Getting them to bet

Some good discussion has erupted on the web in recent days regarding the best way to turn casual visitors into investors in the industry (as breeder, owner, or bettor).

Churchill Downs's Downs After Dark promotion, which attracted more than 85,000 people to the Louisville track for three dates of night racing during the spring-summer meet, has served as the impetus for the revival of this age-old discussion.

Most casual observers noted a younger crowd but anecdotally commented that it didn't appear that many of those people were gambling. "I didn't see many people holding Forms or programs," read one comment.

These are fair comments, but no different than the ones I would make when observing the crowds at Keeneland Race Course or Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, but this stereotype that the younger beautiful people who are there to look pretty don't bet is unfounded. I know people who light cigars with $100 bills, use Marcassin Chardonnay as salad dressing, and mix mimosas using Dom Perignon who are uncomfortable betting more than $5 a race, and I know other people who make less than me (which is saying a lot coming from a journalist) who go all-in on every race and would rather bet $100 across than spend a night at the Ritz Carlton.

Jessica Chapel wrote an excellent send up of this type of stereotyping in her "Women: Get Some for Your Racetrack."

What I take from all this, is that racetracks should make no assumptions about what the people they get to the track will do when they get there. Rather, racetracks are right to work on getting them there and then let your core fans sell the core product.

Terry Finley is onto this idea with his FATE Initiative (Find a Thoroughbred Enthusiast). Racing is great, and it gets people excited when they watch races such as the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands on television, but it can be an intimidating experience when you're on track, which is where the enthusiast comes in.

To that end, Downs After Dark was a huge success based on the stories I heard of Gold Room members bringing "entourages" to the track with them for the races. Gold Room members bet more than $100,000 a year, so these are serious players who hopefully help dull the intimidation factor by introducing new fans to the handicapping and wagering process. Las Vegas does a great job of selling the high roller lifestyle, so why not appeal to the casual horse fans in the same way?

I bring friends and novice race fans to the track all the time (or try to), and I do three things to help them enjoy the experience and get comfortable with betting:

1. Get them to invest in my pick N tickets. This is a low-cost but high-risk way to keep them interested for a few races (assuming we advance) while giving them the chance at a much better payoff than if they had bet horses to show.
2. That said, there's nothing wrong with getting n00bs to bet to show. Just as the above is low-cost and high-risk, the show parlay is low-cost and low-risk. My friends and I once ran a show parlay from an initial $10 each to more than $125 each. We had a blast for it, and 11-to-1 is a lot better than churning 1-to-2 ($3 payoff) over and over again.
3. There is a limit to how fun show betting can be, and the thing I refuse to let anyone in my "entourage" ever do is bet more than one horse to place or show. I'm amazed at how many people at the track will bet 3 horses to show, watch two of them come in, and then be crushed when they lost money or barely broke even. I would never want to encumber a fun day (or night) at the track with too much education about the nuances of betting, but the track needs to put some basic information out there, and betting multiple horses to show should be listed as a no-no.

The other thing I noticed from reports and pictures of night racing at Churchill Downs is that the grandstand filled for the races themselves. People went to the apron boxes, seats, etc. to watch the race. This in turn makes Churchill personal seat licenses more valuable since you can sell tickets to more than just the Derby, Oaks, and occasional Breeders' Cup. Yes, most people came for the party and wouldn't have been there had post time been five hours earlier, but the fact is they were there and when they were there they were watching the races live.

That type of attention makes the idea of breeding and owning more appealing. Who wouldn't want to lead their horse into the winner's circle in front of a crowd like that under the light? Who wouldn't want to bring their friends to the racetrack to watch a colt produced by the broodmare in his/her backyard?

In all, I think glamorizing the event, as Churchill did with Downs After Dark and as Saratoga, Keeneland, and Del Mar have seemingly always done, will do more for the vibrancy of racing long-term than adding slots to racetracks ever will, which I'll address later this week.