Doing the vacation thing

The few weeks immediately after the Triple Crown season (read: mid to late June) is normally a good time to take vacation, as things slow down in all three segments of the industry: racing (lull between Triple Crown and Del Mar/Saratoga opening), breeding (the Northern Hemisphere season has ended), and sales (2YO season ended last week, and yearling season begins next month).

Still, the one thing I like about this job is that every hour, day, week, etc. brings new challenges, stories, and perspectives, and I'm very sorry to be missing out on three such stories/perspectives this week while on holiday in North Carolina, so here's what I'll be keeping up on between bites of barbecue:

• expanded gaming issues in practically every state with racing,
• night racing at Churchill Downs, and
• the top two horses in training (Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta) racing on opposite coasts this weekend.

Regarding expanded gaming, I don't think it has helped Thoroughbred racing from an industry perspective, and I use Pennsylvania as an example. Allowance types are running for $60,000 at Philadelphia Park, but the trifecta takeout remains among the industry's worst at 30%. The purses are flush at Presque Isle and Penn National, too, but all that does is poach horsemen from other jurisdictions. So, sure, the racing product improves in Pennsylvania, but it gets worse elsewhere (Mountaineer, which has all sorts of added gaming, just cut purses 10%), and the gambling on horses product really hasn't improved at all since the takeout in Pennsylvania is still as bad as it always was.

A Philly.com op-ed noted today that state and local politicians are talking about cuts to education programs and wondered why horse owners (who rightly or wrongly are already perceived as wealthy) need to run for inflated purses while little kids miss out on music lessons.

Thoroughbred Times Senior Staff Writer Frank Angst is covering the Kentucky Senate live via Twitter as well as with prose-style updates on our home page (it failed).

The one comment he reported that I found most interesting came from Turfway Park President Bob Elliston who said that the takeout rate on VLTs would be in the 9%-10% range to compete with riverboat casinos and racinos in neighboring states (Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, and West Virginia) with such gaming. What I don't understand is why doesn't the industry lower takeout on horse racing wagers to compete with that type of gaming? I realize 10% is on the low end, but keeping the blended takeout to 15% would be like giving all players a 5% rebate. Fewer people are buying (i.e. betting on) your product, so why not lower prices?!!

Regarding night racing at Churchill, I was shocked to read all the negative comments about the track's experiment going into the June 19 event, and I'm just as shocked to read additional negative comments after the track attracted 28,000 for its experiment. Yes, it's lame that it ran out of beer and that lines at both concession stands and mutuel windows were out of control, but judging by the media reports leading up to the event you'd have thought the track would be lucky to get 15,000 (twice the average for late afternoon Friday racing) let alone 28,000, so I'm sure even Churchll was caught off guard. The track already has committed to more help and better prices for night racing take II on June 26. My vacation has kept me from the first two nights, but I'll be there for night racing take III on Thursday, July 2.

Sales Editor Pete Denk wrapped up his night racing experience nicely.

Regarding Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta, I'm excited and plan to watch both races on the road via TwinSpiresTV. The Mother Goose Stakes is the race I thought Rachel Alexandra's connections would choose assuming she trained well in June. The one-turn 1 1/8-mile configuration is a good race off the six-week layoff, and the lead time into marquee summer races such as the Coaching Club American Oaks, the Haskell Invitational Stakes, and the Alabama Stakes is ideal. I have to think the Haskell-Travers double is foremost on co-owner Jess Jackson's mind, as that would give his superstar Medaglia d'Oro filly two Grade 1 wins in August against males with a combined crowd of 100,000-plus at Monmouth Park and Saratoga Race Course. From there, they can chart a course either for older males or Zenyatta.

Speaking of the undefeated champion, she goes in the Vanity this weekend, which initially seemed ho hum when trainer John Shirreffs first mentioned that race after winning the Milady, but the Vanity is a handicap and Zenyatta has been assigned a 129-pound impost for the race, which is one-pound more than reigning Horse of the Year Curlin toted when winning the Stephen Foster Handicap (G1) last year. Carrying 129 pounds definitely makes it an interesting race, and as Garrett Gomez showed aboard Zenyatta's stablemate Life Is Sweet in the Milady, there are no gimmes at the Grade 1 level.

That last point is something I'd like to repeat: "There are no gimmes at the Grade 1 level." People who criticize the connections of horses for putting their horses in Grade 1 races need to get a grip (and I need to follow that advice, too, sometimes). Grade 1 races are the highest level you can enter. It's not up to the trainer of a superstar horse to fill races. The one-two finishers in the Acorn are both nominated to the Mother Goose but neither is running. Horses should never be penalized for the quality (or lack thereof) that shows up in a Grade 1 race.