In an article by the Guelph Mercury today, Perretti Farms spokesman Bob Marks has made several comments regarding some of the current glaring issues in the standardbred racing industry
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Focusing on the product in terms of wagering, Marks stated that, in some cases, what is good for horsemen and owners is not good for the wagering public. He states that a solid portion of punters wish to see more uniformity between horses' connections being paid out and gamblers being paid out.
"In other words, higher for win, place and show. That makes for more incentive to win. You'll never convince some bettors why you're paying (purses) for fifth when they're betting for first, second and third," he told the Guelph Mercury.
Addressing how the once-mighty industry has fallen, Marks states that if North American standardbred industry wants to increase its relevancy within the current legal gaming realm, maybe the industry should analyze the product, see what the consumer wants and make changes or tweaks accordingly.
"If I'm making a product and nobody's buying it, I have to say to myself, 'Why are we putting this on the floor?'" Marks was quoted as saying. "Unfortunately, nobody ever looks at it that way and says, 'Can we do anything to make this product better?'"
The article also states that horse racing accounted for about 80 per cent of the legal gambling in New Jersey -- one of North America's premier horse racing jurisdictions -- as recently as 1977. That figure fell to one per cent in 2008.
(With files from the Guelph Mercury)
To Mikey.You said it "Pro
To Mikey.You said it "Pro football has the largest amount of wagering on it by far (some legal and some illegal) and the players have an impact on the outcome albeit NOT TO THE SAME EXTENT THAT A TRAINER OR DRIVER HAS".I agree with you
In the NFL if you don't perform,you might be cut from the team.In harness racing if you don't perform you can run the horse for MORE MONEY next week!!In the NFL if a player is caught betting on the NFL he will be suspended.Not only can a trainer in harness racing influence the odds of a horse by lifting it up or dropping it in class,they can ALSO BET IT!!!!
Its this exploitation that is KILLING harness racing.
Karen Sanderson
People play the pick 3 or
People play the pick 3 or any other lottery because there is no HUMAN INTERACTION in the OUTCOME.Slot machines today are governed by a random number generator,so no one knows what the next spin will be.Pokers success can be attributed to the dealer button.This button has taken the cards out of the players hands.
Would you play lotteries if some person manually picked balls out of a box?Would you play slots if someone stood behind the machine and could alter it's out come?Would you play poker with someone that always dealt the cards?Would you bet on a sport where the participants can control the outcome,control the odds and make a bet?Probably not.
If horse racing is to survive they have to take the control out of the drivers/trainers hands.They have to force them to run.Right now they pick their spots.How does racing protect the integrity of the game when a trainer has a horse running tonight for 7500 4/5 odds and does nothing and this same horse is running next week at 27thousand and 10/1 odds.Where is a trainer going to max out his/her horse.Horse racing is a guessing game the way they have it set up now.
Karen Sanderson
In reply to People play the pick 3 or by OutOfKetchup
To Karen , I am not sure I
To Karen , I am not sure I agree with you on the partcipation issue. Pro football has the largest amount of wgarering on it by far (some legal and some illegal) and the players have an impact on the outcome albeit not to the same extent that a trainer or driver has. The sophisticated bettor is convinced there is cheating going on but more or less accepts it as fact as the chemists/trainers seem to be one step ahead of the regulators. I would like to see more transparency in terms of penalties and repeat offenders should be dealt with sternly and not slapped on the wrists like they are in some circumstances now.
One thing I would like to see implemented is more transparency in race ownership disclosure at the program and form level. If the horse is shown as owned by ABC stable and either the trainer or driver has an interest in that stable, the percentage ownership of the trainer or driver should be shown on the program.
If you look carefully at the results of a significant number of races (all else being equall) the winners usually fall into the group of who represents a significant customer of the trainer or if the trainer through ownership in the horse has a greater vested interest because of the sharing of the purse not just the training or driving fee.
Mike Glatt
It is like a breath of fresh
It is like a breath of fresh air to be able to read comments like Bob Marks'. The current business model of racing just does not work. It needs to be completely revamped and re-introduced.
This can be done with very little cost by going to a school like the University of Western Ontario's famed Ivey School Of Business and asking their marketing professor's to launch a serious long hard look at racing's current business model, which simply is not working and for their students to come forward with a brand one. Numerous University Marketing Department's could participate with prizes awarded to the absolute best business plan submitted. Of course this might involve cash payments to the respective Universities but with all tracks participating it would be a mere pittance compared to what one well respected Marketing Firm would charge and quite honestly we would end up doing the same old same old and getting the same old same old.
The time to do this is now.
Brian Hancox
The big problem with the
The big problem with the industry is in fact the competition for the consumers "lotto dollar". If you want people to buy or use something you have to make it accessible. In today's world the accessibilty to a lottery ticket/scratch ticket comes at virtually every corner store and the comes if the form of a no brain decision (just hand over the money). The same applies to slots where there is no decision making just push the button or pull the handle. The average Joe or Sally also has the feeling that the big prize is just around the corner and a $1 million dollar win is quite possible (even though it isn't). The true horse player treats the wagering as an intellectual challenge where you are playing against the other bettors and managing risk. The Joe or Sally's don't want any part of that. Reality says if you had a National distribution network (corner store network) where you could buy a ticket and pick the daily pick 6 or 7 and be rewarded with a potential big payoff now you got something.
People wouldn't care necessarily about the race but they would blindly put money into it if the payoff was there. How many people play a pick 3 lottery ticket with the hopes of maybe winning $100.(a lot) Just imagine if they could win $100,000.
Mike Glatt
Well done Mr. Marks you hit
Well done Mr. Marks you hit the nail on the head. The disconnect between harness racings "victims" er ah customers(the betting public), and the "insiders|"(owners, trainers, drivers, grooms) makes the betting pubic not knowing whether to laugh or puke!
In reply to Well done Mr. Marks you hit by Dr Wayne Robinski
Pretty much sums it up.
Pretty much sums it up. While the lottery and casino gambling has hurt Harness Racing it cannot be the sole reason for decline. There is a disconnect and no real effort to be innovative or to change with the times.
At some point you have to look at the product and wonder why bettors are leaving with their cash firmly in hand.