Value Tech Blog

ESPN has been slamming the current state of horse racing lately. 

Gary West: Chaotic state of horse racing – ESPN
http://espn.go.com/horse-racing/story/_/id/8122864/chaotic-state-horse-racing

If rules and regulations changed from state to state for each sport, havoc would ensue. Or to look at it another way, the result would be horse racing.

For just a moment, allow your imagination to wander into such a chaotic world. It wouldn’t go there willingly, of course. You would never banish your imagination to such a place, but send it there for just a moment, for a glimpse. Imagine, for example, an NFL in which each team’s state regulatory agency, its football commission, made its own rules, handed out penalties and determined eligibility.

Imagine an NFL in which each team’s state regulatory agency … made its own rules, handed out penalties and determined eligibility.

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This is remarkable given all the ‘doom and ,gloom in the media about horse racing. 

Penn National Handle Up Fourth Straight Month

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/70985/penn-national-handle-up-fourth-straight-month

Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course reported double-digit increases in pari-mutuel handle on and off track for the fourth consecutive month in June.

Handle generated on site on live races was up 15.07% from the comparable 17 racing dates in 2011, while export handle on the Penn National product jumped 39.3% ($14.38 million from $10.3 million) from June 2011, officials said.

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Colonial Downs Cancels Sunday Card
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/70949/colonial-downs-cancels-sunday-card

Due to yesterday’s severe storm and current power outage, Colonial Downs has canceled its live race card for Sunday, July 1. Saturday’s card was discontinued after the fourth race when strong winds, rain, and lightning hit the New Kent area for the third time in six days.

Posted via email from Michael Pizzolla On ValueCapping™, Horse Racing, And Technology

Charles Town Cancels Sunday Card
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/70919/charles-town-cancels-sunday-card

Due to anticipated heat in the region and temperatures expected to reach the mid-to-upper 90’s, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races has canceled its afternoon card scheduled for July 1.  

Posted via email from Michael Pizzolla On ValueCapping™, Horse Racing, And Technology

Racing feeling the heat, literally. 

Cancellations, adjustments, as tracks, horsemen prepare for heat – Thoroughbred Times
http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/national-news/2012/06/29/cancellations-adjustments-as-tracks-horsemen-prepare-for-heat.aspx

With record high temperatures looming, racetracks and horsemen across the South, Ohio Valley, and Mid-Atlantic regions are preparing for weekend racing, with several tracks canceling programs, some modifying their schedules, and horsemen planning to take extra precautions if needed.

Posted via email from Michael Pizzolla On ValueCapping™, Horse Racing, And Technology

This is going to be a battle, with strong opinions on both sides. 

Quest to Ban Race-Day Salix Called ‘Insanity’

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/70918/quest-to-ban-race-day-salix-called-insanity

During a June 29 meeting that showed the battle over race-day furosemide is escalating, supporters ripped their opponents and vowed to take their case—that the medication is good for the racehorse—to the public.

It was no surprise speakers at a “Truth About Lasix” forum hosted by the National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association support the anti-bleeding drug also known as Salix, but their comments clearly took the argument to a new level. They pulled no punches in their characterization of those trying to phase out or ban Salix.

Posted via email from Michael Pizzolla On ValueCapping™, Horse Racing, And Technology

CHRB Taking Longer Look at Exchange Wagering
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/70896/chrb-taking-longer-look-at-exchange-wagering

Love it or hate it, exchange wagering seems to be getting all the scrutiny it can handle from the California Horse Racing Board. Nearly two years after the concept was signed into law, the board decided to delay implementation during its meeting June 28.

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Evening Cards for Remainder of Churchill Meet
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/70864/evening-cards-for-remainder-of-churchill-meet

Churchill Downs officials will adjust post times and race exclusively in the evening for the final three days of the 2012 spring meet due to looming near-record triple-digit heat in the forecast for Louisville, the track announced June 27. The first race on the June 29, 30, and July 1 cards will be 6:30 p.m. EDT. Churchill decided to cancel the June 28 nine-race program because National Weather Service forecasters were calling for a high of 103 with a southwest wind of 5-15 mph and gusts up to 26 mph

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Churchill cancels Thursday card because of heat
http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/06/26/2869592/churchill-cancels-thursday-card.html

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Churchill Downs has canceled Thursday’s race card because the temperature is expected to be around 100 degrees.

Track President Kevin Flanery said in a statement on Tuesday that Churchill consulted with the National Weather Service before deciding to cancel racing, and would continue to do so for the three remaining race days – Friday through Sunday – of the spring meet. The weather service expects highs around 100 all three days.

Posted via email from Michael Pizzolla On ValueCapping™, Horse Racing, And Technology

Interesting how a horse race, in this case the Illinois Derby, brings people together. The Illinois Derby should remain as part of the Kentucky Derby qualification process 

Dick Duchossois: Arlington Chairman Dick Duchossois at center of Illinois Derby debate – chicagotribune.com
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/horseracing/ct-spt-0624-side-arlington-hawthorne–20120624,0,7472087.story?track=rss

An intriguing sub-plot in the Arlington-Hawthorne squabble involves Arlington International Racecourse Chairman Dick Duchossois, by far the biggest stockholder in Churchill Downs Inc.

Although Duchossois has a 31.8 percent share and controls three of the 11 seats on Arlington’s parent company’s board of directors, he focuses on Arlington and has no formal role in running the Louisville facility. The tracks merged as a business entity in 2000.

Now, the decision to exclude the Illinois Derby from the list of Kentucky Derby qualifying races flies in the face of a joint statement Duchossois and Hawthorne chief Tom Carey issued in April after they finally settled some lingering legal disputes.

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