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Originally Posted by michiken
I stopped at Turfway last Friday night (on my way to Memphis) and the place was packed!
They were having $1 beer night. I saw families with kids, teens with their dates and many people who brought their own food etc.
I arrived at 4:30 pm and chose a carrel seat. By 8 o'clock I had people leaning and standing over me such that I couldn't see the tv's or live racing. There were even lines to the bathrooms. Even John Law was parading around the masses.
Even with the short fields, people were yelling and cheering as the horses came down the stretch. I have not seen so much fan involvement and FUN since many years ago at Arlington.
It is odd that they are cutting purses and have good attendance. It must have been there on a night that was a total anomaly. It was refreshing to see all the fans.
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It was not an anomaly - at least for a Friday night. I was there last night and it was exactly as you described - a nice crowd and very enthusiastic (60 degree temp didn't hurt).
Note that the purse cut was 5% and for Kentucky breds running at MSW and allowance level the shortfall will be made up by the state fund (KTDF). With such a modest cut, I think their idea was to use this as a vehicle to pound home the fact that Kentucky needs casinos/slots/VLT's - Turfway would very likely be the track venue that would see the biggest purse pop from this. If money was such a major issue right now one could argue they would have cut 10% across the board.
