Crist column

[Cholly]

Let me add an “Amen” to Crist’s column calling for an organized and integrated series of races for the handicap division (http://drf.com/news/championship-series-worthy-reviving).

Football, baseball, and the other sports that dominate our landscape are the beneficiaries of billions of dollars of free publicity in the sports pages and TV news shows. Horse racing gets next-to-nothing on this count because, frankly, it makes lousy copy.

Print columnists and TV talking heads are conditioned to report on series of events that lead to some kind of conclusion. With horse racing, mainstream reporters look at the major events, survey the contenders, search for interlocking relationships between those contenders that can described and discussed, something anything they can get an angle on to create a story line, and…they see nothing but chaos. So of course they ignore horse racing.

Media is always looking for fresh content, and horse racing is eligible for a small sliver of that free publicity. The horses are photogenic and although they can’t give interviews, at least they don’t piss on themselves when they open their mouths. For reporters, the horses’ innate regality could represent an alternative to the constant parade of pimps and thugs who populate the major sports.

But media coverage requires story lines. A start would be, as Mr. Crist suggests, “events for older horses, packaged and promoted in a straightforward and accessible series like the ACRS.”

[lamboguy]

it certainly was great! but things certainly have changed. i doubt if you could find 12 horses today of that caliber of years ago. the reason is that instead of great training by trainers, we know have veteranarians training and influencing the game. with all the drugs they stick in those horses you are lucky to see a horse make it into his 4 year old career.

[CincyHorseplayer]

Good stuff Cholly.And necessary stuff.Lack of cohesion in the stakes division is the biggest visible symptom of the sickness that presides in racing.Everybody is looking out for #1,and in this case at the expense of themselves.The lack of unity among racetracks hurts nothing but the sport itself.And hell it would be nice to have a calendar that revolved around something more than hodgepodge.A series like this would definitely brings things into closer focus and I would up the ante on incentives to make it happen.What are we trying to become Europe?!Where the stakes division is only decided from late May to the fall?American racing is dirt and turf.That Kentucky embraces a 3rd surface,as the great breeding state and home of the thoroughbred,is instant proof of how messed up racing is.If they can be in turmoil so can all of racing.Racing heads need to be a community that supports what it's all about,the competition of the best horses possible.

And I totally agree wholeheartedly with your comments about horses.They are the reason why I hate most athletes and have nothing but contempt for most other forms of gambling.They are photogenic.They are nice to look at.And even though I like to play cards from time to time(and win),looking at all those ugly mugs indoors and hearing the BS coming out of their mouths,much like with pro athletes,it's a nice literal breath of fresh air to be around the horse game.It is the sport of kings and I am one,that loves it!

[Spiderman]

Best quality handicap horses are worth more in breeding shed than at racing. Once a horse garners G1 stakes, near-million in purses, he is worth much more in stud fees. A stud, valued at $5k per-pop, will gross 500k in North America and some are also going to South America to double-up the revenue stream.

Gone are the days of Kelso and Forego who were geldings and would compete in many championship races. Horses, with very few exceptions, are not developed for stamina.

[MickJ26]

We just had two major dirt routes for older handicap horses on the same weekend (Donn and Strub).

[tzipi]

Originally Posted by Spiderman

Best quality handicap horses are worth more in breeding shed than at racing. Once a horse garners G1 stakes, near-million in purses, he is worth much more in stud fees. A stud, valued at $5k per-pop, will gross 500k in North America and some are also going to South America to double-up the revenue stream.

Gone are the days of Kelso and Forego who were geldings and would compete in many championship races. Horses, with very few exceptions, are not developed for stamina.

I agree, it's a shame that the game takes away it superstars so quickly. It's all about breeding and big checks today. Superstars very rarely are around in this game unlike most other sports. Surely hurts the sport.

[thaskalos]

Originally Posted by CincyHorseplayer

Good stuff Cholly.And necessary stuff.Lack of cohesion in the stakes division is the biggest visible symptom of the sickness that presides in racing.Everybody is looking out for #1,and in this case at the expense of themselves.The lack of unity among racetracks hurts nothing but the sport itself.And hell it would be nice to have a calendar that revolved around something more than hodgepodge.A series like this would definitely brings things into closer focus and I would up the ante on incentives to make it happen.What are we trying to become Europe?!Where the stakes division is only decided from late May to the fall?American racing is dirt and turf.That Kentucky embraces a 3rd surface,as the great breeding state and home of the thoroughbred,is instant proof of how messed up racing is.If they can be in turmoil so can all of racing.Racing heads need to be a community that supports what it's all about,the competition of the best horses possible.

And I totally agree wholeheartedly with your comments about horses.They are the reason why I hate most athletes and have nothing but contempt for most other forms of gambling.They are photogenic.They are nice to look at.And even though I like to play cards from time to time(and win),looking at all those ugly mugs indoors and hearing the BS coming out of their mouths,much like with pro athletes,it's a nice literal breath of fresh air to be around the horse game.It is the sport of kings and I am one,that loves it!

I share your enthusiasm for our game, but, IMO, it's no longer the sport of kings...and it hasn't been that for a long time.

If an accusing finger had to be pointed at one guilty group, it would have to be pointed at the horsemen, for sabotaging every effort to limit the steroids and other drugs whose use is so rampant in our sport.

The horsemen were able to convince us all, years ago, that these medications would lead to more durable horses and bigger fields...but the exact opposite has been the case.

If The American Championship Series is to be revived...won't our top horses have to run more than 5-6 times a year, if they are to generate any more interest in the game than there currently is?

[cj]

Originally Posted by thaskalos

If The American Championship Series is to be revived...won't our top horses have to run more than 5-6 times a year, if they are to generate any more interest in the game than there currently is?

Not really, they just need to run those 5 or 6 times in mostly the same races. Why tracks are fighting to give out big money to bad fields is beyond me. Drawing big horses really isn't a money maker any longer. If it was, Zenyatta would have drawn more than 10k or so. That "star horse" ship has sailed.

How can their be rivalries amongst good horses when they never race each other?

[CincyHorseplayer]

Originally Posted by thaskalos

I share your enthusiasm for our game, but, IMO, it's no longer the sport of kings...and it hasn't been that for a long time.

If an accusing finger had to be pointed at one guilty group, it would have to be pointed at the horsemen, for sabotaging every effort to limit the steroids and other drugs whose use is so rampant in our sport.

The horsemen were able to convince us all, years ago, that these medications would lead to more durable horses and bigger fields...but the exact opposite has been the case.

If The American Championship Series is to be revived...won't our top horses have to run more than 5-6 times a year, if they are to generate any more interest in the game than there currently is?

I hear ya.My first instinct and reaction is about owners.This is a reach for me but here goes.If these owners are so worried about breeding yet sell these horses over seas what are we gaining?Nobody races often,there is no clear cut definitive races,once they win they are valued more for sperm and eggs,they get sold off to other countries,there is a 3rd surface that is upsetting the applecart of breeding.

Does anybody even give a $hit anymore?

Whew.However wrong that rant was I needed to get it out of the system.

This system needs to be in place and stay in place and continuity will bear it out as defining horses.It sounds like 2 + 2 = 4,and it should be that simple.

The last 2 years we have been lucky to have good horses that went beyond our inner circle.I don't think any of them would have been diminished by defeats at the hooves of other great horses.They don't need to be the Immanuel Kantian "Things In Themselves" though.When Zen fell short in the BC last November all I could think of is "Why haven't we seen this before?".What might have been?That sucks.We were robbed of a great racehorse and the synthetic anomaly made it happen.

We enjoy our champions like astronomers.Each is it's own planet.These failures in the big business world(my guess) and idiot sons that inherit these racetrack jobs need to wake up or be forced out.The Damon Runyon stereotype of the degenerate horseplayer applies to the management moreso than the player these days.Evidence on here is a smart bunch of guys and gals at the top of their game and striving for perfection and the guys running "The Show" are the bums and losers.

Thask,this is the sport of kings.And we are them.Just nobody realizes it yet!We need this championship series.It makes total sense and those who are in charge will probably sprint away from it.Such is our plight!

[Pell Mell]

I recall a conversation a few of my friends and I had back in the fifties when Nashua was syndicated for over a million bucks. We decided then and there that it would contribute to the demise of racing.

We thought,"Who in the hell would race a horse when they could get that kind of money for breeding".

There had been syndicates for many years but mostly just among friends. When they started to sell shares in stallions that was the beginning of the end.

[strapper]

Originally Posted by Pell Mell

I recall a conversation a few of my friends and I had back in the fifties when Nashua was syndicated for over a million bucks. We decided then and there that it would contribute to the demise of racing.

We thought,"Who in the hell would race a horse when they could get that kind of money for breeding".

There had been syndicates for many years but mostly just among friends. When they started to sell shares in stallions that was the beginning of the end.

Sad but true for the most part. That, plus horses today, so dependent on medication I think, and the longetivity of the racing calendar contribute to racing's detriment.