West Virginia Derby Switches to Sunday This Season

Mountaineer Park's premier stakes, the GIII West Virginia Derby, will shift to the first Sunday in August with a later post time this year in an effort to make the $500,000, nine-furlong race for 3-year-olds better stand out against national simulcast competition.

The West Virginia Derby, plus the supporting GIII $200,000 West Virginia Governor's S. at 1 1/16 miles for 3-year-olds and up, will now be carded Sunday, Aug. 6, after the track received unanimous permission for that change at Tuesday's West Virginia Racing Commission (WVRC)  meeting.

The purses for both stakes remain level from last year.

Jim Colvin, Mountaineer's racing director, detailed to commissioners the reasons for the switch.

“This year, we are requesting to run our Derby on Sunday versus Saturday [because] we are trying to stay off the Grade I races [at competing tracks] on Saturday. I know there was some problems in the past about races overlapping, That was one of the reasons,” Colvin said.

In 2022, the West Virginia Derby went off at 5:56 p.m. Eastern, just seven minutes after Saratoga's GI Whitney S., the nation's marquee race that Saturday. In 2021, the West Virginia Derby went off a 5:39 p.m., 11 minutes ahead of the 5:50 p.m. Whitney.

“We are also changing the [first] post time to 5 p.m. instead of the normal 2 p.m. post time on Derby day,” Colvin continued. “The seventh and eighth races, which would be the Derby and Governor's races, would be close to being in prime time on TVG as well.”

Starting Apr. 30, Mountaineer will race 124 dates on Sundays through Tuesdays, with Wednesdays added June 21-Dec. 13. Colvin said another aim with the switch to Sunday is so bettors don't get caught off guard with the Derby being carded on a non-standard Saturday.

“We felt, honestly, to move back to a [regularly] scheduled race day would [keep customers from] getting confused on what days [we're] racing,” Colvin said.

Also at the Apr. 18 meeting, Mountaineer was unanimously granted approval by the WVRC to be reimbursed out of the capital improvement fund for two recentl projects.

One was a $44,000 main track sand upgrade project. Ironically, even though West Virginia is one of two states (along with Louisiana) that is under a federal injunction that will keep the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority's rules from being implemented until a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of HISA gets decided in full, Mountaineer has opted to abide by one of the HISA standards regarding track safety in case that injunction expires during the running of the upcoming meet.

WVRC executive director Joe Moore explained it this way: “In the Racetrack Safety Program, HISA requires the racetracks to replace and regrade their sand on an annual basis. Mountaineer, even though we're not under HISA, saw this as a safety issue and wanted to go ahead and complete it before the start of this racing meet, in the chance that HISA would come into effect in West Virginia [sometime] during their meet and require them [to either do] this or stop racing until it's completed.”

Colvin pointed out that Mountaineer totally replaced its main track two years ago, so the project recently completed this spring was more along the lines of routine maintenance to ensure a 5 1/2-inch uniformity of the top layer.

“At whatever point we do fall under {HISA's rules], this is basically a project that's going to have to be done annually to meet their requirements,” Colvin said. “When you have rain, some of the track ends up [washed] between the main track and the turf course. Therefore, the sand has to be replaced. We just put 300-some tons of sand on the track when we did this. It was low in some places [and] we had to add the material to get the surface consistent with the other parts of the track.”

The WVRC also approved a $79,620 capital improvement reimbursement for a rebuilt outdoor viewing deck.

“Mountaineer Park, on their apron, they have a very large deck for viewing the races,” Moore explained. “This year, the deck was in such poor shape that it was necessary, before patrons [could use it], to tear it down and replace it.”

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West Virginia Advances Model Rules Despite Reluctance

In an effort to play catch-up with other racing jurisdictions in the mid-Atlantic region that have already adopted or are in the process of implementing model rules regarding medication abuse and stepped-up penalty scales, the West Virginia Racing Commission (WVRC) voted to send four proposals backed by the Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) out for a 30-day public commentary period during the board's May 18 meeting.

But when the WVRC meets again to vote on whether to adopt those rules at a yet-to-be-scheduled date, commission chairman Ken Lowe, Jr. said during Tuesday's tele-meeting he won't support the system of fines included within some of those ARCI model rules because he believes they are too onerous for West Virginia trainers to bear.

Lowe was specifically referencing an ARCI model rule that eliminates a previous multi-tiered penalty system for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug violations and replaces it with a minimum fine of $1,000 (absent mitigating circumstances), then scales upward for repeat violators by escalating the fine amounts and adding license suspensions.

The WVRC also advanced ARCI model rules that regulate clenbuterol usage, intra-articular injections, and the adoption of the most current Uniform Classification Guidelines for Foreign Substances list (the state currently abides by an outdated version of that list).

“I'm looking at the mid-Atlantic region-Virginia, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland and us,” Lowe said. “And we're the only state that's yet to adopt these rules. I want to tell you, I have been to each one of those racetracks. I have raced [as an owner] at most of those racetracks…. As much as I know [West Virginia] is similar, we are still different in some aspects, [and] everything is not the same here as it is there. It is not just the [six-furlong track at Charles Town]. There's more to it than that….

“I can listen to what California wants and what New York wants and what Kentucky says. But one size doesn't always fit all. So you're going to hear me on occasion-and you've heard me say-I can't agree with this [and] I'm going to continue to hold that position. [So] I think we have to be very careful what we agree to.

“I'm going to give you a couple of comments from commissioner Ken Lowe, okay?” the chairman said, referring to himself in the third person. “Number one, in my opinion, is we don't want to be an outlier. I understand that. But at the same time…I can't agree to do something just because everyone else has. I'm not geared that way…. If it's best for everybody, I'll go along with it. But I just can't let something happen that's not fair to the West Virginia horsemen at Mountaineer or Charles Town…

“I agree with the threshold idea. I really do. But on the other hand…the thousand-dollar [penalty] to a trainer in New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware is a whole lot worse than a thousand dollars to a trainer in West Virginia. Big difference. Big, big, big difference. I can't agree to these amounts of money,” Lowe said.

“We can put it out there now and see what comments come back,” Lowe said prior to calling for a vote. “But I can tell you first thing I will do is probably slice all of those amounts, right off the top.”

Neither of the other two commissioners-J.B. Akers or Tony Figaretti-chose to address the subject, although both voted in favor of advancing the proposal to the public commentary phase.

It was unclear how or if Lowe voted because he did not appear to cast an audible voice vote. After the two other commissioners voted yes, Lowe asked if there was any opposition, then said, “Hearing none, the motion passes.”

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COVID Positives In Jock’s Room Force Charles Town To Cancel Live Racing Through Nov. 14

Following a pair of positive COVID-19 tests emanating from its jockey's room, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races has cancelled its live racing cards through Saturday, Nov. 14.

As a result of the lost days, the track intends on applying to the West Virginia Racing Commission for additional live days that would be held on Nov. 25 as well as Dec. 2, Dec. 9 and Dec. 16.

Live racing at Charles Town is slated to resume on Thursday, Nov. 19 with a first race post time of 7:00 P.M. EST.

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