Sad State Of Belmont Park

[notoday]

Went to Belmont 9-24 and it was sad. Still 130pm post arrived 1230pm and no one was there . The huge grandstand had no access to the upper floors which were closed Walked to the clubhouse no escalator had to use elevator very few people but for the day 2 employees manned the reserved seat $5.00 per seat even though not one person arrived . The paddock which is usually bustling had fewer than 15 patrons per race. The backyard picnic area was a ghost town No music no food and no human tellers only machines. The main grandstand area only had 2 or 3 human tellers except for an additional 2 tellers at $50 minimum windows . I have been going for over 30 years and I am at a loss
WHY WAS NO ONE THERE ANY SUGGESTIONS

[n.c]

Eagles vs Giants???

[CincyHorseplayer]

That stinks. I don't know why everything is basically boarded off and shut down. At my 2 home tracks Turfway shuts down the 4th floor which is the best view of the track. And Belterra has basically just eliminated having a good racing experience with their stupidity and underwhelmingness. Makes me sick too man.

[dilanesp]

This, fundamentally, is why I think NYRA is incompetent and horrible. (Well, this and all the corruption scandals.)

I do understand the sport's live attendance has declined. You won't get a great impression going to Santa Anita on a weekday during its upcoming meet either.

HOWEVER:

NYRA operates in the largest metropolitan area in the country. More than 20 million people live within driving or transit distance of Belmont Park. When you can't get a few thousand people out of that many to come to one of the most beautiful racing facilities in the world (and Belmont is that), you are bad at your job. Period.

And the attendance at Belmont and Aqueduct declined 10 years before Southern California tracks started losing attendance, and it declined a lot farther than we did. As bad as Santa Anita has gotten, it will still draw at least 10,000 this Saturday and consistently outdraws Belmont with the exception of one day a year (and our Breeders' Cup attendances far exceed NYRA's). If NYRA were run by less stupid people, they could get someone to show up at that track. It's inexcusable.

[alydar]

Originally Posted by dilanesp

This, fundamentally, is why I think NYRA is incompetent and horrible. (Well, this and all the corruption scandals.)

I do understand the sport's live attendance has declined. You won't get a great impression going to Santa Anita on a weekday during its upcoming meet either.

HOWEVER:

NYRA operates in the largest metropolitan area in the country. More than 20 million people live within driving or transit distance of Belmont Park. When you can't get a few thousand people out of that many to come to one of the most beautiful racing facilities in the world (and Belmont is that), you are bad at your job. Period.

And the attendance at Belmont and Aqueduct declined 10 years before Southern California tracks started losing attendance, and it declined a lot farther than we did. As bad as Santa Anita has gotten, it will still draw at least 10,000 this Saturday and consistently outdraws Belmont with the exception of one day a year (and our Breeders' Cup attendances far exceed NYRA's). If NYRA were run by less stupid people, they could get someone to show up at that track. It's inexcusable.

Please!!! just a ridiculous statement. Just complaining, the best racing in the country is at NYRA. Ever since OTB attendance, has declined. In spite of low attendance, it is one of the most impressive and beautiful racetracks in the nation. But some people know it all, why don't you give management some suggestions, since you seem to have such impressive insights?

[Mike_412]

Originally Posted by dilanesp

This, fundamentally, is why I think NYRA is incompetent and horrible. (Well, this and all the corruption scandals.)

I do understand the sport's live attendance has declined. You won't get a great impression going to Santa Anita on a weekday during its upcoming meet either.

HOWEVER:

NYRA operates in the largest metropolitan area in the country. More than 20 million people live within driving or transit distance of Belmont Park. When you can't get a few thousand people out of that many to come to one of the most beautiful racing facilities in the world (and Belmont is that), you are bad at your job. Period.

And the attendance at Belmont and Aqueduct declined 10 years before Southern California tracks started losing attendance, and it declined a lot farther than we did. As bad as Santa Anita has gotten, it will still draw at least 10,000 this Saturday and consistently outdraws Belmont with the exception of one day a year (and our Breeders' Cup attendances far exceed NYRA's). If NYRA were run by less stupid people, they could get someone to show up at that track. It's inexcusable.

You could have been more concise by stating that you're a SoCal fan with an inferiority complex and called it a day.

[JustRalph]

Don’t you have to pay through the nose to cross a bridge to get to Belmont? I bet that doesn’t help.....between traffic, tolls etc....playing from Home has to be preferred

[Cholly]

I’m a huge fan of NYRA in general, and the Belmont fall meet in particular. I’ve only been there once, and I loved every minute...but that’s only because I was a tourist from the hinterlands making a pilgrimage, not because I was a NY resident looking to enjoy myself. It had such a ghost town atmosphere it was down right spooky.

If you control real estate in New York you should be able to convert that asset into people showing up and spending $$. Here the numbers speak for themselves. Belmont Park isn’t offering much in the way of a patron-friendly experience that entices people to attend. There’s a LOT wrong with the track and facility; hopefully much of that will be addressed in the coming tear-down/rebuild.

Top of the list should be the track configuration that has 98% of the races starting almost in another borough. Two-turn races, with the start in front of the fans, are just a great deal more interesting to watch--even if you’re watching remotely on the computer or at a simo-center.

Belmont in the fall has good horses, good trainers, and good jockeys. But starting an 8.5 furlong race on a straightaway more suggests a dragstrip than exciting horse racing.

[Tom]

But some people know it all, why don't you give management some suggestions, since you seem to have such impressive insights?

Don't those people who work at NYRA get PAID to do that stuff?
If I give them an idea that works, do I get a cut?

[Tom]

Originally Posted by Cholly

I’m a huge fan of NYRA in general, and the Belmont fall meet in particular. I’ve only been there once, and I loved every minute...but that’s only because I was a tourist from the hinterlands making a pilgrimage, not because I was a NY resident looking to enjoy myself. It had such a ghost town atmosphere it was down right spooky.

If you control real estate in New York you should be able to convert that asset into people showing up and spending $$. Here the numbers speak for themselves. Belmont Park isn’t offering much in the way of a patron-friendly experience that entices people to attend. There’s a LOT wrong with the track and facility; hopefully much of that will be addressed in the coming tear-down/rebuild.

Top of the list should be the track configuration that has 98% of the races starting almost in another borough. Two-turn races, with the start in front of the fans, are just a great deal more interesting to watch--even if you’re watching remotely on the computer or at a simo-center.

Belmont in the fall has good horses, good trainers, and good jockeys. But starting an 8.5 furlong race on a straightaway more suggests a dragstrip than exciting horse racing.

Good ideas - here' my suggest for the $$$.
Make the main track the turf course and put a one mile dirt track inside, or even a one mile and a sixteenth track inside.

[PaceAdvantage]

Originally Posted by notoday

Went to Belmont 9-24 and it was sad. Still 130pm post arrived 1230pm and no one was there . The huge grandstand had no access to the upper floors which were closed Walked to the clubhouse no escalator had to use elevator very few people but for the day 2 employees manned the reserved seat $5.00 per seat even though not one person arrived . The paddock which is usually bustling had fewer than 15 patrons per race. The backyard picnic area was a ghost town No music no food and no human tellers only machines. The main grandstand area only had 2 or 3 human tellers except for an additional 2 tellers at $50 minimum windows . I have been going for over 30 years and I am at a loss
WHY WAS NO ONE THERE ANY SUGGESTIONS

You guys realize this is all basically a crock of BS, right?

But guys like Dilane jump on it like a fly to...well...you know...

[classhandicapper]

This is not a negative or positive comment. It's just an observation. The racing at Belmont is slowly turning into a better version of Kentucky Downs. On most days they card more turf races than dirt races. Personally, from a gambling perspective, I'm not a fan of the lower caliber turf races with loads of surface switches and first time turf horses. I find many of the turf sprints indecipherable. So most of the time I don't have much interest in going to the track even though I love Belmont and love live racing. I'm sure they know what they are doing in terms of filling fields and raising handle. But for me, Belmont has become a track I don't even look at unless there's a big feature race or one of my horses is running.

[luisbe]

Originally Posted by JustRalph

Don’t you have to pay through the nose to cross a bridge to get to Belmont? I bet that doesn’t help.....between traffic, tolls etc....playing from Home has to be preferred

It seems they understood most are playing from home since they put up the best web site available. I wish them all had one like it.

[sour grapes]

belmont is not a ghost town,ive been their past 3 saturdays and the crowds are ok,the backyard is full of people betting and drinking,its just that its such a big facility it may seem empty.As for the grandstand 2nd and 3rd floors are closed due to renovation and should be up and running by the spring meet according to people i know that work at the track.So for all you belmont haters go head and tear them down while i enjoy the place,Belmont will never be like the old days with 30k on the weekend but its still a great place to enjoy a day at the races.

[notoday]

This is no crock just an unbiased observation I went twice as usual to Saratoga this past summer. The picnic area full to capacity Reserved seats sold out with some sections at the top of the stretch
I am at a loss why NO ONE was there yesterday