June, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Summary of Findings Published For Environmental Sustainability in UK Racing

The summary findings and recommendations from an independent assessment of environmental sustainability across British racing and breeding were published on Tuesday.

Commissioned by the Executive Committee of British racing and funded by the Racing Foundation to help support and inform, the report was commissioned to aid in the industry's long-term planning. Produced by White Griffin, it recommends that British racing takes a 'co-ordinated, industry-wide approach' to mitigating the risks and realising the opportunities related to climate change and sustainability. Several key points covered include carbon emissions, water availability, the impact of extreme weather, and waste disposal, to commercial partnerships, supply chain management and changing consumer expectations. It also highlights assets that can help accelerate sustainability efforts, including access to extensive green space and existing land management capability. Next steps are outlined as well, which are aligned to the specific environmental issues covered, together with more general overarching recommendations on how the industry should take a 'planned and strategic' approach to addressing racing's collective challenges.

Brant Dunshea, BHA Chief Regulatory Officer and Project Executive Sponsor, said, “Racing and breeding's close relationship with our environment makes us particularly susceptible to the effects of a changing climate. This research gives us a much better understanding of the key challenges we face, and provides a useful starting point for industry leaders to think about how environmental considerations are factored into British racing's strategic planning.

“I'm grateful to White Griffin for their work on this project, and to everyone–racecourses, owners, breeders, trainers, jockeys and so many others–who contributed to the research. The findings and recommendations give us a sound basis for determining our long-term priorities and securing a sustainable future for our horses, people and businesses.”

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American Pharoah, Justify Won’t Shuttle to Coolmore Australia This Year

Triple Crown winners Justify (Scat Daddy) and American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile) will not shuttle to Coolmore Australia this year.

Justify, off to a strong start with his first 2-year-old in Europe and North America, will be represented by his first Australian 2-year-olds later this year and has two full crops to follow.

American Pharoah has five Grade I winners in the Northern Hemisphere and is making his mark in Australia with first-crop Group winners Pretty Amazing and Head of State this season, while his current juvenile crop is headed by the unbeaten stakes winner Tijuana.

However, a decision was made to rest the two stallions this year, but both should be back the following year.

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Senators Send Letter to HISA, FTC About ‘Chaotic’ Implementation Process

Four U.S. senators, Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and John Kennedy (R-LA), sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission and Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority Monday asking for clarification and explanation about HISA's ability to meet its upcoming July 1 implementation deadlines for the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA).

“The Authority publicly stated in a December 2021 press release that it will not implement the Anti-Doping and Medication Control program by the statutory deadline of July 1, 2022,” the letter said. “This deadline is statutorily required and neither the FTC nor the Authority have the authority to extend this deadline. The Authority's release also makes clear that the Authority has not submitted proposed Anti-Doping and Medication Control program regulations to the FTC in compliance with the statute. HISA required the Authority to issue the rule for Anti-Doping and Medication Control not later than 120 days before the program effective date of July 1, 2022. This deadline has passed, and it appears the Authority failed to meet the statutory requirements.”

The letter also raised questions about reports of the Authority delaying rules regarding riding crops and horseshoes, calling the implementation process 'chaotic' and as a result difficult to comply with for horsemen.

“Recent news reports also highlight that the Authority will postpone enforcement of newly approved rules regarding horseshoes and riding crop specifications, initially set to take effect on July 1, 2022 under the Racetrack Safety Program. This is also concerning because we understand the initial rules were functionally impossible for industry participants to implement due to limited supply chain availability of horseshoes and riding crops. This raises questions about what industry representatives were consulted in the drafting of the rule. And now, only one week before the rule was set to take effect, the Authority published a notice announcing a one month delay in enforcement of these rules. This chaotic implementation process and poor communication by the Authority makes it difficult for industry participants to comply with the new rules and regulations. Additionally, continuously changing implementation dates for new rules and regulations, and last-minute delays, cause more confusion and difficulty with implementation.”

The National HBPA applauded the letter Tuesday, saying in a statement, “Hardworking, day-to-day horsemen and horsewomen want safe and clean horse racing, and the Authority is failing in its duty to realize this goal. The Authority and HISA staff are populated with members who do not offer a true inclusive representation for the entire industry, and because of that we are seeing what lack of proper input from all participants causes. They are brazenly violating federal law by missing deadlines and staff are admitting in public forums that the FTC gave them permission to do so. We fully support Senator Grassley's efforts to find out why this is happening.”

TDN has reached out to both the FTC and HISA for comment.

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Letter to the Editor: `I’m Skipping the Breeders’ Cup’

I'm skipping the Breeders' Cup this year. Or, if I allow myself a slight delusion of grandeur, I'm boycotting it. This is an action–consequential in my life–that I don't take lightly, especially given that Keeneland is hosting this year's Holy Days of Obligation for people of my ilk.

I had secured my tickets–great seats to take it all in–and had planned a road trip with my wife, a would-be firster at Keeneland. But I won't attend. Here's why:

I cannot in good conscience spend my discretionary recreation and leisure money in Kentucky, whose state statutes banning a woman's right to choose are the law of that beautiful land. This comes, of course, now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that there is no federal right that protects women's ability to decide the question for themselves.

Make no mistake: I have nothing against the Breeders' Cup, though I hope they'll consider placing future events in jurisdictions that recognize bodily autonomy, along with same sex marriage and contraception–the rights that are likely to be under attack next. (Put me down for next year's red-letter November weekend, assuming it's not at Lone Star or Remington or Oaklawn or the Fair Grounds or Gulfstream.) And I certainly have nothing against Keeneland; to the contrary, the splendor and charm of that magnificent racecourse made me want in on this year's Breeders' Cup even more than usual.

I know my decision doesn't carry the weight of Major League Baseball's moving last year's All Star game from Atlanta to protest Georgia's voting issues, nor professional organizations avoiding conference venues with similar social issues. But it's something I must do.

On a small scale, everyone loses. Wallace Station and the Keeneland backstretch kitchen will forfeit the revenue that one large, appreciative racing fan would have generated, and I'll miss out on the good eats. My bourbon-drinking friends will lose out on my services as hooch mule, and the distilleries will sell less of what my grandfather used to call profit water. Old Friends will have two fewer carrot- and mint-toting visitors than it would have.

I will lose out on introducing my wife to the setting I can't or won't shut up about. I'll watch the races on television and lose intelligently on my ADW, but there's nothing like watching in person as Songbird and Beholder throw down. Racing is (much of) my life. I don't remember if I put shoes and socks on this morning, but I recall vividly my first day ever at the track, my first bet, and my first winner: the Jersey Derby at Garden State in 1975, Professor Joe in the opener, and A Musical Formal in the fourth, respectively. I walked hots at Belmont in the mid-70s, did on-air racing analysis in the mid-80s, covered the sport for a daily newspaper, and have been to more than 70 Thoroughbred tracks in the nearly 50 years I've been chasing these magnificent creatures.

These losses, mine included, constitute collateral damage from the undeclared, but unmistakable war our government has declared on half of us – more, if you count men who care about propriety and justice. My support for women's unfettered right to choose is absolute, and I'm unable to fathom why anyone would want to deprive women of that unfettered right.

I do get to make one choice, and with some wistfulness but a conscience that tells me I'm doing the right thing, I choose not to contribute to Kentucky's economy or that of any state with similarly draconian laws. Even if it means that I'll have to wait a year for an in-person Breeders' Cup.

Dave Brooks is a freelance writer and former PR professional and hot walker emeritus with a more-than-healthy love for Thoroughbred horse racing. His wife thinks he should find a new hobby, such as Parchesi.

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