New York Franchise Award Recommendation May Come Nov. 21

[OTM Al]

Originally Posted by Indulto

You also have to understand that I take any attempt from any single source of speed figures to establish anything other than whether an individual horse is improving or declining as self-aggrandizing.

This not exactly my point of questioning the article but close. Don't know over how many races this figue is based on. One cannot be sure while all the noted race types have trended higher that they have reached a level of statistical significance. Of course having more horses in the race would also have an effect....

I have no doubt though that in certain race types there has been an improvement in quality, but then again, they had latitude for improvement. Unfortunately the very top end, their stake program, has pretty much stayed the same, but then it wasn't that strong to start with so that should be expected.

[Indulto]

We’ll have to establish some type of power ratings for politicians who get on their high horses so that the next time Mr. Di Napoli does so, we can determine how hard he is running for re-election.

NYRA’s persistent lack of transparency will always give politicians like Di Napoli room to maneuver, but Di Napoli himself is vulnerable because he was not elected directly by the voters. Rather he was chosen by his legislative peers to replace Mr. Hevesi in an effort to subvert the then Governor’s agenda. He will have some task in distancing himself from all the dysfunction and corruption that kept VLTs from being implemented before he became Comptroller, which adversely affected the State's economic fortunes as well as those of racing.

IMO NYRA could have avoided most of the bailout characterizations by straightforwardly identifying the provision in the agreement that proved the State was obligated to pay them. Instead they tried to apply pressure indirectly by whining about potential meet closings; perhaps in fear of having to release salary figures. Both Di Napoli and NYRA management will have to stew in their own juices.

[OTM Al]

Originally Posted by Indulto

Instead they tried to apply pressure indirectly by whining about potential meet closings; perhaps in fear of having to release salary figures. Both Di Napoli and NYRA management will have to stew in their own juices.

I can tell you that wasn't whining and it wasn't a maneuver. It looked bad because it came on the heels of the NYCOTB threat to close and then announcing they could continue on for at least another year. But it was very very real. The salary figure nonsense was just another deflection by the politicos. Those salaries are run of the mill in NYC for exceutive jobs of that size.

[Indulto]

Originally Posted by OTM Al

I can tell you that wasn't whining and it wasn't a maneuver. It looked bad because it came on the heels of the NYCOTB threat to close and then announcing they could continue on for at least another year. But it was very very real. The salary figure nonsense was just another deflection by the politicos. Those salaries are run of the mill in NYC for exceutive jobs of that size.

I seeem to recall the NYCOTB whining (and subsequent threats) starting well after NYRA's whining permeated the press. Frucher's (actually Paterson's) copycat strategy that morphed into a bluff was obviously crying wolf, but it has little bearing on the current negative perceptions of NYRA, especially since now everybody knows that NYCOTB (Paterson/State) was the short-term cause of NYRA's financial difficulties.

If the salary issue was "nonsense," what prompted the position cuts that ensued? Salary comparisons within industry or region are only meaningful when times are good for everybody. What has Hayward actually been doing that Duncker and Schwartz didn't do better for next to nothing when called upon by circumstances? What value does Hayward add as CEO over what he "contributed" as a board member?

[OTM Al]

What does a CEO do? It's a classic question. One often asked by those who think they are worth more than they earn. This thread used to serve a point. You used to post the news in a good consolidated form. Well, keep up the work I guess. You should have plenty of fodder to go for years. Yet another way has been found to stop the slots at Aqueduct and it looks like Andrew Cuomo will be governor and if he follows in his father's footsteps, nothing good will come of racing in NY. Have fun. I'm out.

[slewis]

While you guys squibble about what a CEO does and what his compensation should be, I'll set part of this record straight.

First off, this is a GAMBLING enterprise...(although I'd bet if someone asks Haywood what he does for a living he'd them he's in the horse racing business).

Now I've made this point before but for OTM Al..(my friend) PA..and the rest of the NYRA lovers, I'll make it again:

If I could legally set up a craps table on any corner of midtown Manhattan between the hours 11Am and 3pm each day, and hired 5 twelve year olds to run it (taking out security issues for the sake of the arguement) I GUARANTEE, GUARANTEE...GUARANTEE (can I drive my point home?)...that the kids will rake in many millions in profits per month...

My point being that gambling operations are cash cows...and there isn't enough managing to do to substantiate the money Haywood, Handel and other executives are making...

I GUARANTEE (again)... that if this were a privately owned business or a publicly traded company where the board has to answer to SOMEONE (unlike NYRA who answers to NO one)....

I GUARANTEE Haywood would be making half of what he makes now and Handel would be gone...that is..


unless, these two bozos actually DID something to actually set the sport in NY in the right direction.
Has NYRA even attempted to draw new and younger people into the game since this group has taken over?

Have they outlined a plan for the short/medium term?

The answer is NO... Everything revolves around the VLT's.... Which amounts to just welfare for the industry.

Oh, and for those that want to call bailout money, "deserved payments"..let me remind you that it was NYRA's bad behavior that forced a judge to have Getnick oversee this (still exists today) operation as part of the court proceedings.

So tell me Al..and others..who pays Getnick, uh?

Duncker?... Heffernan?...Phipps...Janney??

Who's pockets flip the bill for this governmental cherade?

Do you think the millions G & G get and other wasteful expenses wouldn't be better used to run racing the way it should be run?

Let's not dare try and suggest that the taxpayers aren't taking it on the chin here.

N-Y-R-A........Not-for-profit, just for our own little fun and games.

[Tom]

Originally Posted by OTM Al

In case anyone would actually like to read a real assessment of the actions of the New York political hack known as Tom DiNapoli, this sums it up well

http://leftatthegate.blogspot.com/20...paper-its.html

The guy is an idiot, plain and simple. He has no clue what is going on.
He caused another "Byk-fit" yesterday!

How does NY get all these total loonies?

[Indulto]

Originally Posted by OTM Al

What does a CEO do? It's a classic question. One often asked by those who think they are worth more than they earn. This thread used to serve a point. You used to post the news in a good consolidated form. Well, keep up the work I guess. You should have plenty of fodder to go for years. Yet another way has been found to stop the slots at Aqueduct and it looks like Andrew Cuomo will be governor and if he follows in his father's footsteps, nothing good will come of racing in NY. Have fun. I'm out.

I'm sorry you've decided to opt out. I hope you'll reconsider when ypu're feeling less put upon because I've always found you to be a voice of reason, paticularly where little exists. I know you're striving to offset what to you appears to be unfair criticism toward NYRA at a time when many have lost confidence in its capacity to continue conducting racing at the highest level in the nation.

I too want to see New York Racing remain the leader. I still believe a not-for-profit structure like NYRA's is peferable to that which would have been implemented by the other racing franchise bidders, but it depends on modern-thinking, cost and customer-sensitive executives to succeed. It really doesn't matter any more who may have been at fault. There is too much blame to distribute fairly. It's obviously time for some fresh blood on the board and at the highest staff levels.

NYRA has to work with other tracks/associations to allow all to realize a higher net from off-track wagers on their product while also broadening its customer base nationwide. There can't be any more excuses. If they're honestly trying to reduce takeout and lower exotic wager minimums, they've got to be transparent about why they are not being allowed to compete and who is actually preventing them from doing so. If they can't get it done, they have to find others who can.

The "Old Boys Club" can only be tolerated when they don't screw up the works. Their inability to get the Breeder's Cup speaks voumes since some BC execs are "Club" members as well.

[miesque]

Originally Posted by slewis

While you guys squibble about what a CEO does and what his compensation should be, I'll set part of this record straight.

First off, this is a GAMBLING enterprise...(although I'd bet if someone asks Haywood what he does for a living he'd them he's in the horse racing business).

Now I've made this point before but for OTM Al..(my friend) PA..and the rest of the NYRA lovers, I'll make it again:

If I could legally set up a craps table on any corner of midtown Manhattan between the hours 11Am and 3pm each day, and hired 5 twelve year olds to run it (taking out security issues for the sake of the arguement) I GUARANTEE, GUARANTEE...GUARANTEE (can I drive my point home?)...that the kids will rake in many millions in profits per month...

My point being that gambling operations are cash cows...and there isn't enough managing to do to substantiate the money Haywood, Handel and other executives are making...

I GUARANTEE (again)... that if this were a privately owned business or a publicly traded company where the board has to answer to SOMEONE (unlike NYRA who answers to NO one)....

I GUARANTEE Haywood would be making half of what he makes now and Handel would be gone...that is..


unless, these two bozos actually DID something to actually set the sport in NY in the right direction.
Has NYRA even attempted to draw new and younger people into the game since this group has taken over?

Have they outlined a plan for the short/medium term?

The answer is NO... Everything revolves around the VLT's.... Which amounts to just welfare for the industry.

Oh, and for those that want to call bailout money, "deserved payments"..let me remind you that it was NYRA's bad behavior that forced a judge to have Getnick oversee this (still exists today) operation as part of the court proceedings.

So tell me Al..and others..who pays Getnick, uh?

Duncker?... Heffernan?...Phipps...Janney??

Who's pockets flip the bill for this governmental cherade?

Do you think the millions G & G get and other wasteful expenses wouldn't be better used to run racing the way it should be run?

Let's not dare try and suggest that the taxpayers aren't taking it on the chin here.

N-Y-R-A........Not-for-profit, just for our own little fun and games.

I will add two additional points. First, as a general rule, in Corporate America top senior management (CEOs, CFOs, COOs et al) which accrue too many years of losses are not allowed to to stick around for long in most corporations (check out the upper management turnover rates at Magna). Sometimes its more symbolic or sacrificial, but they have to go. Second, how many businesses are able to continue to operate as if an additional revenue flows (slots) are imminent when that additional revenue source has been nothing more than a pipe dream for years? This is usually a good recipe to have a "Going Concern" paragraph included in their annual auditor's report sooner rather than later.

[Indulto]

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57933/nyra-among-groups-considering-otb-takeover
NYRA Among Groups Trying To Take Over OTB
By Tom Precious Friday, July 16, 2010

A number of groups, including the New York Racing Association, have approached state officials about taking over all or part of the New York City Off-Track Betting Corp.

… “I believe the only way New York City OTB survives is if somebody takes it over or we create a partnership,’’ Schwartz said.

The new OTB chairman said a number of top officials at the agency, which has been owned by the state for a couple of years, have been let go. They are also getting rid of OTB’s controversial fleet of cars as well as several consulting contracts, and are actively planning the closure of at least 11 betting parlors.

… NYRA in the past has expressed interest in getting a piece of t NYCOTB’s betting operations, and there has long been talk about the various OTBs in the state merging with NYCOTB.

“It can’t be any longer 'let’s talk about it, meet about it.’ And then everybody gets into a turf battle. I’m not going there. I’m determined, on behalf of the governor, to solve this problem before he leaves office,’’ Schwartz said. Paterson’s term ends Dec. 31.

Besides NYRA, Schwartz said some OTB agencies and harness tracks have discussed having a possible role or stake in NYCOTB. He did not name them. He said he was doubtful there could be enough administrative- or legislative-approved savings to permit OTB to remain as a stand-alone corporation.

… Greg Rayburn, the new president of NYCOTB, said the first task during his first week on the job has been to deal with the corporation’s immediate cash-flow problems. “In my line of work, cash is oxygen. I need to maximize the oxygen so we can be viable long-term,’’ said Rayburn, a corporate reorganization expert whose most recent stint was at Magna Entertainment Corp.

… “The company is living on borrowed time,’’ Rayburn said of the cash-flow crunch affecting its bottom line. He said it is uncertain where OTB is headed--whether it will be privatized or face some sort of cooperative deal with NYRA or other OTBs in the state. But he said it will take the backing of its bankruptcy creditors, the unions that represent its 1,000 or so workers, and the legislature. …

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/national-news/2010/July/16/New-OTB-chief-hopes-to-have-restructuring-plan-in-30-days.aspx
New OTB chief hopes to have restructuring plan in 30 days
by Paul Post July 16, 2010

…

Greg Rayburn … says all stakeholders—race tracks, breeders, unions, and government—will have to share some of the pain involved with getting New York City OTB back on solid financial ground.

He said he is not convinced that the New York Racing Association should ultimately run the company. In most states, the racetrack operator controls distribution of the racing product.

“They have their own issues,” Rayburn said of NYRA on Friday during a conference call, adding that “collapsing pieces into other pieces” might or might not work.

“… There’s no question that participants in our creditors’ group are suffering because of our bankruptcy and inability to make full [statutory] payments.”

… Rayburn said some closures and layoffs are needed, but not as many as called for by Frucher.

Rayburn said New York City OTB should be run by someone with more gaming expertise. At present, it has no rebate rewards program, making it difficult to compete with account deposit wagering firms that do. He also said that the company needs to establish a capital reserve fund, allowing it to invest back into the business. …

[Indulto]

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2010/07/19/2010-07-19_quit_betting_on_the_nag.html
Quit betting on the nag: State must scratch dumb plan for slots at Aqueduct
Editorial July 19th 2010

… If Paterson, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Democratic conference chief John Sampson were interested only in generating revenue for the state from casino wagering, they'd locate the establishment in a central, highly trafficked spot. That's not Aqueduct.

Franchising the track for slots makes limited economic sense and, far worse, would steal from the city the chance to devote Aqueduct's many acres to residential or business development.

The site could become, by far, the city's largest cleared-ground building project, offering vast possibilities for affordable housing, schools and commerce. Such development would generate enormous revenues that NYRA, as franchise holder, would be entitled to share.

… "It seems reasonable to ask whether a declining race track and a few thousand slot machines are the best we can do with 192 acres of publicly owned land located next to one of the nation's busiest airports."

The track's potential makes all the more outrageous Albany's insistence on casino gambling in the face of endless evidence the plan can't work.

The Lottery Division is completing the state's fourth attempt at a slot machine deal, dating back nine years. Scandals and financial miscalculations have derailed all previous tries. This one is similarly headed down the tubes.

… Paterson and the Legislature can still do the right thing: Move what's left of racing 8 miles away, to Belmont, scrap the slots and put the Aqueduct property to genuinely fruitful use.

http://www.drf.com/news/article/114975.html
Saratoga opens 40-day meet
By David Grening 7/21/2010

… Charles Hayward, NYRA's president and CEO, acknowledges that the Saratoga product will consist of more cheaper claiming races than in the past but added that in the late 1980s and early 1990s Saratoga ran $10,000 claiming races.

"The good ol' days weren't necessarily good," Hayward said. "And just because they're cheaper races doesn't necessarily mean they're not good races to bet on."

Last year, Hayward projected a 5 percent decline in business from 2008, but in the end, all-sources handle was down 1.7 percent. …

http://www.drf.com/news/article/114837.html
New York can no longer afford to drag its heels
By Steven Crist 7/16/2010,

… The only way to get the attention of anyone in New York state government about racing is to suggest that the Belmont Stakes or the Saratoga meeting might have to be canceled. …

,,, So those threats were floated, and the state finally lived up to its agreement and provided a loan in late May that will be repaid by the eventual racino operator.

… Then Lucy pulled the football away from Charlie Brown once again. Two of the three bidders for the racino were disqualified earlier this month, and then last week a previously rejected bidder got a judge in Schenectady to halt the entire process. Now there's talk that the Aug. 3 deadline will come and go and nothing will happen until a new governor, presumably the odds-on Andrew Cuomo, is installed in January.

Then there's the ongoing saga of New York City OTB, which is in bankruptcy and owes the NYRA $20 million in unpaid statutory betting commissions and is now being run by a $125,000-a-month bankruptcy-reorganization specialist. It also was reported last week that despite claiming to have no cash to pay its bills, NYCOTB has shelled out nearly $500,000 since last fall to a fancy public-relations firm for a campaign to rehabilitate its public image.

Said campaign has been utterly invisible and ineffective, with the notable exception of the editorial boards of the city's three daily newspapers. The Daily News, Post, and Times have dutifully swallowed OTB's outrageous canard that its problems are the result of paying too much for the signals on which it handles nearly $1 billion a year -- rather than, say, its being a bloated and anachronistic system that actually underpays the racing industry and instead spends that money providing redundant jobs for politicians' cronies. …

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/news/story?id=5386875
New York OTB may cut funds
By Matt HegartyJuly 16, 2010

… the various constituencies that receive a piece of New York City OTB's revenue will be expected to "compromise" on changes to the formulas governing the distribution of the money. …

… "It's pretty hard for me to imagine a process . . . not involving some level of compromise from each constituent," Rayburn said. He said that the statutorily set formulas would need to be reset in order to generate enough cash flow to make New York City OTB "fundamentally viable, with some sort of capital reserve."

In the week that Rayburn has been at New York City OTB, he has sought to identify areas in which the company can immediately cut costs, he said, including firing a handful of top executives. …
… The effort to restructure New York City OTB will have significant repercussions on the New York racing industry, and officials of the New York Racing Association have made attempts to convince legislators and the governor to support proposals that would transfer some of OTB's operations to the association, including the OTB company's account-wagering operation. A transfer could form a bargaining chip that the industry may use if forced to accept a lower cut of OTB's betting revenues.

Rayburn said that he had considered "collapsing some pieces [of OTB's operations] into other pieces," including transfers to NYRA, but he said that those plans were not specific. …

… "It will probably be one in which everyone is equally unhappy," Rayburn said.

http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2010/07/18/opinion/doc4c423639212d7216852708.txt
Editorial: New York racing at a crossroads
July 18, 2010

… on Friday the head of bankrupt New York City Off Track Betting Corp. says he’ll have a plan in place for restructuring the firm within 30 days. Guess you get results when you hire a consultant for $125,000 per month.

Restructuring should not be the key word. It should be deconstructing. Times have changed but OTB hasn’t. We’re not convinced NYRA, a private company, should take over the operation. But we have no doubt that the bloated, uncoordinated, patronage-laden, archaic OTB setup that rakes in millions for the state (and some locales) while ending up in the hole must be scrapped. …

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=951858&category=ODATO&BCCode&new sdate=7%2F18%2F2010
Queries at NYC OTB
By JAMES M. ODATO day, July 19, 2010

… The state comptroller is demanding documentation concerning Rayburn's hiring as CEO; two Assembly Democrats are calling for an independent probe; and some OTB board members say they aren't going to be rubber stamps. There are concerns in some quarters that Rayburn may be too cozy with the New York Racing Association. Today, NYRA is loaning Rayburn one of its top financial professionals, David O'Rourke. NYRA will keep paying him during his assignment on Rayburn's team.

… "The board was certainly not advised of it ... and it should have been," said Steven Newman, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's appointee on the NYCOTB board. Newman also is a member of the state's NYRA oversight board, which is supposed to keep an eye on the racing association during its 25-year franchise to run the state's Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga tracks.

Rayburn worked with Brian Rosen, NYRA's bankruptcy lawyer -- which is either a potential conflict or something that presents the appearance of one, Newman said. NYCOTB is NYRA's biggest business partner and owes the association more than $17 million. At the same time, NYRA has desires on some of the OTB's core assets -- including the highly valuable Internet and telephone betting units -- and Rayburn's plan for the OTB could include mergers or sell-offs.

Newman wonders if NYRA had a hand in Rayburn's candidacy. NYRA has refused to answer questions about Rayburn, although it has been publicly supportive of his hiring. Rosen did not return a call. "In government, it's important to assure the public of the fairness of the process and the independence of its officials," said Newman. OTB board veteran David Cornstein said Rayburn is getting an exorbitant salary and was quickly hired without the normal due diligence. He promised to fight any proposal to turn over some of the business to NYRA ("the most incompetent entity I have ever run into in business").

Rayburn said discussion about any conflict is "silly". He did not discuss Syntax-Brillian, a company he joined two years ago just before it went bankrupt, an experience Paterson's spokesman called "a non-issue." Rayburn was elevated to CEO and faced criticism for expensive perks from some shareholders angry at the prior management's alleged siphoning of tens of millions of dollars. Some investors alleged in bankruptcy court that Rayburn was part of a culture of corruption because he did not expose alleged widespread fraud even though he is a certified fraud examiner.

"I was not retained as a fraud expert. I was retained to try to fix the operations of this business," Rayburn told the court, adding that the Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating and he didn't believe in duplicating services.

[classhandicapper]

Indulto,

I hate to say it in a racing forum, but I also think Aqueduct should be plowed under and the land used for more economically attractive alternatives.

This whole casino/racing combination popular throughout the industry is atrocious economics and delaying the restructuring that the racing industry needs.

In the real world, no one starts an attractive business in order to support a terrible business and keep it open. They close the terrible business, use the capital in better ways, and create more profits, jobs, economic activity etc.. for all.

Racing needs to restructure. All the tracks that are not viable as stand alone businesses need to be closed so the handle at those tracks gets spread around to the remainder of them and makes them more profitable. That would be very easy to accomplish in an era of phone and internet wagering.

All of this is impossible because government is involved and the process is horribly corrupt and incompetent.

[Indulto]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

Indulto,

I hate to say it in a racing forum, but I also think Aqueduct should be plowed under and the land used for more economically attractive alternatives.

This whole casino/racing combination popular throughout the industry is atrocious economics and delaying the restructuring that the racing industry needs.

In the real world, no one starts an attractive business in order to support a terrible business and keep it open. They close the terrible business, use the capital in better ways, and create more profits, jobs, economic activity etc.. for all.

Racing needs to restructure. All the tracks that are not viable as stand alone businesses need to be closed so the handle at those tracks gets spread around to the remainder of them and makes them more profitable. That would be very easy to accomplish in an era of phone and internet wagering.

All of this is impossible because government is involved and the process is horribly corrupt and incompetent.

CH,
I've long been an advocate of AQU closing as a racetrack and eliminating winter racing. At first I thought a racino at AQU could eliminate the need for slots at BEL, but now I think that without slots, BEL will eventually have to close as well.

[PaceAdvantage]

Slots at any NYRA racetrack should be viewed as an abomination.

[Tom]

Can't you just picture a row on machines along the back side of the tent at Toga? Might keep the rainwater from gushing in!