Tag: The Biz

In addition to world-class racing, Santa Anita's upcoming Autumn Meet will feature a wide variety of promotions, including free parking and admission as well as $3 beers and $5 margaritas on opening day, Friday, Sept. 29 and most Fridays throughout the 19-day stand.

With the 40^th running of the Breeders' Cup World Championships coming to Santa Anita for a record 11^th time on Nov. 3 & 4, the Autumn Meet will showcase the best Thoroughbreds in the world at America's most picturesque racing venue.

“We're excited to welcome racing fans back to The Great Race Place,” said Andrew Arthur, Santa Anita's senior director of marketing.  “We've got an aggressive experience and promotional schedule to help us build momentum as we approach the Breeders' Cup on Nov. 3 and 4 and we're confident this is going to complement some great racing beginning on opening day.”

Fans are encouraged to sign up in advance of opening day Sept. 29, for Santa Anita's free online Showvivor presented by EquineEdge. Showvivor requires players to pick horses that finish in the money and offers a total of $5,000 in prize money.

For those 1/ST Reward (formerly XB Rewards and Thoroughbreds) members that attend on-track and bet $100 on Santa Anita races via 1/ST Rewards, 1/ST BET or Xpressbet, they'll receive a free Santa Anita Sweatshirt.  Additionally, fans can earn a commemorative Zenyatta Pin on Oct. 1, 7, 8 & 9 by betting $50 via 1/ST Rewards, 1/ST BET or Xpressbet or by visiting Santa Anita Park.

FOLLOWING ARE A LISTING OF PROMOTIONS THROUGH CLOSING DAY, NOV. 5

— Saturday, Sept. 30
Japan Family Day/Birriamania (East Infield Area)/Trackside Dining Buffet/Infield Family Fun Zone/Santa Anita Pick'Em Contest

— Sunday, Oct. 1
Japan Family Day (Trackside, Kingsbury Fountain)/Infield Family Fun Zone/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Friday, Oct. 6
$3 Beers & $5 Margaritas/Free Admission & Parking/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Saturday, Oct. 7
$30,000 Wealth Tree & Asian Fall Festival/Infield Family Fun Zone/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Sunday, Oct. 8
$30,000 Wealth Tree & Asian Fall Festival/Infield Family Fun Zone/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Holiday Racing, Monday, Oct. 9
Dollar Day with $1 Beers & Sodas, plus $2 Hot Dogs/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Saturday, Oct. 14
Oktoberfest Trackside Apron/Infield Family Fun Zone/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Sunday, Oct. 15
Oktoberfest Trackside Apron/Infield Family Fun Zone/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Friday, Oct. 20
$3 Beers & $5 Margaritas/Free Admission & Parking

— Saturday, Oct. 21
Oktoberfest Trackside Apron/Infield Pumpkin Patch & Fall Fun Fest/Past Action Heroes (Infield)/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Sunday, Oct. 22
Oktoberfest Trackside Apron/Pink's Hot Dogs (Loge Box Seats)/Pumpkin Patch & Fall Fun Fest (Infield)/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Friday, Oct. 27
$3 Beers & $5 Margaritas/Free Admission & Parking

— Saturday, Oct. 28
Smorgasburg Event Trackside Apron/Infield Pumpkin Patch & Fall Fun Fest/Spooktober Treat Hunt (East Infield)/Free Admission (Direct Mailer)/ Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Sunday, Oct. 29
Infield Pumpkin Patch & Fall Fun Fest/Spooktober Treat (East Infield)/Hallow-Weiners (East Infield)/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest

— Thursday, Nov. 2
$3 Beers & $5 Margaritas/Free Admission & Parking

— Friday, Nov. 3
Breeders' Cup World Championships, Day One

— Saturday, Nov. 4
Breeders' Cup World Championships, Day Two

— Sunday, Nov. 5
Closing Day/Mandatory Pari-Mutuel Payouts/$500 Closing Day Challenge/Santa Anita Pick 'Em Contest, 1/ST Reward:  Santa Anita Sweatshirt

Fans are encouraged to visit breederscup.com/ticketing for Breeders' Cup reservations on Nov. 3 and 4.  For additional information, please visit santaanita.com or call (626) 574-RACE.

The post Santa Anita Unveils Promotions For Autumn Meet appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The Illinois Racing Board on Thursday approved 78 thoroughbred race programs at Hawthorne Race Course in 2024.

Hawthorne, located 10 miles southwest of downtown Chicago, will race two days a week — Saturdays and Sundays — from March 23 to June 1.

The track will race three days a week — Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays — from June 2 to Oct. 13.

Post times will begin at 6:30 p.m. CT on Thursday and 2:50 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The track will be dark on Thursday, July 4.

It is expected the race track will be available for thoroughbred training around Saturday, Feb. 17, depending on weather.

Chris Block, president of the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, credited Tim Carey and Hawthorne's staff for their efforts to support continued Thoroughbred racing in Illinois.

Carey told the IRB that Hawthorne plans to have its racino operational by the end of calendar 2024 and that construction will take approximately 12 to 14 months.

The post Illinois Racing Board Approves 78 Thoroughbred Dates At Hawthorne In 2024 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Emerald Down's 2023 live racing season concluded Sunday as it began over 4 1/2 months ago, with perfect weather in Auburn, Wash. During the 52-day meet conducted over 20 weekends, the track was rated Fast on 51 of the 52 days.

Attendance was up 16 percent over 2022, averaging 3,078 per race day. The biggest crowd of the year was on July 3 when over 9,100 people showed up for racing and fireworks. Over 8,000 attended live racing on July 23 when Corgi Races were the featured promotion.

Overall handle was $60,475,522 for an average of $1,162,991 per day. While this was a decrease of 10.6 percent over 2022, the track's retention from handle increased 3.7 percent due to changes in host fees. Total Takeout decreased from 19.56 percent in 2022 to 18.87 percent in 2023.

A total of 709 horses started 2,847 times over 435 races for an average field size of 6.54. There were 282 horses who started at least five times at the meet.

Total purses distributed was $7,064,322, an average of $135,852 per race day. Purses for the 2023 race meet were generated as follows:

*12% from Live Racing *60% from ADW and Simulcast Revenue *3% from fees *25% contribution from the Muckleshoot Tribe who own and operate the track

Emerald Downs will announce the race meet dates for 2024 in October, but the plan is to open on Saturday, May 4, Kentucky Derby Day.

The post Emerald Downs: Handle Down 10.6 Percent In 2023, Attendance Up 16 Percent appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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A study of the Equine Injury Database has shown that in 2021 and 2022, musculoskeletal fatalities did not occur at a statistically-significant higher rate over wet tracks as compared to dry tracks, on either dirt or turf. The Jockey Club released the study data, analyzed by Dr. Euan Bennet and Professor Tim Parkin, this week.

The following table represents the incidence of all musculoskeletal fatalities within three days of racing on dirt surfaces, separated by the track condition as listed in the Equine Injury Database. The data does not include sudden deaths.

Condition       Starts              Fatalities          Fatalities Per 1,000 starts
Fast                  308,954                 419                              1.36
Frozen              29                            0                                0.00
Good                22,147                    38                               1.72
Heavy               95                            0                                0.00
Muddy             17,936                    22                                1.23
Sloppy              25,085                   36                                 1.44
Slow                  58                           0                                 0.00
Wet Fast         2,541                        3                                 1.18

The statistical analysis for the years 2021 and 2022 did not identify a significant difference between fatalities over wet tracks versus fast tracks; however, that could be because the sample size is too small.

Professor Parkin explained: “Although on the face of it some of the calculated /1000 rates do look to be somewhat different, the key is that for many, in particular those with lower rates the number of fatalities (and starts) is comparatively small. This means that the statistical analysis does not have sufficient power to be confident that there truly is a difference.

“At the extreme if we look at Wet Fast – if we added just one more fatal injury to that category the risk would rise from 1.18 (something on the face of it well below Good) to 1.57 (something on the face of it well above Good).

“The chi square statistic takes account of the sample size for both groups being compared and if one is significantly smaller than the other, the uncertainty around the estimate for that one group will often result in a non-statistically significant result, simply based on that high degree of uncertainty around the rate for the smaller sample.”

The Jockey Club released the study on Wednesday via the following release:

A link to an analysis of racing fatalities based on surface and track conditions for 2021 and 2022 has been added to the Equine Injury Database (EID) webpage. Additional statistics will be added to the EID webpage as they become available. If you have inquiries about the Equine Injury Database, please contact Shannon Luce, director of communications, The Jockey Club, at sluce@jockeyclub.com or 859.224.2716.

The Equine Injury Database, conceived at the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation's first Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit, was launched by The Jockey Club in July 2008 and seeks to identify the frequencies, types, and outcomes of racing injuries using a standardized format that generates valid statistics, identifies markers for horses at increased risk of injury, and serves as a data source for research directed at improving safety and preventing injuries.

The Jockey Club, founded in 1894 and dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing, is the breed registry for North American Thoroughbreds. In fulfillment of its mission, The Jockey Club, directly or through subsidiaries, provides support and leadership on a wide range of important industry initiatives, and it serves the information and technology needs of owners, breeders, media, fans and farms. It is the sole funding source for America's Best Racing, the broad-based fan development initiative for Thoroughbred racing. You can follow America's Best Racing at americasbestracing.net. Additional information is available at jockeyclub.com.

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