2002 - Harness Tracks of America, Inc.

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
POMPANO IN MAJOR SIMO PACT
Pompano Park announced this morning that it had
reached accord with Gulfstream Park to exchange
simulcast signals daily, starting Sunday at Pompano
and Monday at Gulfstream, and continuing
through the close of Gulfstream’s current season
April 24. Dick Feinberg, Pompano’s general manager,
called the agreement “a big win for south
Florida horse racing fans. They can now come to
Pompano, day or night, and bet on thoroughbreds
or harness horses and go to Gulfstream and do
the same.” Scott Savin, Gulfstream’s president
and GM, called the joint simulcasting venture “productive
for both tracks by affording horse racing
fans the convenience of easily accessible locations
to enjoy their favorite sport.” Pompano will simulcast
Gulfstream races Wednesday through
Sunday, and Gulfstream will simulcast Pompano
and other leading harness tracks on Mondays and
Tuesdays, its simulcast-only days, and also as part
of its live thoroughbred racing and simulcast cards
Wednesday through Sunday. There will be no admission
charge at either Gulfstream or Pompano
for the simulcast-only programs.
A LATE WORD ON BUTE
It’s highly questionable if trainers will pay much
attention to it, but an Ohio State study of phenylbutazone,
better known as Bute, reports that heavy
use of the popular pain killer may cause more problems
than it solves. The study, conducted by four
vets at Ohio State’s Orthopedic Research Laboratory,
was published in the American Journal of
Veterinary Research and reported today in Blood-
Horse Interactive. It shows that Bute and other
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications, also
known as NSAIDS, might be detrimental to joint
cartilage regeneration in horses. In simple
terms, drugs that suppress inflammation
might also slow healing.
March 22, 2002
One of the researchers, Dr. Alicia Bertone, noted
that in past years the veterinary community used
Bute “like it was water” in large quantities for long
periods of time, and that the findings of the study
should drive the industry to develop painkillers that
do not further harm the horse’s systems. “The
take-home message,” Dr. Bertone said, “is that
Bute is not an innocuous drug, and horses that
don’t need it shouldn’t be on it.”
KY SLOTS GOING, GOING....
The prospects for track slots in Kentucky are not
yet dead, but are on life support, and it may be
shut down any moment. Democrats in the House
want Republicans in the Senate to assure them
they will allow a vote, and that is not about to happen,
since the Senate president is actively working
against the bill, according to the Louisville
Courier-Journal. The House leaders will not force
their members to vote on the issue without assurance
of 20 votes in the 38-member Senate, and
the chief sponsor of the House bill calling for slots,
Rep. Jim Callahan, said he thought it unfair for
the Senate president, David Williams, “to dictate
how 37 other members can vote....he should let
the other members of the Senate decide for themselves.”
Alex Waldrop, president of Churchill
Downs, said “We’re going to keep talking with legislators.
This is too important an issue for the
horse industry and the people of Kentucky.” Only
nine days remain in the current session of the legislature.
MORE HONORS FOR NIXON
USTA president Corwin Nixon, who served as minority
House leader in Ohio from 1978 to 1992,
has received more honors in the Buckeye state.
Warren county, where he was elected commissioner
in 1947, has included Corwin on a Distinguished
Citizens Wall located in a new administration
building. He already has a
bridge and nursing home named for him.