Letters To The Editor: James Gagliano

In Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) President Ed Martin's letter to the Thoroughbred Daily News on Feb. 2, he once again defends the status quo with few facts and no real solutions to racing's lack of national uniformity in rules and regulations for safety and medication control.

Ed has been defending the status quo for years. In 2018, and again in 2020, Ed testified before Congress against the then-forerunner to the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Act, saying it was “a radical and unnecessary federalization of a state responsibility that is exercised effectively.”

Exercised effectively?

Clearly, he chooses to ignore the March 2020 federal arrests, and ultimate convictions, of the 27 trainers and veterinarians who, incidentally, operated worry free for years under Ed's racing commissioners. He chooses to ignore that our industry is no longer operating in a vacuum, that our equine athletes have advocates outside the racetrack and they have influence with state and federal legislators. Finally, Ed chooses to ignore that HISA has been working hard, and for the most part cooperatively, with states and racetracks to implement HISA rules.

Ed needs to be reminded, again, how we got here.

Over decades, regulators have repeatedly “promised” to clean up horse racing. There have been countless calls for rule uniformity since I can remember. Virtually every industry conference has touted the future as having standardized nationwide rules with more vigorous enforcement. The concept is nothing new, but because of HISA, this is the first time the goal is truly within our grasp.

The Racing Medication and Testing Consortium did a lot of good for the industry, but the nationwide reform we thought would come from it never materialized. I had hopes for the National Uniform Medication Program (NUMP), but once again, the regulatory authorities of different jurisdictions were unable to enact the same rules and regulations across the nation. In 2020, The Jockey Club developed a scorecard for the NUMP to see if it was effective. It wasn't. Only nine states had fully adopted all four phases of the program; 16 states had adopted only one. Mid-Atlantic states joined forces over the years to come into compliance with NUMP, but most other regions did not.

Ed has long suggested that a federal racing compact among the state regulators is all that we need. He conveniently omits that there already is a compact, and it has attracted virtually no support from the membership of the ARCI. With the ability of individual states to opt out of rules they do not favor, the compact all but guaranteed the same morass of inconsistent and conflicting rules among the states so many key industry participants have long wanted to correct.

Ed wrote, “It's hard for some of us who have been around for a while to watch as this situation could have been avoided.” In a way, he's right about that point. HISA would never have had an adverse legal decision if the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act had never become law. But, for those of us who want change, Ed's worn-out proposals to “get everyone in a room and come up with an alternative approach to avoid the endless and costly litigation” reflects an inability to either understand or appreciate that there is a divide in this industry between those who savor the illusionary comfort of the status quo and those who know that if racing is going to truly survive it must make safety of our athletes and integrity of our game our preeminent goals.

Perhaps Ed has been fighting against HISA since the beginning because he's afraid people will realize that the ARCI failed its mission. According to ARCI's website, it sets “…international standards for racing regulation, medication policy, drug testing laboratories, totalizator systems, racetrack operation and security, as well as off-track wagering entities.” So, HISA is making medication regulation standards uniform and meaningful, something ARCI has never been able to do.

It is abundantly clear to anyone inside or outside of racing that our current state-based anti-doping, medication control and safety rule structure is not equipped to create national uniformity and set high standards for safety and integrity.

As we learned in March of 2020, it took the resources of the FBI and outside investigators to get the job done and bring justice to the blatant cheaters manipulating racing, while at the same time, laying bare the incompetence of the regulators that were supposed to be protecting the sport. The Jockey Club has long supported the creation of a nationwide approach grounded in federal law because we realize that horse racing, as a national sport, cannot survive if history keeps repeating itself and national uniformity is never achieved.

Yet once again, Ed Martin is defending the status quo. Don't let him rewrite a history that he deservedly owns.

James L. Gagliano, President and COO, The Jockey Club

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Letters to the Editor: Gary West On Flightline

I don't think I've ever witnessed such runaway adulation. It was as though the commentators and analysts joined in a competition to see who could erect the highest pile of praise, and when somebody said Flightline might be the greatest horse of all-time–well, it was then that my head struck my desk under the avalanche of hyperbolic plaudits.

And a day later, when his owners announced he would be retired, I immediately realized I couldn't vote for Flightline as Horse of the Year. That's why I'm writing: to explain my position. It comes down to this: I'm not going to reward people–Flightline's ownership group in this case–who put their own interests ahead of the sport's. That's exactly what these owners did. They have the prevailing values of a pocket calculator. When self-interest poses as sport, it's meretricious. Even airbrushed by apologists, it's ugly.

One of the owners, trying to rationalize the decision, said Flightline had nothing left to prove. Really? After just six races, he has nothing left to prove? Did he prove he could transfer his talent to the grass, as did Secretariat and Dr. Fager? Did Flightline prove he could defeat quality competition while carrying 130 or more pounds, as Assault and Spectacular Bid and many other truly great racehorses have done over the years? Did Flightline prove he could successfully take on an international field that included the world's best and most accomplished performers, as did Curlin, Tiznow and Cigar? No, no and no. In truth, Flightline was retired with a great deal left unproven.

When analyzed in a more sober moment, after the sport and its mouthpieces have taken a few of the 12 steps, it becomes clear that Flightline did not prove he's one of the all-time great racehorses. Perhaps he possessed great potential and almost certainly great talent. He might have been the most talented horse based in North America since Ghostzapper. But many horses in recent years have accomplished more, much more, than Flightline. And so he did not prove himself a great racehorse. Nobody can point to an array of Flightline accomplishments that collectively and indisputably shine with that unmistakeable glow of greatness. In the Classic he defeated a very good older horse, Olympiad, and a very good 3-year-old, Taiba, but Flightline's foremost competition, Epicenter, was injured before completing a half-mile. And in the Pacific Classic, Flightline defeated another very good older horse, Country Grammer, who had peaked six months earlier and hadn't won since. Flightline also defeated Speaker's Corner and Happy Saver, of course, but does that make him one of the greatest of all-time?

Nothing left to prove? After only six races? Really? After only four stakes victories? Really? That's either shamefully disingenuous or stunningly stupid.

In my view–and I own horses–an owner has three responsibilities. First and foremost, an owner has a responsibility to the horse; he's responsible for the horse's health and safety and care, but also for giving the athlete the opportunity to fulfill its racing potential. Second, an owner is responsible to the sport itself, its traditions, history and integrity. And an owner is responsible to horse racing's fans, for without them, the sport needs to realize, there's nothing. The owners of Flightline, in my view, betrayed all three responsibilities.

Horse racing and its fan base have been shrinking for many years. The sport, though, treats this as an enigma it doesn't want to solve because, well, truth is painful. But owners and breeders continue to shunt the sport's stars off the stage before they ever have an opportunity to utter their best lines, and with them go fans' loyalties. Flightline is only the latest example.

It just goes on and on and on, this obstinate journey toward self-destruction. Whenever owners yield to avarice and whenever they focus on the sales ring rather than the racetrack, the sport shrinks a little more. And horse racing will continue to shrink into insignificance if its leaders, or so-called leaders, will not sacrifice their personal interests for the sport's good. That's why I cannot and will not vote for Flightline.

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Letter to the Editor: C’mon, Bill

Years ago, a dear friend, Joe Spadaro, a veteran turf writer who coined the phrase “get with the program!”, and I were at a bar one evening up on Jericho Turnpike after the races at beautiful Belmont Park. We were commiserating with the Eclipse Award-winning writer Paul Moran about racing. I was always a pretty opinionated guy (still am) and Joe could hear my tone of voice elevating to rebut something that Paul said. Joe turned to me and said “Tom, never get into it with somebody who buys ink by the barrel”. I've always listened to that advice so I'm not going to get into it but: Come on, Bill.

In reference to yesterday's article about the Metropolitan Handicap not being on Memorial Day, when it was traditionally held, yes, I totally agree with you. I am very much a traditionalist also. However, you know what the trend is, right? The bean counters think that apparently big championship racing days generate the most handle. I guess that might be a trend for the future.

But that's not my issue with the article. You referred to this Memorial Day as “it will be just another day at the track”. Come on Bill!!

It's New York-bred Showcase Day, the biggest day of racing for New York-breds in the spring at beautiful Belmont Park. We showcase the best New York-breds in stake race after stake race. New York breeders spend a ton of money all over the country including Kentucky. We just passed a rule whereby you can buy a mare at any auction in Kentucky and other states, ship the mare back within 15 days and take advantage of everything the program has to offer. New York-breds race with up to a 30% advantage over non-New York-breds at New York tracks for some of the biggest purses in the country.

Times are tough. We went from an annual 50,000 foal crop nationally when I got into the business back in the 70s to around an 18,000 foal crop presently. Let's go easy on each other and try and be supportive of all the state programs, including New York's.
And go easy on me with all that ink in your barrel!

Respectfully,
Tom Gallo
President, New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc.

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Letters to the Editor: John Chambers

Thanks for covering the closure of Pompano Park and the warnings to other racetracks. I am one of the few today that enjoys watching and betting on both Thoroughbred and harness racing. I am from the Philadelphia area and grew up spending many a summer weekend going to both Delaware Park and Brandywine Raceway.

For years, both breeds were popular here, but over the years we lost both major harness tracks, Brandywine and Liberty Bell Park. Even two of our primer Thoroughbred tracks, Garden State Park and Atlantic City Race Course, are now history. But so far we still have both breeds racing locally at Parx, Delaware Park and Harrah's Philadelphia. So far even though all the tracks have casinos the operators have given racing reasonable dates and promotion.

However, all of the operators seem to give the most attention to the casino side of the business. If you enter the casino, you most likely don't even know horse racing could be going on. Casino gambling will in most cases will always be more profitable to the operating companies. The speed of the betting and the fact it operates 24/7 in most states simply by its volume will always generate more revenue than live racing that only operates several hours and not every day, and in many cases, not year round.

Racing now also has less revenue due to many people staying home and betting off track. So as in the case of Pompano Park where the casino generates the most money and the land it built on is more valuable for redevelopment than use for racing. It is hard to justify operating a racetrack unless it can produce consistently good betting and the operator feels that there is good crossover betting on both racing and casino operations.

If racing is to continue longterm, we need cheerleaders like Gabe [Prewitt] at Pompano who did his best to pull in as many bettors as possible to play their races. We as players also have to do our part and attend the live racing on track as often as possible.

See you at my local tracks.

John Chambers, Lansdowne, PA

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