How to start a new racetrack

[toddbowker]

State Law, not Racing Commission Rule.

Nebraska is a very conservative State as far as gambling goes. They have shot down Instant Racing, and ADWs. I was shocked they allowed Keno at the tracks, but that's about as far as they are going to let it get I'm afraid. Meanwhile all the gambling money goes to the casino in Council Bluffs.

I have been a part of the startup of Canterbury Park (twice), Prairie Meadows, Will Rogers Downs, and Colonial Downs. Have also worked on license applications for others. I did the start-up of AmericaTab from just a phone room, to making it one of the largest ADWs by the time I left, and consulted with Churchill on the startup of TwinSpires.

I have a lot of experience in start-ups.

Best advice I have for you after going through all of those. Don't do it.

Well, unless Georgia finally passes parimutuel. Atlanta would be the only market I would even attempt to build a new racetrack in now.

[highnote]

Originally Posted by toddbowker

State Law, not Racing Commission Rule.

Nebraska is a very conservative State as far as gambling goes. They have shot down Instant Racing, and ADWs. I was shocked they allowed Keno at the tracks, but that's about as far as they are going to let it get I'm afraid. Meanwhile all the gambling money goes to the casino in Council Bluffs.

I have been a part of the startup of Canterbury Park (twice), Prairie Meadows, Will Rogers Downs, and Colonial Downs. Have also worked on license applications for others. I did the start-up of AmericaTab from just a phone room, to making it one of the largest ADWs by the time I left, and consulted with Churchill on the startup of TwinSpires.

I have a lot of experience in start-ups.

Best advice I have for you after going through all of those. Don't do it.

Well, unless Georgia finally passes parimutuel. Atlanta would be the only market I would even attempt to build a new racetrack in now.

I have never done a racing startup -- unless you call the horse racing syndicate I started a startup. That was small potatoes.

I tried to raise money for a betting exchange back in 1998 after I got the idea at the Churchill Down Breeders' Cup, but the idea was at least 10 years ahead of what the U.S. market was ready for. There was no way any racing jurisdiction was going to allow exchange betting in the year 2000.

The only way a small time racetrack can be done profitably in my estimation is to find a jurisdiction that really wants to work with the track founders to make it happen. There is no point in fighting with established players. That's too much of a waste of time. Too often state commissions are a buffer between the established players and the newcomers. The barrier to entry is too difficult. Let's face it, innovation is a problem in racing. 5 and 6 horse fields racing 6 furlongs is not interesting racing.

The other problem with starting a racetrack is that there is not much money in it. The business is not scalable. How many billionaires are there than made their billions by building racetracks?

There are so many great opportunities in the world. Why reinvent the player piano?

[jimmyb]

Originally Posted by toddbowker

State Law, not Racing Commission Rule.

Nebraska is a very conservative State as far as gambling goes. They have shot down Instant Racing, and ADWs. I was shocked they allowed Keno at the tracks, but that's about as far as they are going to let it get I'm afraid. Meanwhile all the gambling money goes to the casino in Council Bluffs.

I have been a part of the startup of Canterbury Park (twice), Prairie Meadows, Will Rogers Downs, and Colonial Downs. Have also worked on license applications for others. I did the start-up of AmericaTab from just a phone room, to making it one of the largest ADWs by the time I left, and consulted with Churchill on the startup of TwinSpires.

I have a lot of experience in start-ups.
Best advice I have for you after going through all of those. Don't do it.

Well, unless Georgia finally passes parimutuel. Atlanta would be the only market I would even attempt to build a new racetrack in now.

Best advice of the thread from the voice of experience.

[highnote]

I found out that in Ohio they can hold barrel races without a permit.

It looks like permits are only needed if pari-mutuel racing is staged, but I am not certain.

It makes sense that if there is no on-track betting on the races then the races might not be governed by the pari-mutuel racetrack laws. If there is no betting then it's just a private event.

If BLD was to sell its signal to someone out of the country who wanted to buy it then the money from the sale of the signal could be used to fund the operations of the track.

I understand why the Ohio Racing Commission and other racing commissions in other states exist. There is a lot that can go wrong and there are a lot of cheaters and unscrupulous people in the world.

[JerryBoyle]

Originally Posted by jimmyb

Best advice of the thread from the voice of experience.

It's amazing to me that, given all the complaining I see throughout PA about the current state of the sport, someone proposes a thought experiment on creating a better track for horse players, and 80% of responses are immediately negative/skeptical/screaming "don't do this, idiot!". So we simultaneously think the sport is in rapid decline, but there's no way to improve?

[highnote]

Originally Posted by JerryBoyle

It's amazing to me that, given all the complaining I see throughout PA about the current state of the sport, someone proposes a thought experiment on creating a better track for horse players, and 80% of responses are immediately negative/skeptical/screaming "don't do this, idiot!". So we simultaneously think the sport is in rapid decline, but there's no way to improve?

There are samurai and there are rice pickers. The world needs both. It is dangerous and lonely being a samurai.