A Look inside the mind of John Scheinman

Turf Writer, and occasional commenter on this site, John Scheinman has a very interesting video posted here on YouTube. John runs around Pimlico on a Friday afternoon and gives us a behind the scenes look at the inspiration for his writting. I really enjoyed seeing track handicapper Frank Carulli yelling on the phone. John is doing a good job of being funny, but points out so many sad things about Maryland racing. Check out the video, it makes you laugh, and as a racing fan, cry!

Maryland Updates

- According to the Baltimore Sun, Ah Day (2006 Maryland Horse of the Year) is taking a three month break from training. A problem was found in the top area of his rump during training about a month ago. This sounds like an odd injury, I wonder what is going on?

- According to trainer Mike Trombetta, Sweetnorthernsaint does not like running in the heat, so look forward to his return in the fall.

- Tickets for the 2008 Preakness will be sold August 4th and 5th at the Virgin Festival held at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.

Preakness 2008

For anyone who cares.......Magna Entertainment has unveiled the logo for the 2008 Preakness Stakes. I personly would have liked to see a horse in the logo, or maybe some additional information added to the "133". Oh well, maybe the marketing budget for the Preakness was slashed along with the purses and races. Also, don;t forget....the Preakness is "A MAGNA ENTERTAINMENT EXPERIENCE"

Less Money at Laurel this Fall

Last month, the Maryland Jockey Club and Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association announced that they were going to reduce purses and cut the stakes schedule for the remainder of the 2007, as the industry faces a $3 million shortfall in this years purse account. Today, the Maryland Racing Commission approved the fall stakes schedule for Laurel Park with 11 less stakes races and about $1.5 million less in purses. In addition, the Maryland Horse Breeders' Association decided to stop paying bonuses to Maryland-breds that win in open stakes.

The changes are as follows:

--The cancellation of 11 stakes: Charles Hadry, Gala Lil, Martha Washington, Japan Racing Association, Kattegat's Pride, Anne Arundel, Laurel Turf Cup, April Run, Stefanita, Toddler, and Steward Mitchell.

--Reduction on the purses of 16 other stakes: Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash, John Schapiro, Sonny Hine, Dave¹s Friend, Mr. Diz, Deputed Testamony, Gin Talking, Oliver's Twist, Find Handicap, All Brandy, Northern Dancer, Jennings Handicap, Geisha, Squan Song, Maryland Juvenile Filly Championship, and Maryland Juvenile Championship.

When you reduce purses for a Grade I, and cut black type races from the schedule, you are not going to have trainers knocking down the door for stalls. If you think this is bad, wait until 2008!

Running Scared

Rags to Riches was pulled up today early in her workout at Belmont. This follows her passing on the Coaching Club American Oaks due to a slight (possibly non-existent) fever. I wonder if Todd Pletcher, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith have seen the classic comedy Running Scared.

In that movie, Billy Crystal and the late Gregory Hines play two Chicago police officers that have to solve one more case before retiring. The problem is that throughout their careers, they have performed with reckless abandon, but now that they can see the end they become careful. And they learn that you can't win by being too careful.

It seems that the humans are starting to get a little too "careful" with Rags to Riches. I lament the early retirement of good horses, but this nickel and dime stuff is tiresome. If they accomplished their goal of selling her babies for $2 million each, then get her off the track and relieve us of the daily reports of her minor maladies. If they want to continue her racing career, then RACE HER just like they would race another top horse in the barn.

Now I have to find my DVD of Running Scared. I haven't watched it in a long time.

Ten Days at 10 Percent

In a bold move, the Maryland Jockey Club has announced “Ten Days at 10 Percent—Racing’s Best Bet.” During the Laurel Park summer meet (August 10-23), the takeout will be cut almost in half.

“We want to get people focused on the Maryland product during a very competitive period,” said Maryland Jockey Club President Lou Raffetto. “We hear a lot of talk about what reduced takeout can do for business and this seemed like the perfect time to experiment with the concept.”

The takeout will be 10 percent on all bets on all live races conducted at Laurel, plus the legislated percentage to be allocated to the Maryland Million Fund, resulting in a blended rate of approximately 11.4 percent.

The lower takeout is an even better deal on the trifecta, superfecta and Pick 6, for which the standard takeout rate would have been 25.75 percent. As a result, payoffs on these wagers will be 20 percent greater.

Now the big questions......Will this help increase the handle at Laurel? Will they continue this through Timonium, Laurel Winter, and Pimlico Spring meets? Will they still try to attract horse betters if a slot machine bill passes early next year?

Final question.......Will the (assumed) increase in wagers make up for the lost revenue?

Napravnik Injury Update

Delaware Park based (because she left Maryland) jockey Anna "Rosie" Napravnik, injured in a fall from her horse last Friday night at Colonial Downs.

Napravnik broke her left wrist and right pinky finger in a fall during the sixth race last Friday. Napravnik fell when her horse, Afleet Lulu, broke down.

Steve Rushing, Napravnik's agent, said Rosie, underwent emergency surgery at Union Memorial Hospital on Sunday in Baltimore, and is now resting at home in Maryland. Due to the severity of her injuries, no time table for her return has been set.

As any of the readers of this blog know, I am a huge fan of Rosie's riding. Unfortunately, she is in 6th place currently at Del Park, and this is her second major injury this year. This injury sounds pretty bad!

Get well soon Rosie

The Great Funny Cide Retired

Sackatoga Stable’s Funny Cide, winner of the 2003 Kentucky Derby and Preakness (both gr. I) and one of the most popular horses in recent years, has been retired, trainer Barclay Tagg said July 13.

Barclay Tagg also noted that Funny Cide is perfectly sound. I guess it was just time for the seven year old gelding to hang up his racing plates. Thanks for the great memories! Enjoy your time out on the farm!

Chop-Chop Returns

Jorge Chavez is coming home! My all time favorite jockey will return to the New York circuit next week. This is very exciting for me. I used to go out to Belmont to see Chavez ride, and he is the reason I am such a big racing fan. Back in the early 1990's my friends and I would be on the rail yelling "C'mon Chavez!" Throughout my college years, "C'mon Chavez" was the war cry of my friends and I, it didn't even need to be horse racing. 1st and Goal from the two yard line, I'm yelling "C'mon Chavez". In the few races I have seen him in since leaving for California, he seems to be the same old chop-chop. His aggressive style of riding is what caught my attention as a young lad at the track, but years later I still enjoy seeing him in the irons. Now, I need to figure out how I am going to get to Saratoga!

Some Things I Wanted to Share

I have come across a number of items that I wanted to share.

- Tim Woolley Racing has an entire page dedicated to the anti slaughter movement (for horses). This page has all the information about upcoming events, point / counter-point, legislation, and articles. This is a must read!

- The Baltimore Sun and the Frederick News Post have interesting opinion articles about slots in Maryland.
Both bring up great points, and are not the same old story we read everyday.


- According to Bob Magginis of Herald-Mail.com, Horse racing's decline in Maryland may be due to lack of marketing. Amen Bob, Amen!

Enjoy the reading, and enjoy Independence Day!

The "Industry"

Most of my posts are about the Maryland horse racing industry. A great deal of those posts recently are about slot machines, needed to save the industry. Let me explain to all the anonymous commenter's and e-mailers what I mean by the industry.

The Maryland horse racing industry is not the horses in the gate at Pimlico, Laurel, or Timonium. It is not the grandstands, the barns, or the facilities at the tracks. These are the things that people think about when they hear the Maryland horse racing industry. These are just the tip of the iceberg. The slot machines I so desperately want in our state will save the previously mentioned entities, as well as jobs, open space, farms, parks, industrial sites, schools, and so on.

The process starts when the owner of a farm (maybe open space that is part of the land conservation project) sends his mare to a stallion (on a different farm). Most likely, the mare owner is going to pay a driver (an industry job) to bring the mare to the stallion. The stallion farm will have at least three people (3 more jobs) around for the breeding session. The mare may hang around the breeding farm for a few weeks to make sure she is in foal. While at the farm, she and the stallion need to eat. So someone calls the feed company (more jobs) and they put the feed on a truck (another job) to make the delivery. I wonder where the feed came from? Probably another Maryland farm (more open space, and jobs). Before the mare ships back to her owner, she is checked by a veterinarian (another job, and I wonder where he went to school? maybe in Maryland). Lets speed ahead a few months. The foal is born, it is a big beautiful colt. For the first year and change, the foal hangs around eating and playing in his field. I wonder who put the fence up around the farm, or who mows the grass (more jobs). When the fine young colt begins training, the owner may send him to a different farm with a training track (many more jobs). The colt now needs shoes (another job, and did I mention that those shoes were probably made in Maryland) (more jobs), and tack (more jobs). Lets speed ahead to his racing career.

At the track, the colt has a trainer, and assistant trainer, a groom, and a few extra hands around. They also have a security guard at the gate to the barns, and one in the barn. I would say that we have about a dozen jobs at the barn alone. Then it is down to the track for a workout. You have lead ponies, a clocker, and the gate crew (a few more jobs). Now lets go to race day.

The amount of jobs on race day are too numerous to count. You have the racing secretary that puts up the race , the jockey agents getting mounts, the jockey on the horse, a starter, about a dozen assistant starters, the stewards, the riders of the lead ponies, the announcer, the clocker, the press, the handicapper, and so many more people that I am leaving out. Over in the grandstands you have the person taking tickets, the guy selling programs, the hot dog guy the beer guy and once again so many others. Assuming this fine colt wins at first asking, you need to have a photo right, add the photographer, the printer, and a host of others to the jobs listed.

I am just scratching the surface with the jobs listed above. The industry is so much more than just horses running around a track. You need to think of all the jobs and tax revenue that are part of the horse racing industry. Adding slot machines to the equation will help to create more jobs, more tax revenue, as well as saving all the jobs mentioned above. Please think about how our state will improve with slot machines. Slot machines will create new jobs, help our schools, retain open space, and revive the horse racing industry!