Steven Crist gets it

[magwell]

In a artificial in the DRF for tomorrow he breaks it all down and lasix is far from the main problems with this game, it's the high takeout, unfair taxation,and noncompetitive fields that lead the problems. He understands where the industry leaders have no clues..........

[cbp]

He's a visionary, no doubt. How does he ever come up with these things?

[magwell]

Originally Posted by cbp

He's a visionary, no doubt. How does he ever come up with these things?

Rumor has it, he checked with you to get his info....

[cbp]

Or just about any other horseplayer out there

[magwell]

Originally Posted by cbp

Or just about any other horseplayer out there

Yep, sorry for being sarcastic, I just couldn't help it.......

[burnsy]

That's why I like him. He is brutally honest compared to most of the pack. I kind of agree with his opinion over most of the others. Don't write or talk (serve) me bullshit. Its not all Unicorns and Roses.

Why do I bitch and take it to another level? Because most of the writers and industry people are complacent or have too much at stake. Call it what it is......if things go bad to worse its a lose, lose anyway. Its like the Titanic, "Nothing can sink this ship, all is rosy, take a drink." We all know what happens next. If you tell me the trend is a positive one. I'll laugh at you.

Then the constant stories of cheaters. Every sport is trying to nip that. Get tough or the govt. will be up your ass soon. Don't cry, we are doing this and that.....next week two more people get a month off....suspension (vacation)...meanwhile the same horses can still race. Burnsy is a harsh critic. But if you play horses, just think about how that one flies? Its really not that hard people. The horse and every one else involved pretty much walks away.........the trainer gets days off but, oh no, that's got nothing to do with the entire stable...and that trainer is not saying anything about caring for that horse?...c'mon? I don't give benefit of the doubt?....its a scam folks. "Shhhhh...days off and a fine, when your tan lines are good, we'll get you back." "Call us a couple times week, to check up, he's running in the 5th on Thursday, 3 weeks from now, right before you get back.".......... "I'm sure your assistants know what to do with the rest of them."....... Yeah, its a real deterrent.

[whodoyoulike]

Originally Posted by magwell

In a artificial in the DRF for tomorrow he breaks it all down and lasix is far from the main problems with this game, it's the high takeout, unfair taxation,and noncompetitive fields that lead the problems. He understands where the industry leaders have no clues..........

Does he suggest solution(s) or is it all just about the current problems?

He's a very influential person in this industry. And, I hope his concerns are at least addressed one way or another by the NTRA or Jockey Club (or another group with clout).

We've been aware of the above mentioned problems for years and have suggested reasonable remedies on this site which continually seems to be ignored. I recall someone mentioning they were on a focus group back in the early 2000's and nobody followed up with their suggestions or even responded to them. Even though they were the ones asked to participate at their request.

[duncan04]

Originally Posted by magwell

In a artificial in the DRF for tomorrow he breaks it all down and lasix is far from the main problems with this game, it's the high takeout, unfair taxation,and noncompetitive fields that lead the problems. He understands where the industry leaders have no clues..........

LMAO!! However he has no clue that DRF has outrageous prices and the website is worse. Might be an interesting read but you can't read anything online without paying for that privledge as well.

[Stillriledup]

Originally Posted by whodoyoulike

Does he suggest solution(s) or is it all just about the current problems?

He's a very influential person in this industry. And, I hope his concerns are at least addressed one way or another by the NTRA or Jockey Club (or another group with clout).

We've been aware of the above mentioned problems for years and have suggested reasonable remedies on this site which continually seems to be ignored. I recall someone mentioning they were on a focus group back in the early 2000's and nobody followed up with their suggestions or even responded to them. Even though they were the ones asked to participate at their request.

PA poster Andy C was one of the panel.http://www1.drf.com/misc/ntra_players_panel_021904.pdf

[whodoyoulike]

Originally Posted by Stillriledup

PA poster Andy C was one of the panel.http://www1.drf.com/misc/ntra_players_panel_021904.pdf

Thanks, I thought it was him but, wasn't certain and didn't want to name him if it wasn't him. As I recall, he mentioned that there was no follow up or response from the NTRA.

[Stillriledup]

Originally Posted by whodoyoulike

Thanks, I thought it was him but, wasn't certain and didn't want to name him if it wasn't him. As I recall, he mentioned that there was no follow up or response from the NTRA.

You're welcome, any time.

[EMD4ME]

Originally Posted by Stillriledup

PA poster Andy C was one of the panel.http://www1.drf.com/misc/ntra_players_panel_021904.pdf

It's amazing that was written in 2004. How does time fly?

Thanks SRU and Thanks Andy C for being part of that.

[Stillriledup]

Originally Posted by EMD4ME

It's amazing that was written in 2004. How does time fly?

Thanks SRU and Thanks Andy C for being part of that.

It's crazy for sure. I'd love to see what everyone thinks about these suggestions, are they timeless and applicable in today's game? Has any track or the industry taken ANY of this advice that was given?

[Redboard]

I disagree, Mr. Crist doesn’t get it. He’s a very intelligent man, a great writer, a sharp handicapper. I buy his books and read his articles on DRF; but you have to take him with a grain of salt. His job is to sell newspapers. What’s good for the DRF is not necessarily what’s good for the sport of horse racing. This isn’t the first article he’s written with a pro-Lasix theme.
What he doesn’t get is that the biggest difference between racing now and racing back in the day when Citation, Kelso and Spectacular Bid roamed the tracks, is that back then, there was a continual flow of new fans into the game. Horse racing sucks you in, chews you up, and spits you out; therefore, it constantly needs a flow of new fans into it, and thereby new horse players and new owners.

The survey Mr. Crist refers to in his article is a survey of “current” horseplayers. Sure, small and noncompetitive fields , high takeout and unfair taxation are important to us all. But the main problem is that horse racing can’t attract new fans because of its bad image, and race day medication is part of that, much more so than those three other factors.

I’m not saying banning race day medication is immediately going to fix that image, or even ever fix that image, by itself. There are a constellation of issues involved here. If it were one thing, it would have been fixed a long time ago. And it takes a while to change an image. The town drunk does not become the town’s favorite son by going on the wagon for a week. Even if the tracks did everything they needed to do, it would be some time before we’d see any results.

My point? Mr. Crist is a good writer but he’s not the one who’s going to lead us to the promise land.

[Stillriledup]

Originally Posted by Redboard

I disagree, Mr. Crist doesn’t get it. He’s a very intelligent man, a great writer, a sharp handicapper. I buy his books and read his articles on DRF; but you have to take him with a grain of salt. His job is to sell newspapers. What’s good for the DRF is not necessarily what’s good for the sport of horse racing. This isn’t the first article he’s written with a pro-Lasix theme.
What he doesn’t get is that the biggest difference between racing now and racing back in the day when Citation, Kelso and Spectacular Bid roamed the tracks, is that back then, there was a continual flow of new fans into the game. Horse racing sucks you in, chews you up, and spits you out; therefore, it constantly needs a flow of new fans into it, and thereby new horse players and new owners.

The survey Mr. Crist refers to in his article is a survey of “current” horseplayers. Sure, small and noncompetitive fields , high takeout and unfair taxation are important to us all. But the main problem is that horse racing can’t attract new fans because of its bad image, and race day medication is part of that, much more so than those three other factors.

I’m not saying banning race day medication is immediately going to fix that image, or even ever fix that image, by itself. There are a constellation of issues involved here. If it were one thing, it would have been fixed a long time ago. And it takes a while to change an image. The town drunk does not become the town’s favorite son by going on the wagon for a week. Even if the tracks did everything they needed to do, it would be some time before we’d see any results.

My point? Mr. Crist is a good writer but he’s not the one who’s going to lead us to the promise land.

I would question if its a bad image that keeps people away. Maybe it's the inaccessible nature of the game, why can't you bet a racing card at 7-11 like you can with lottery? It's an expensive pursuit and the learning curve is steep, I think that's more of a detriment than high takeout and 'bad image'.

Like birthday boy Thaskalos often suggests, if you're going to charge caviar prices to park, enter, bet and buy PPs, you need a spectacularly clean game, if you have an image problem and are charging an arm and a leg just to make a wager, you might have trouble attracting customers.