Mahoning Valley 20 cent Pick 6 - Mandatory Payout on 12/28

[CincyHorseplayer]

Originally Posted by mountainman

As an official I sympathize with their situation in the racing office, but from a player's perspective, Mahoning's cards have gone from disappointing to EXTREMELY disappointing.

Four mdn/ clmng races today. From a mere EIGHT RACE PROGRAM. Boys, that don't cut it. And I'm growing weary of watching four fields per day made up of the same slow ohio- breds running against each other. That's not racing; it's attrition.

To be honest, with so many restricted races , and a large portion of their season conducted during the brunt of north-eastern ohio winters, I'm not optimistic that the quality of product there can ever improve appreciably. Regardless of potentially escalating slot-infusions.

I have never cared for winter racing up here. But will look at cards on days where the weather is clear and sunny. While there have been many dismal races and days I have seen some decent cards with fuller fields and have gotten some solid prices at Mahoning. Being from Ohio I've always tried to show some love to my circuit and know it well. Was broken hearted when Beulah closed as I had a lot of memorable days betting their races. Card today looks pretty blah though. The 6 horse field is a killer. I think we all pass probably 80% of those races. But IMO that is most Midwest tracks. Turfway was great til about mid January. Then prices and field sizes plummeted. After a few years of being disenchanted with my hometown and state circuit I attempted a specializing approach. That was even worse! So I have opened my game back up and am embracing all tracks and surfaces again. We have 11 months of live racing in this city. It can be tough at times especially in the winter but I am having a romance with it all again! Fun!

[mountainman]

Originally Posted by CincyHorseplayer

I have never cared for winter racing up here. But will look at cards on days where the weather is clear and sunny. While there have been many dismal races and days I have seen some decent cards with fuller fields and have gotten some solid prices at Mahoning. Being from Ohio I've always tried to show some love to my circuit and know it well. Was broken hearted when Beulah closed as I had a lot of memorable days betting their races. Card today looks pretty blah though. The 6 horse field is a killer. I think we all pass probably 80% of those races. But IMO that is most Midwest tracks. Turfway was great til about mid January. Then prices and field sizes plummeted. After a few years of being disenchanted with my hometown and state circuit I attempted a specializing approach. That was even worse! So I have opened my game back up and am embracing all tracks and surfaces again. We have 11 months of live racing in this city. It can be tough at times especially in the winter but I am having a romance with it all again! Fun!

tx for responding, dude. I've made good money playing Mahoning and feel very comfortable with horses at that level. In fact, it's the only track I follow , and I put considerable time into it. But their progress has stalled out-even regressed, and I'm starting to realize that due to certain obstacles they face, racing in Austintown will always have a hard ceiling. And not a high one.

[CincyHorseplayer]

Originally Posted by mountainman

tx for responding, dude. I've made good money playing Mahoning and feel very comfortable with horses at that level. In fact, it's the only track I follow , and I put considerable time into it. But their progress has stalled out-even regressed, and I'm starting to realize that due to certain obstacles they face, racing in Austintown will always have a hard ceiling. And not a high one.

The fall meet is usually solid(at least it was at Beu) and when the weather warms up racing is usually better. But that's anywhere. What do you suspect will be more difficult in Austintown vs Grove City? Just curious.

BTW I was thinking about you the other day! I went through and reorganized and threw out old forms and folders and folders worth of info. In my notebooks box I had some articles in an envelope. It was the articles you sent me! One from Horseplayer magazine and an article by Mark Patterson. Can't remember if I ever thank you for mailing them to me. Thanks!

[mountainman]

Originally Posted by CincyHorseplayer

The fall meet is usually solid(at least it was at Beu) and when the weather warms up racing is usually better. But that's anywhere. What do you suspect will be more difficult in Austintown vs Grove City? Just curious.

BTW I was thinking about you the other day! I went through and reorganized and threw out old forms and folders and folders worth of info. In my notebooks box I had some articles in an envelope. It was the articles you sent me! One from Horseplayer magazine and an article by Mark Patterson. Can't remember if I ever thank you for mailing them to me. Thanks!

TX, pal. Well...for one thing, Beu with its split meet somewhat avoided the worst of winter. Also, with the infusuion of slots, wasn't Mahoning supposed to be Beu on steroids??

Being occupied during fall and spring at Mnr, I can't speak to the warmer parts of Mahoning's season. But the high number of restricted races there will always deter desirable outfits from requesting stalls or competing.

And call me a cynic, but I'm far from convinced that the parent company even WANTS live racing there to succeed.

You do remember that they had drawn up some sort of "mini me" facility which the state nixed and then mandated they construct a genuine big-boy barn area and grandstand??????

[CincyHorseplayer]

Originally Posted by mountainman

TX, pal. Well...for one thing, Beu with its split meet somewhat avoided the worst of winter. Also, with the infusuion of slots, wasn't Mahoning supposed to be Beu on steroids??

Being occupied during fall and spring at Mnr, I can't speak to the warmer parts of Mahoning's season. But the high number of restricted races there will always deter desirable outfits from requesting stalls or competing.

And call me a cynic, but I'm far from convinced that the parent company even WANTS live racing there to succeed.

You do remember that they had drawn up some sort of "mini me" facility which the state nixed and then mandated they construct a genuine big-boy barn area and grandstand??????

The restricted races is an Ohio plague. I have sent letters to the powers that be on this to no avail. Meets cannot get better with most races catering to the worst horses that race. Like you said it attracts zero good barns. Open claimers and starter allowances are non existent.

As far as the rest of what you speak, I don't want to go down that road! The way the facility down here was constructed was geared to be as uncomfortable and worthless as possible. To fail.

[Vinman]

Originally Posted by mountainman

As an official I sympathize with their situation in the racing office, but from a player's perspective, Mahoning's cards have gone from disappointing to EXTREMELY disappointing.

Four mdn/ clmng races today. From a mere EIGHT RACE PROGRAM. Boys, that don't cut it. And I'm growing weary of watching four fields per day made up of the same slow ohio- breds running against each other. That's not racing; it's attrition.

To be honest, with so many restricted races , and a large portion of their season conducted during the brunt of north-eastern ohio winters, I'm not optimistic that the quality of product there can ever improve appreciably. Regardless of potentially escalating slot-infusions.

I've been focusing on MVR exclusively over that past few months.....primarily because of their 20 cent Pick 6. I like not having to deal with full field turf races a la Gulfstream. Along the lines of your comments about the quality & field sizes at MVR, I may switch over to Laurel, which has a much higher quality product as well as the 20 cent p6.

Any chance a 20 cent pick 6 could happen at Mountaineer in 2017? I'm looking for an evening track to implement this wager. Hopefully MNR or Evangeline will do it.

Vinman

[tanner12oz]

The on track "grandstand" at mvr is kinda laughable. Maybe my memory is off but I think there's like 20 seats. Place was very very vanilla
needed to add some color, decor or something..looks kinda like they have wedding receptions there on non racing days. I haven't been up since they opened though so maybe its better now. Been meaning to shoot back up on a Saturday.

[rrpic6]

Every racing venue has days where their cards are not totally palatable. Gulfstream carded SIX Maiden races this past Sunday. Mahoning Valley has already run 23 cards with 9 races in the current meet. Only 3 9 race cards have been run since the start of 2017. Still this is a very positive stat, as MVR only had intentions of scheduling 8 race cards EVERYDAY.

The best days to wager on MVR are Mondays and Tuesdays, as the handle has routinely passed $1,000,000 daily. Today's card has only 1 maiden race. The average horses entered per race today is 8.9.

The grandstand has approximately 100 theater style seats, not 20.

RR

[mountainman]

I expected better this season. I should have been more cognizant of the big obstacles they face. That track had two strikes against it before even opening. I'll continue to play there, because the bettors are not real sharp, and Mahoning has been a boon for me. But the cards have been a letdown. And I'm straining to stay focused and interested.

As an experienced official, I see lots of signs that the ceiling is low and the needle not pointed upward. But out of professional courtesy, I'll restrict my critique to that of a bettor.

I like and respect Ron, John (the announcer), and Tim the trackman.

[mountainman]

Mahoning's real competition is Tdn. I'm sure they understand that. But Cleveland holds most of the cards.

[mountainman]

Wall to wall 2L claimers yesterday. Three straight mdn races to start today's card, and the "feature" seems to be a cheap conditioned clmr for ohio breds.

Lousy product. Extremely disappointing season at Mahoning. Live invaders scarce as the cards take on a worn, familiar tone.

If Mahoning has ANY good horses, where ARE THEY?????????????????????????

[Vinman]

Originally Posted by mountainman

Wall to wall 2L claimers yesterday. Three straight mdn races to start today's card, and the "feature" seems to be a cheap conditioned clmr for ohio breds.

Lousy product. Extremely disappointing season at Mahoning. Live invaders scarce as the cards take on a worn, familiar tone.

If Mahoning has ANY good horses, where ARE THEY?????????????????????????

On the flip side, if the results continue to be as "ho hum" as how the races look on paper, the P6 jackpot keeps on building. Having said that, we know it's gonna get hit soon, as Laurel's was last Sunday.

Vinman

[rrpic6]

Despite some lackluster fields, Mahoning Valley is having a stellar meet. Purses will be raised for the 2nd time this year as of Saturday.
https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-rac...purse-increase

Handle on the card Mountainman mentions on Wednesday was 1.3 million including 27K wagered into the pick 6. The horse population is obviously decreasing as we see short fields everywhere. Today's average horse per race at select tracks are as follows: Oaklawn 8.55-Turfway 8.22- Gulfstream 7.9-Santa Anita 7.87. Where do you think MVR will rank as far as number of horses per race on Saturday???

If you said more than all you are correct! Mahoning Valley-8.85.

Some man's trash is another one's treasure.

RR

[mountainman]

I would not confuse a few cherry-picked handles with having a good meet. Or compare field size with classy venues like Oaklawn and Gulfstream.

So the slots are well-feeding the purses. To me, that's just a further indictment of Mahoning's low-quality product. Abysmal, just abysmal.

Mahoning is doomed to forever be in Thistledown's shadow. And its ceiling is hard and low. For lots of reasons.

No desire to argue, Ron. I understand you defending your place of employment. I'd do the same. And I want to see Mahoning prosper. I've invested tons of time into learning it's nuances, trainers and horseflesh.

But we do disagree about the place's product and future. And there are conspicuous signs there that a low priority is placed on racing.

[mountainman]

And as an experienced racing official, I see omens there that you would not notice or process. And some are less than positive.