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Originally Posted by thaskalos
When Los Alamitos raised their takeout, it was a case of an obscure quarter horse track with small betting pools...trying to survive in turbulent times. This takeout hike is another matter altogether.
These racetracks have the biggest wagering pools in the country, and are not raising taxes for self-preservation...but because they think that their "superior" product is not priced high enough. They think that they can compete with the LA Lakers for sheer entertaiment value...and they want to price their product accordingly.
One thing is certain. Other prominent racetracks are watching this move...and if the public backlash is not strong enough in the wagering pools - where it counts - you can expect to see this tactic carried out in racetracks across the land.
Whether California is still competitive with other tracks in takeout, even after this takeout hike, is a moot point IMO.
It is the PRINCIPLE that we should be revolting against...
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I disagree that there is a difference in what Los Al did and what the A tracks are about to do.
In both cases, they actually believe that in order to increase horse population and purses they had no choice but increase takeout.
Any takeout anywhere helps kill racing as Horseplayers collectively have less money to churn with and have less value to bet on. Horseplayers slowly but surely become more disillusioned as they last less longer.
When you raise prices the opposite way of where the optimum price is, the bottom line is bound to suffer.
Again, when I am talking optimum price, I mean the takeout price that puts the most money in the hands of the track and purse accounts when the dust settles.
