Trainer Lindsay Schultz’s first day at any racetrack was the 2006 Breeders’ Cup World Championships. She was a freshman at the University of Louisville in the Equine Industry Program, and Churchill Downs hosted the year-end championship event. Her friend (and later roommate) Liz Crow, who is now a bloodstock agent, invited her to go with her family.
Month: January 2023
Understanding Online Casino And Poker Room Bonuses
Casino bonuses are when a casino offers a bonus in the form of free money or chips to players. These bonuses are used to entice new players to come into the casino and play their favorite games of chance. These bonuses are also given to current players to thank them and to encourage them to return to play again at another time.
Casinos offer the bonuses in two separate forms, the first deposit bonus and the loyalty bonus.
The First Deposit Bonus
A first deposit bonus is when the casino gives the player money to thank them for joining as a playing member. This casino bonus is most often paid after the player has signed up and paid their very first balance into their casino account. In some instances, when the player makes an initial deposit the casino matches the deposit. The matching bonus does have a limit, which is most often set at one hundred dollars. At other times the bonus may a percentage of the amount the player deposits.
Percentage deposits rarely exceed a maximum of fifty percent of the player’s deposit total. These percentage deposits may also require a minimum deposit of two hundred fifty dollars or better. Of course the deposit amounts and the matches put forth by the casino will vary from one casino to another. Casino bonuses also tend to change on occasion.
The Loyalty Bonus
Loyalty bonuses are given to casino clientele as a gesture of appreciation for the continued patronage of the player. Usually, these loyalty bonuses are given out on the first deposits made in any given month. The percentage may be a fixed percentage, or may increase slightly with continued month by month player loyalty. Loyalty bonuses can also have a lower percentage per bonus, but the bonus would be applied to every deposit made in the month.
In exchange for the loyalty bonus, the casino has expectations of the player. The player must agree to and abide by all casino terms and regulations regarding conduct, accuracy of personal information, and the conditions which apply when cashing in the player’s chips.
If a player accepts a bonus, they are expected to fulfill a wager through requirement. A wager through requirement is a clause which requires the player to bet a minimum amount of money before they can qualify to receive the bonus. This information is usually found in the casino’s terms and conditions statement.
Letter To The Editor: Laurel Park Not Economically Feasible As Home Of The Preakness
The following is in response to a Letter to the Editor from Martin Chamberlin of Bluemont, Va., advocating for Laurel Park to become the permanent home of the Preakness.
To the editor:
Laurel Park is not a suitable home for the Preakness Stakes. Mr. Chamberlain mentions MD bill 897, which did require project progress reports from the Maryland Stadium Authority (MSA), but he fails to state that bill also required the Maryland Economical Development Corporation (MEDCO) do a feasibility study on Laurel Park with an eye toward possible purchase of Laurel by the state of Maryland. The reason the legislature wanted the MEDCO feasibility study on Laurel Park is that The Stronach Group does not want to pay $40 million in federal capital gains tax on state funds for construction at Laurel. The only way to avoid that tax liability is for the state to own the property.
That MEDCO feasibility study found that the foundation of the Laurel grandstand has significant problems. Also that the grandstand roof, HVAC, plumbing, and electrical system are in “poor” or “bad” condition and require significant repair or replacement. The stable area, including dormitories where stable workers live, were recommended for demolition by consultants.
Actually, the only structure on the Laurel property MEDCO says can and should be saved is the historic saddling paddock that Mr. Chamberlin wants to tear down and replace with a new paddock and walking ring with tiered viewing stands. MEDCO suggests the current paddock should be placed on the National Register of Historic Places “for its representation of a distinctive architectural typology.”
The MEDCO study may be found here.
Mr. Chamberlin also incorrectly states that MD bill 897 “permits a grand vision for a new Preakness home at Pimlico Race Course, authorizing the issuing of bonds, but contingent on agreements between the Maryland Jockey Club, LifeBridge Health, the City of Baltimore and the stadium authority.” The Racing and Community Development Act, which became law in 2020, already did all those things.
All agreements between the MJC, LifeBridge, and the MSA are already in place, including the agreement for The Stronach Group to lease back Pimlico – nothing contentious despite what Mr. Chamberlin incorrectly assumes. The Racing and Community Development Act authorizes $375 million in funding from a combination of casino and lottery funds as well as state backed construction bonds. $155 million of those funds were dedicated to construction at Laurel, with the remaining $220 million dedicated to Pimlico to cover not just the racing portion but also community use portions as well.
But whether The Stronach Group maintains ownership of Laurel Park, or sells it to the state, the costs of turning Laurel into a home for the Preakness are exorbitantly prohibitive – well beyond the original $155 million provided in the Racing and Community Development Act.
Laurel Park's grandstand was built in 1911, before wetlands laws, on Patuxent River Basin swampland. Parts of the Laurel Park property are now protected wetlands, including the Laurel Park infield, therefore unavailable for use. About every 20 years the racing oval must be reconstructed because the swamp keeps trying to reclaim it. The most recent track reconstruction was done just last year, and before that in 2004. The Paulick Report published several articles about it last year, including the information on how many horses died before management decided to rebuild instead of haphazard patching. How is a racing oval that sinks into a swamp requiring major reconstruction, costing tens of millions of dollars, every 20 years or so economically feasible?
Another economic reality Mr. Chamberlin does not seem to be aware of is that Baltimore is an independent city with its own government, tax base, etc. Baltimore can not afford to lose the more than $50 million in economic impact from the Preakness. The City of Baltimore has fought long and hard to keep the Preakness in Baltimore.
Investments both public and private have already been made in the revitalization of the Park Heights neighborhood, and that neighborhood revitalization project is still ongoing. Mr. Chamberlin simply has not done his homework. Perhaps he should consider reading the Baltimore Sun in addition to The Paulick Report if he intends to involve himself in Baltimore and Maryland politics.
It should also be noted that the City of Laurel does not have the amenities required to host a Preakness attendance but Baltimore, a major city instead of a small suburb, does.
Diane Hain
Pikesville, Maryland
If you'd like to submit a letter to the editor, please send it to info @ paulickreport.com along with your name, home state, and relationship to horse racing (owner, fan, horseplayer, etc). Letters are subject to editing for accuracy or clarity.
The post Letter To The Editor: Laurel Park Not Economically Feasible As Home Of The Preakness appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Another Horse Mix-Up In New Mexico: Trainer Justin Evans Fined $15,000
Trainer Justin Evans has been fined $15,000 by the board of stewards at Sunland Park in New Mexico after it was discovered that two horses were tattooed under incorrect names, according to a ruling posted on the Association of Racing Commissioners International website.
Both Aim Happy and Spirita were purchased at the 2018 Barretts 2-year-olds in training sale at Del Mar. Aim Happy, a bay daughter of Astrology, was a $10,000 purchase, while Spirita, a bay daughter of Ghostzapper, was an $18,000 buy.
Facts presented at a hearing on Jan. 11, 2023, include that Evans was present at the sale when both horses were purchased. He assisted in the purchase of the Ghostzapper filly (Spirita) for buyer UKUSA Stables, and was the trainer of record for both fillies at the time they were tattooed.
Spirita was mistakenly tattooed as “Aim Happy,” while Aim Happy was mistakenly tattooed as “Spirita.”
Equibase results have been adjusted: Aim Happy, who raced as “Spirita,” has only run once, finishing sixth in a maiden special weight race at Zia Park on Oct. 1, 2018, while Spirita, who raced as “Aim Happy,” has run 12 times, winning twice to earn $27,605. Her most recent race was in 2020.
Larry Nichols, who races under the name UKUSA Stables, discovered the error, according to Izzy Trejo, executive director of the New Mexico Racing Commission. Nichols bred the mare he thought was Spirita but was told the resulting foal's DNA test did not match with the dam being by Ghostzapper. He investigated further and found out the real Spirita was a riding horse in Washington state and made a deal with the owner to buy her back.
Nichols now owns both Spirita and Aim Happy, Trejo said.
Stewards fined Evans $15,000 under the trainer responsibility rule; the trainer has until Jan. 24 to appeal the decision.
This is the second time Evans has been involved in a case of mistaken identity in New Mexico; in 2021, Evans laid blame in part with the racetrack and the horse identifier for two horses – Extremely Wicked and Square Root – running in each other's saddle towels at the Downs at Albuquerque. The race was won by the horse wearing the number nine saddle towel, which was supposed to be Extremely Wicked, while the number six horse, who was supposed to be Square Root, was third. Back at the test barn however, officials realized that Square Root was actually the winner and wearing the wrong number.
In that instance, which Evans blamed on ineffective equipment used by the paddock horse identifier, the trainer was handed a 15-day suspension and $5,000 fine. That penalty was influenced by the trainer's regulatory history: the public-facing Thoroughbred Rulings database shows 67 items under Evans' name since 2007, but presiding steward David Hooper told the Paulick Report in 2021 that Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) database available to stewards shows 144 violations, including transfer of violations between jurisdictions and originals. In the case of the Thoroughbred Rulings database, not every item is a separate ruling, as they are notices to the licensee and therefore include acknowledgements of a fine being paid. The public-facing database also includes all types of rulings, including minor offenses like forgetting a set of silks, and does not include non-Thoroughbred rulings.
“This is the 61st year I've worked in this business,” Hooper said in 2021. “I've never seen a record like that. It was not in the ruling, but it was a very aggravating factor that someone has that much contempt for rules and regulations, in our consideration.”
Evans has been licensed as a trainer since 1999 and is a multiple stakes-winning conditioner. He was 40th in national trainer rankings by wins in 2022.
The post Another Horse Mix-Up In New Mexico: Trainer Justin Evans Fined $15,000 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
