2002 - Harness Tracks of America, Inc.

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HARNESS TRACKS OF AMERICA Executive Newsletter A daily fax and e-mail report on racing and gaming developments in North America and beyond Stanley F. Bergstein, Editor ON THE LEGISLATIVE FRONT The general manager of Rockingham Park in New Hampshire was telling media over the weekend that the track may have to close after this season in the wake of a resounding rejection of VLTs in the New Hampshire legislature. The lawmakers voted 217-130 to kill a bill that would have allowed 1,200 machines at Rockingham and 900 at each of the state’s three dog tracks. The Associated Press quoted the general manager of the Rock, Ed Callahan, as saying, “The fact is that if the legislature doesn’t want us any more, and if we can’t make it work, then Rockingham will not be there down the road.” He said he would be making recommendations to the track’s owners, “and I don’t believe they will be very rosy.” Rockingham’s business has declined by more than half in the last decade. In Florida, where there also have been precipitous declines in track business, the legislature will be asked again for VLTs. The South Florida Sun- Sentinel’s chief correspondent in Tallahassee reported in today’s edition, “Plagued by plummeting attendance and fighting for their financial life, Florida’s pari-mutuels are pushing what they say could be the answer to their sagging revenues -- video lottery.” Noting that the legislature is aware that state voters have rejected an expansion of gambling three times in the last 24 years, bureau chief Linda Kleindienst wrote, “This year, however, many track and fronton owners --along with horse and dog breeders -- are gambling that the state might be more receptive, especially since up to $1 billion of the $1.6 billion that they hope to raise would be earmarked for education.” Florida, like other states, already has been forced to make $1.3 billion in budget cuts. Legislators also are drafting a state budget that provides few new dollars for public schools and may force cuts in health, criminal justice and social services, according to the Sun-Sentinel. February 4, 2002 In Indiana, the state senate, after an hour’s debate, passed by a vote of 27-23, and sent to the House, legislation that would permit electronic pull-tab machines, similar to VLTs, at Hoosier Park and Indianapolis Downs. Influential senator Larry Borst, chairman of the Senate finance committee and considered a friend of harness racing in the past, says he is concerned that the bill does not include any provision for taxing wagering money generated by the machines. Revenue legislation must originate in the House, and the crossover date for legislation between the House and Senate is Thursday, so the fate of the measure should be known this week. In Kentucky, Kentucky.com reported a legislative press conference in which the speaker of the house, Jody Richards, was asked if state redistricting boded well for slots legislation. He said that odds for passage would be better if a bill came out of the senate first. The president of the state senate, David Williams, who also was involved in the press conference, said, “That’s a longshot,” and Richards replied, “It’s a longshot the other way, too.” In Hawaii, two bills that would have allowed legalized gambling in the state were killed by the House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs committees. One bill would have legalized stand-alone casinos on Waikiki and Kapolei, and the second measure would have provided for a casino-resort on Kapolei. DON’T MESS WITH THE FRENCH Giampaolo Minnucci, the driver of Varenne, winner of the Prix d’Amerique for the second straight time a week ago, has been fined 1% of the purse -- some $21,000 -- for causing three recalls in the race. Jean Rene Gougeon, one of France’s legendary driving heroes, had an easy solution to the problem: go American, and use a mobile starting gate.
HARNESS TRACKS OF AMERICA Executive Newsletter A daily fax and e-mail report on racing and gaming developments in North America and beyond Stanley F. Bergstein, Editor TRN REVIVED AS RTN The announcement that Roberts Communications Network is partnering with Magna Entertainment and Greenwood Racing of Philadelphia to launch Racetrack Television Network (RTN) as a subscriber satellite service for hardcore racing fans should be heartening to those thousands who last summer despaired over the demise of The Racing Network. Todd Roberts, president of Roberts Communications, said the new service was a response to the mass of people who lamented the passing of the old, and he said it will be “the best vehicle for the true player.” The service will provide up to 8 racing channels, 2 produced by Magna, 2 by Greenwood, and the others offering multiple racing with direct track signals and no editing. The Magna and Greenwood channels are likely to show 4 tracks at a time in a quad screen format with odds and other information, dissolving to a live race and then returning to the split screen format until the next race is shown. The Magna channels will, not surprisingly, feature Magna track racing, and Greenwood’s presumably will feature Philadelphia Park, Penn National properties and Freehold Raceway, owned jointly by Philadelphia Park and Penn National. The signals will be accessed by digital set-top box and small dish satellite technology, and those who have dishes that delivered the old Racing Network Direct service (not Dish Network) will be able to use their receivers without purchasing new dishes. They also will be able to access the service free until March 1, the official launch date. Roberts said the new service is technically compatible with the old TRN Direct satellite service, and that the telecast quality production by MEC and Greenwood over multiple channels “will make this service highly desirable” to fans, bettors and participants. The monthly subscription charge has not been announced, but is likely to be around $100 a month. February 5, 2002 FLAMBORO GETS WEG SERVICE Woodbine Entertainment’s Racing Network Canada, meanwhile, has expanded its scope to Flamboro Downs, which introduced telephone account betting over the weekend using Woodbine’s Horseplayer Interactive. Fans at Charlie Juravinski’s track now have the option of hooking up to the service either online or by subscribing to Racing Network Canada over satellite or cable networks and betting by phone. “Just like football and basketball, we’re taking our product to the people,” Juravinski said. “It’s got to help raise interest in the game. It will broaden our base of patronage when viewers see the ambience of the track,” Juravinski told the Hamilton Spectator, adding, “It’s a great spectacle, and that’s what it’s all about. You’ve got to move with the times.” BAY STATE SLOTS TRY -- AGAIN If you get gold stars for persistency, Democratic state representative David Flynn of Massachusetts deserves a page full. For the third time, Flynn has introduced a bill that would provide 1,500 slots to the four racetracks in Massachusetts. Bob O’Malley, COO of Suffolk Downs, told Daily Racing Form that although the state of the economy might create some progress, he was “not aware of any change in the atmosphere in the state house that would make a difference than past years,” when the bills failed. A FIRST STEP TOWARD UNITY In a major first step toward some semblance of unity, the Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) and the North American Pari-Mutuel Regulators Association (NAPRA) held a joint meeting Friday and Saturday at Lone Star Park in Dallas to discuss uniform parimutuel rules. Both ARCI president and CEO Lonny Powell and NAPRA executive director Frank Lamb expressed delight at progress made during the meeting.
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2002 - Harness Tracks of America, Inc.

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