I have always loved watching horses and drivers competing to win. It doesn't seem to matter if you work with the horse its whole life or you simply just slapped two dollars down on him, there's no greater feeling than watching that horse cross the line first. I think the sport is one of the greatest in the world, and there was plenty who feel just as I do at the Atlantic Harness Racing Symposium this weekend.
The three day event kicked off Friday night with some brief updates from Harness Racing officials in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland. I met with Trot Magazine Editor Darryl Kaplan after the updates and we have a great discussion, along with Jim Fearneley, about trying to find a solution in the issues surrounding the absence of Doug Harkness and the Atlantic Post Calls. "Nobody knows what's going on without Doug (and APC) around" Fearneley told me and Kaplan, "It's like we've lost our communication down here (in the Maritimes)". Although I'm not a subscriber to APC, I know how big the impact without it has been. People are constantly asking me where it is, when it's coming back and more importantly, "How is Doug?". Hopefully something constructive came out of this weekend to help get a publication, whether it be Atlantic Post Calls or something else, up and running.
Probably the most interesting point, in my opinion, of the entire event was the promotion Northside Downs did in 2009. Tom Hawco explained how on the last card of the year, he and Northside's manager went around to every person in attendance and simply thanked them for coming to the track and gave them a meaningful shake of the hand. I wouldn't believe in a million years that something so easy and simplistic could have had such positive results! Hawco said people in attendance were also pleasantly surprised because "They've never been thanked by anyone for spending their money before." This approach to customer satisfaction is a wonderful tool and I think if we learn anything from the symposium, it would be to learn from what others are doing right at their tracks and do it, in some form or another, at yours - with North Sydney's being a great example.
The most interesting discussions during the entire weekend came mostly from the National Initiatives panel. Consisting of Ted Smith, Darryl Kaplan, Tom MacPhee and Scott Daniels this panel tackled some really tough questions like how Betting Exchanges are running away with our gambling dollar and the pros and cons of having (legal) Bookies - Ted gave a great example of this from his recent trip to England. Numerous other things were on the table, like how a track in Puerto Rico that only averages an $1,100 exacta pool per race, can generate anywhere from $400,000 - $500,000 a day in its Pick 6 plays.
There was plenty of discussion into how racing is conducted on the WEG circuit. A very large group of the horse people and officials who attended the symposium agreed that the Woodbine racing product is far inferior to that of other tracks across North America. Whether it be fast first quarters and then a slow second, constantly opened holes or knowing the fact that your horse has absolutely no chance at winning if he's 8th at the quarter, there was a uniform consensus that the WEG product is much less appealing than what other tracks offer. A lack of dedicated claimers at Woodbine was also discussed (zero all-claiming races on Saturday night, by the way). It's pretty discouraging when the supposed leading Harness Racing track in Canada is being out bet in Nova Scotia by Northfield Park, where a $2,500 purse is considered high. Violent moving of the arm in races is a big issue right now, but in Northfield whips are constantly hitting horses down the stretch and most times they are, what most people call it, 'carving' their mounts - but a good, action-packed race is drawing attention of fans and big bettors. Frankly, I personally would rather watch Yonkers or Meadowlands any night of the week over Woodbine or Mohawk. If you're not out and going by the half at the big tracks in the United States, then you might as well head back to the barn because there's constantly flow moving and numerous lead changes well before the race is even half way through. This was a great topic and was one that generated a lot feedback; definitely one worth looking at again.
It was great also to see what was happening in Summerside as well. The newly restored grandstand and facilities were tossed around Saturday evening as possibly being 'The Best in Canada'. With its direct connection to the adjacent Credit Union Place Sports Wellness Centre being a major asset. It means that 3,000 fans after a hockey game can walk directly from their seats in the rink to the top of the grandstand in a matter of strides. This is a great improvement in PEI Harness Racing and we are all looking forward to seeing what the Red Shores and Harness Racing PEI merge will bring to the table for the future in their province and beyond.
To end this post, I'd like to show you a little project I did while at the symposium. I went around to almost every person and asked each individual "In one sentence, what do you think should be done to help Harness Racing?" I received an overwhelming response and the answers were simply amazing! In total there were 25 answers and here's a little taste of some of those responses. The other posts are on my website.
Dan Mailman said "make a better first impression." "Strategic partnerships" was Jeff Malloy's one-liner and Tom MacPhee stressed "finding new ways of wagering". It seemed like almost everyone was on the same page, as many people told me that "working together" and "getting young people involved" was at, or near, the top of the to-do list.
The Atlantic Symposium, if anything, has sparked our imaginations and helped place everyone from each province in a united front to help save Harness Racing in our region. It was great to hear such discussions, see so many great people working together and most importantly, imagining what us people 'down east' are going to accomplish in the task of righting the ship.
Trot's Darryl Kaplan explaining pick 6 carryover of track in Puerto Rico
Event organizer Morah Kerr
Host Dan Mailman
Jack Ferguson receiving Kennedy Award from his friends at ASBA
Lee Drake's amazing presentation
Social evening and dinner
SC's Ted Smith receiving award from Scott and Diane Daniels
Tom Hawco discussing North Sydney and Northside Downs
Wayne Pike stressing importance of matinee races for youth exposure