Portland Meadows closing?

[Unbridled]

According to an article linked onto Paulick Report:

https://www.paulickreport.com/news/t...r-development/

Portland Meadows, billed by owner The Stronach Group as “one of the largest tracks in the Pacific Northwest” is set to close its doors, according to reports from Portland Monthly and Willamette Weekly. The publications obtained a copy of an application for initial redevelopment for the site, which indicates the 63-acre property will become an “urban logistics facility.” Portland Monthly reports the track will close by June.

[dilanesp]

Originally Posted by Unbridled

According to an article linked onto Paulick Report:

https://www.paulickreport.com/news/t...r-development/

Very hard for local tracks to survive in an age of simulcasting. There are better races available to bet on.

[burnsy]

I read an article written by a non horse racing reporter. That tracks recent claim to fame is the heavy metal rock concerts they host, simulcasting and the Kentucky Derby party. Not one mention of the actual racing itself. The game is void of star power horses. It resonates all the way to the lower levels of racing. As the older generations pass on, more of these fringe tracks will probably close. Younger people could care less about that place....... TIL the next concert. I was at the Racino last night upstairs and I could count on one hand the people that were younger than me..... and I’m 56.

And heres the problem with a group that runs racing like a corporate baron. It’s still a game, a sport. The game needs stable participation to retain public interest. That means a stable physical foundation and a stable economic plan. When horses are hanging it up after 10 races or less due to physical problems or economic gain through the breeding shed. You are left with the current status quo of the horses that actually race. You know, the game you are selling? That 12 million dollar race today could be called the Under Achievers Cup cause about 3 of those horses deserve to be there. But that’s the state of the older division. Can’t wait to see the Whitney, gonna be a real barn burner.

That, along with the problems in California. There could be a “sell off” of tracks in the future and some of this is self inflicted.

[Jeff P]

Originally Posted by burnsy

I read an article written by a non horse racing reporter. That tracks recent claim to fame is the heavy metal rock concerts they host, simulcasting and the Kentucky Derby party. Not one mention of the actual racing itself. The game is void of star power horses. It resonates all the way to the lower levels of racing. As the older generations pass on, more of these fringe tracks will probably close. Younger people could care less about that place....... TIL the next concert. I was at the Racino last night upstairs and I could count on one hand the people that were younger than me..... and I’m 56.

And heres the problem with a group that runs racing like a corporate baron. It’s still a game, a sport. The game needs stable participation to retain public interest. That means a stable physical foundation and a stable economic plan. When horses are hanging it up after 10 races or less due to physical problems or economic gain through the breeding shed. You are left with the current status quo of the horses that actually race. You know, the game you are selling? That 12 million dollar race today could be called the Under Achievers Cup cause about 3 of those horses deserve to be there. But that’s the state of the older division. Can’t wait to see the Whitney, gonna be a real barn burner.

That, along with the problems in California. There could be a “sell off” of tracks in the future and some of this is self inflicted.

The bolded parts of the above quote got me to thinking about what (exactly) drew me to the game:

It was the better horses at the local track a few miles from where I grew up - Turf Paradise.

At night, the sports segment of the ten o'clock news would often feature the stretch run from the day's feature race. On weekdays that meant an allowance. On weekends sometimes the feature was a minor stakes. (If a longshot won by more than a few lengths the sports guy would comment about how good it would feel to have bet that one.)

The charts from the previous day's races were printed in the sports section of the local newspaper. (Often on the same page as the box scores for MLB, NBA, NHL, NFL.)

On the same page as the charts from the previous day's races, there was a section titled "Today's Handicap." (A paragraph or two written by a sports writer that included selections for today's races.)

Back then, according to stats on The Jockey Club website, thoroughbreds averaged 10-11 starts per year vs. the 6 starts per year that they average now.

Imo, all of that made it easier for anyone with a pulse to become interested in horse racing.



-jp

.

[therussmeister]

Isn't the closing of such tracks exactly what many here think horse racing needs to survive? Of course, it always seems like a good idea until it's your local track that's closing.

[Tom]

FL used to be in the papers every day, and the feature race was broadcast live on the local radio station. Results were given on some radio stations every half hour. There were free passes all over town - you never had to pay if you didn't want to.

[jocko699]

Originally Posted by Tom

FL used to be in the papers every day, and the feature race was broadcast live on the local radio station. Results were given on some radio stations every half hour. There were free passes all over town - you never had to pay if you didn't want to.

Same with Hollywood Park, SA and Del Mar for the most part. If the race was live on the radio station it was played very soon after.

[castaway01]

Originally Posted by therussmeister

Isn't the closing of such tracks exactly what many here think horse racing needs to survive? Of course, it always seems like a good idea until it's your local track that's closing.

Tracks have been closing for a long time now. Just here in Jersey we've lost 3 of our 5 thoroughbred tracks, and Meadowlands just barely runs a turf meet.

Still, I don't think any of us are going to sit here and cheer, "Yay, people are out of work!" just because we know there aren't currently enough horses to fill fields.

[Parkview_Pirate]

IMG_20151002_170312.jpg

[airford1]

It would be a great place for a homeless encampment.

[thaskalos]

Originally Posted by Parkview_Pirate

Attachment 24377

There is an arrow pointing to a door there marked "INSTANT RACING". What is that...those pre-run "Historical" slot-machine races that they have at Kentucky Downs?

[martini]

I'm surprised the track survived as long as it did. For years friends of mine had no idea they still had races there. When Stronach bought it, he put a new coat of paint on the building and made a brief effort to market the product (billboard ads around town), but I doubt if that ever made a difference on handle. I live nearby, but seldom went. When I did go there, people would be hanging out drinking, playing other games, but not playing horses. I liked that admission/parking were free, but that also invited a lot of riff-raff. The only guys reading racing forms were people in their 60s or 70s.

When they tried racing in the summer on weekends, I never made it out there. It was like, if I'm going to spend money, it's a better product at Saratoga or Del Mar, so I just stayed home and played those places from my computer. In a sport/game with dwindling interest and loads of issues, there is a lot of competition for the horseplayer's dollar. Portland wasn't going to make it.

[stlseeeek]

It would be a great place for a homeless encampment.

dirt surface would be perfect for tents, and soft enough for tweakers, when they crash.



Can we send a few hundred down there?

sincerely,

seattle

[AlsoEligible]

Originally Posted by thaskalos

There is an arrow pointing to a door there marked "INSTANT RACING". What is that...those pre-run "Historical" slot-machine races that they have at Kentucky Downs?

Yes. They’re legal in Oregon, and a couple other states (Wyoming, Idaho I think?) along with Kentucky.

[dilanesp]

Originally Posted by martini

I'm surprised the track survived as long as it did. For years friends of mine had no idea they still had races there. When Stronach bought it, he put a new coat of paint on the building and made a brief effort to market the product (billboard ads around town), but I doubt if that ever made a difference on handle. I live nearby, but seldom went. When I did go there, people would be hanging out drinking, playing other games, but not playing horses. I liked that admission/parking were free, but that also invited a lot of riff-raff. The only guys reading racing forms were people in their 60s or 70s.

When they tried racing in the summer on weekends, I never made it out there. It was like, if I'm going to spend money, it's a better product at Saratoga or Del Mar, so I just stayed home and played those places from my computer. In a sport/game with dwindling interest and loads of issues, there is a lot of competition for the horseplayer's dollar. Portland wasn't going to make it.

And this is how simulcasting forces contraction.