf Club quicker then DRC.
My wife is from Puerto Rico......she says they have some flat out dangerous OTB's there. :eek:

taxi, was that the OTB at State and Lake in the Chicago Theater?
It was in good shape when I worked there in the early 90s.
I think it's gone now, though.

[plainolebill]

Was in Bridgetown this past December. I was walking though town and suddenly saw 2 OTB'S. I walked into the seedier looking one just to see what was going on and for some unknown reason my wife followed me in. She took one look and ran out, and i quickly followed. It was a zoo, so bad that even i wouldn't go there if it was my only option.

I saw those dives and decided not to go in, they had a live meet at Garrison Savannah going on at the time so I went there. Pleasant country meet.

Seediest place I've bet in was the old Caliente sports book in downtown Tijuana.

[taxicab]

taxi, was that the OTB at State and Lake in the Chicago Theater?
It was in good shape when I worked there in the early 90s.
I think it's gone now, though.

I'm not sure of the neighborhood,but the OTB was only a short cab ride from The Magnificent Mile(we were staying at the Knickerbocker).
It was kind of weird,I remember they charged a dollar to get in and you had to walk up a short narrow flight of stairs to get to a smallish room on the second(?) floor........I think.
The place could of been decent,but it looked like the parlor was ignored by management.

[Elliott Sidewater]

Pimlico simulcast, in the summer of 1992. The horses were running at Laurel at the time. Maybe I have it backwards, it was a long time ago.
I was sitting in the "Sports Palace" but got restless and wandered down to the grandstand to see the rest of the place. Half of the people down there were spitting on the concrete floor, the other half were lying on it. Standing there in the stench and scattered trash, you could close your eyes and imagine what Calcutta is like.

[horses4courses]

I'm not sure of the neighborhood,but the OTB was only a short cab ride from The Magnificent Mile(we were staying at the Knickerbocker).
It was kind of weird,I remember they charged a dollar to get in and you had to walk up a short narrow flight of stairs to get to a smallish room on the second(?) floor........I think.
The place could of been decent,but it looked like the parlor was ignored by management.

Sounds right - it was probably in better shape in the 90s.

[Inglewood Flamingo]

Las Vegas has a very seedy place just off Fremont St. downtown. Right behind the Pioneer club, in all its glory sits Leroy's Race and Sportbook. When you first enter, you will immediately be engulfed by the smell of urinals and cheap cigars. Eyes of every bust-out and pickpocket in Vegas will follow your every move as you slowly walk through yesterdays trash on all tables and floors, dingy would be a compliment to describe the 20 year old blurred, nicotine stained monitors for your viewing pleasure. I never would have walked in the joint but was doing someone a "favor" by picking up their friend who, for some reason, liked to wallow there.....A truly unforgettable experience in the late '80's.

http://over50vegas.com/114_S_1st_St_Saratoga_Club.html

[ReplayRandall]

Yes, that's the place....minus the windows, it still looks the same... :lol:

[AFilly4theAges]

At the time I resided in downtown Chicago,but was leaving a business meeting at Abbot Labs in Waukegan Illinois.It was Oaks Friday,and I wanted to place a wager on Rachel Alexandra.I GPS'd where the nearest O.T.B. was located in Waukegan.It was hidden behind a White Castle,the parking lot was pot-holed,the guards at the entrance were passing a bottle within a brown paper bag amongst themselves.Inside there was not one female except the tellers,and it was packed.The place was filthy,seedy,dank,dimly-lit,and funky! And so were most of the occupants.I got my ticket and got the hell out.

[theiman]

As a few mentioned. The Caliente OTB just over the border in TJ. I haven't been there in 20 years, and never will be on that side of the border again.

In NYC, some of the OTB's in Manhattan were incredibly seedy. Especially in the cold and the hot weather. Free heat and AC all beggars welcome.

By the way, there was a guy at Del Mar satellite back in the mid 90's who was called the Turk. On the second floor of the facility in what was called the sports club there were chairs and tables to sit at. Many people during the races would leave their seats and walk to the front of the room to watch the races on 3 large screen TV's. This guy, the Turk, would walk by the tables, during the races, and take a bite of peoples food or sandwiches and drinks, as the people walked up front to watch the races. He was finally caught and tossed from the facility.

[pele polo]

Bluegrass Downs in Paducah, Ky. Not necessarily seedy but the biggest dump I've been to. Harness track.

I was Tijuana 10 years ago and they must have had close to 50 OTBs around the city (at least half that). Some were indeed seedy, the others are still the nicest and classiest OTBs I've ever been to, one was at or near a hotel and large bank... name escapes me now. Many of you are probably remembering the one that was literally at the border. There was also the jai alai on Revolution as well others on that strip. Overall OTBS anywhere are usually dumps.

A couple people mentioned Sanford Orlando. I was just there 2 weeks ago. This place is far from a dump but that was my first visit there. Clean and they have a fairly new sports bar/simulcast parlor separate from grandstand that is nice.

Recent trip to Turfway was disturbing.

[pele polo]

The Caliente book at Pueblo Amiga was very nice. Americans would come over and bet big on sports. I saw plenty hand over 10k, 20k in cash at one time on one bet.

There was another to that was very nice but can't remember the name. The upstairs part of the track was cool as well.

[affirmedny]

Before the makeover to the Empire Casino and Racetrack, I'd have to say the Yonkers Raceway lower level grandstand was about the nastiest racetrack I'd been to.
The place was filthy. The paint peeling. The smoke( and I smoke) was like a San Francisco Bay fog bank. Even though the place was crowded typical Sat nite crowd was over 15k, there seemed to be one degenerate for every 5 bettors.

I'll second this and add that the clubhouse betting area that remains looks pretty much like it did in the mid 70s. Not a lot of the slot money has been spent to make the horseplayers comfortable.

[burnsy]

Years ago you could not place a horse bet in Saratoga County there was no simulcast and OTB's are not allowed in the county. We used to have to cross the county line in Mechanicsville over the river. On the other side of the bridge was a golf course and the OTB was in the old starters shack. Wooden benches, guys spitting on the floor and a black and white TV that just showed the generic horses number, name, odds and letter. You had to spit your bet out in letters....give me a 10 dollar double A with F ...it was the goofiest system ever and the place looked like Caddyshack from the movie. You had to listen to the live call, no visual, the screen never changed until the next race. Close finishes with a photo, guys used to argue who won until they announced the results.

[MJC922]

Some of the NYC OTB's I went to over the years were pretty bad.

Brings to mind bullshead which is what we call W. Main in Rochester. My stepdad was manager of the OTB there. Fortunately he got transferred out of that one after a relatively short period of time.

I recall hearing about someone taking a dump in there, that's right, in one of the corners of it, not in the restroom. I'm going to guess Tom doesn't spend a lot of time at that branch unless he's moonlighting as Paul Kersey when he's not posting.

[v j stauffer]

This is the winner, without question.

I recall Caliente having about a dozen OTBs in Tijuana, most of them were actually fairly nice relics with the big chalkboards, ample seating and windows. They had a couple in lobbies of hotels that were nicer than your typical Las Vegas book. Some of my fondest memories were taking the trolley down from San Diego and spending a Saturday afternoon at a neighborhood OTB throwing back $2 Dos Equis and eating street tacos while mixing in some dog and horse wagers. A couple times I cabbed it down to the actual Caliente dog track which was a little sketchy.

BUT, they had a couple OTB's which have to take the award for seediest OTB place. In particular the "Last Chance" OTB which was just off the border. It was open-air, from what I recall an aluminum roof and infested with flies and rodents. There were typically about 100 people jam packed in there, with maybe a small handful who were actually placing bets, the rest being homeless vagrants. I was a big, young dude back then and probably cared less about my safety than I should have, but I still felt a little uneasy walking around with anything more than $100 on me around there.

100 Kilometers south the Book in Ensenada makes the one at Caliente seem like a betting palace in Monaco. By far the seediest I've ever been to.

[Sunday Silence]

Seediest place for me was a random OTB in New York. It wasn't just the facility - it was a level of degenerates I'd never seen before.

Went to one in St. Lucia after cruise ship docked and it was raining. Seedy in that it just didn't look legit. I stayed for 2 races, made $1700 on a grass race at Belmont and while they looked at me funny they paid me. Took that back to the ship real quick...

[bitter]

I haven't been in a decade, but Rosecroft was pretty bad. I never, ever got excited when I won and would come back during the day to cash tickets.

grew up 5 miles from there, and went throughout the 90's, definitely a sketchy and seedy establishment. God forbid you win and someone around you hear about it, you got half the people offering to sign on your winner, the other half looking for $2 so they can get a show bet going. Can't count how many times my grandfather and i left that place looking over our shoulders until we go to the car. It's also where i learned the art-form of a "gate call".

I wouldn't say seedy, but Charles Town before the slots, and before they shut down (aka ran out of money) was just a depressing place, everyone and everything was caught in 60-70's.

OTB's, haven't been to too many, but Meadow Greens in Hudson, NY was an interesting establishment....if you want to go for 9 holes on the side of a mountain and bet $2WPS wagers, it fulfilled both needs. The OTB in Chicago, Joe's on Weed Street, is pretty seedy, but if you need to get a form or a wager down in the city, it's the only place. I usually try and sneak over to the bar to avoid the regulars whenever possible.