Here's a Rarity..

[sq764]

...I was going to look for a few spot plays tonight at Mohawk, Windsor and Ocean Downs and guess what - I can get all of these programs for free online :-)

Why tracks are so f-ing cheap and cannot offer these free is beyond me.

[melman]

SQ there were some posts here before about this and there is a UStrotting rule that prevents the tracks from doing that. Not a rule that I agree with but the blame is not with the tracks on this one. Wilderness had a post with full details on this subject.

[sq764]

It's odd that a track like Ocean downs can offer free programs though..

[wilderness]

"It's odd that a track like Ocean downs can offer free programs though."

Ocean Downs is only doing it until they get tunned in to the USTA or Trackmaster protestes. The more people that become aware of Ocean Downs free offer and it's only a matter of time before that ceases as well.


The only real exception that I've seen to this US rule is the track owned by the NYOTB. (I can never recall which one, is it Batavia?)

The USTA and NY have a war going back to the 40's and when Lawrence Shppard headed the USTA and later, the primary reason (in addition to the death of Bill Cane and his contract) for moving the Hambletonian from Goshen to DuQuoin was because of the lack of cooperation and agreement between NY-ORC and the USTA.

Trackmaster is even more imposing than the USTA (the USTA justs uses what powers they have to fulfill their contractural obligations to Trackmaster).

In the 90's there was a Mich gent who created a software that went to the USTA results, downloaded the previously selected charts and after a time created simple past performances lines from the charts.
Trackamster caught wind of the software and raised hell with the USTA and the USTA attorneys contacted the gent with a cease and detest.
Reason?
The software was created soley to violate the user terms of agreement to the USTA website.
Note: the software was not configured by default to download any charts.
The person who purcahsed the software was required to do those configurations.
The cease and detest was fullfilled.

Last I knew the USTA was being paid $0.50 per download, however I recall reading that a larger fee was being negotiated in their 1st renewal (either 2003 or 2004). Didin't see any officail announcement afterward.