The Racing and Gaming Conference at Saratoga is just around the corner, and organizer Patrick Brown is looking forward to another agenda that will make attendees think critically about the issues facing the racing and gaming worlds right now.
The event, scheduled to take place Aug. 14-16 at the Saratoga Hilton in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., features a range of panel discussions examining everything from downstate casino expansion to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority to harness racing's future.
Brown, attorney and co-founder of Brown & Weinraub, took over organization of the conference ahead of the 2021 edition. At first, he said, he sculpted the topics based around what he wanted to learn as a horse owner and a fan of racing and gambling. Now, he's trying to open things up to broader topics and less geographically-focused speakers.
The conference begins Aug. 15 with a panel focused on the future of casino expansion in New York City, which will feature not only attorneys who deal with casino regulation, but also New York Assemblyman Gary Pretlow and Frank Carone, former chief of staff for New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Brown, who will be moderating the panel, believes the diverse perspectives of panelists with different professional backgrounds will make for a unique opportunity to examine the impact of zoning and land use restrictions as well as market and legal forces.
The opening day's agenda also includes panels looking at technology and gaming, consolidation of track and gaming ownership, and tribal digital gaming. One discussion that may interest racing fans will focus on the implications of private property exclusions for tracks and casinos through the lens of the Bob Baffert/New York Racing Association case.
HISA has been a popular topic for the event since it became law at the end of 2020. A discussion of its status on the Aug. 15 schedule includes state commission representatives from Louisiana (which has continued its legal fight against the Authority), Florida, and California.
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“How has this transition to a more prominent federal role impacted how they do their jobs and how they manage to maintain the integrity of their own regulatory structure while they're trying to interact and interface with the federal rules?” said Brown “It's really, really confusing right now for the consumer of these regulations.
“I think most of the people in the business want to comply with the regulations but they're having a hard time figuring out what the rules are these days. As a horse owner it's particularly nerve-racking because you're ultimately responsible if the trainer doesn't read the reg the right way.”
Computer-assisted wagering has become a more central topic for trade media and racetrack management in recent years as bettors become more aware of the impacts of wagering from large, algorithm-driven wagering syndicates on the odds they get out of the gate.
“NYRA has taken some steps to be responsive to this issue — I think more, frankly, than other racetracks in this country,” said Brown. “This issue in particular is still in the shadows. Folks don't come forward to talk about it. We're not going to break any news here but we're hoping to explain what this is and how it impacts the average horse racing fan.”
Brown is also looking forward to an Aug. 16 panel titled 'Historical Horse Racing Machines: The Tail Wagging The Horse?' HHR is still not permitted in New York and would face numerous legal hurdles before it could happen there, but Brown wonders if it could be a net positive for horse racing.
“The typical, traditional kind of knee-jerk reaction is it's a competitive form of wagering that's going to cannibalize wagering on live racing. There's certainly a logic to that, but it's not necessarily true,” said Brown. “One of the things we're going to talk about is, how has historical racing impacted wagering on live racing in the places it's already established? One of the things it may be is a gateway to get more younger people thinking about the Racing Form and thinking about wagering on live races. I don't know if that's actually happening or will happen, but it's certainly worth talking about.”
The event opens Aug. 14 with a welcome reception at the Adelphi Hotel. Conference sessions take place Aug. 15 and 16, with an afternoon at the Spa Veranda providing a racing backdrop for attendees to continue discussions at the track.
Registration for the conference is available online and there is an advance rate on offer until Aug. 13. The full agenda is available here.
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