Spring has sprung on the mid-Atlantic region, which means, among other things, the Pimlico spring meet is upon us. Good news for racing fans, indeed.
The Pimlico spring meet is Maryland’s marquee racing meet, a stakes-stuffed two-month stand which will, for a time, command the attention of the racing world. The Preakness (May 17), of course, is the second jewel of the Triple Crown and, with a $1,000,000 purse, the richest racing event in the state. The meet will also feature 26 other stakes, including nine graded events. The Grade I Pimlico Special returns from a one-year hiatus, with a reduced purse which the track funded from its own accounts (with help from a sponsor), to join such races as the Grade II Black Eyed Susan and the Grade II Dixie on the calendar.
More than 5,800 fans — which the Washington Post described as a “festive crowd” — turned out for yesterday’s opening day, highlighted by an upset winner in the Star De Naskra Stakes. This weekend’s racing features four Saturday stakes, including the Federico Tesio, Maryland’s traditional prep for the Preakness, to be shown live on ESPN. Among the Tesio starters to run well in the middle jewel are 1983 Preakness winner Deputed Testamony — the last Maryland-bred winner of the Preakness — and Preakness runners-up Oliver’s Twist (1995) and Magic Weisner (2002). The weekend also “features” — well, perhaps that’s a bit strong — That’s Amore runner Abbicadabra in a claimer on Sunday.
The bad news? For one thing, the numbers are back on Laurel’s winter meet. Running a reduced, four-day-a-week schedule, the track reported that total wagering dropped by 24 percent. Even worse, average daily handle, both at the track and via outside sources, declined significantly.
Maryland Jockey Club president Chris Dragone said that the MJC is planning a marketing push to bring more dollars into the coffers and trying to develop new modes of communicating with bettors. But, he added, “There are corporate restrictions out there. We’re not just the Maryland Jockey Club making decisions alone.”
“Corporate restrictions”? That, apparently, is a euphemism for whatever it is that Magna Entertainment is trying to accomplish with its Maryland properties. It’s pretty unusual for executives to step out and criticize, or question, Magna and chairman Frank Stronach. Which leads one to wonder whether Mr. Dragone will soon meet the fate of seemingly all Magna executives — the unemployment line.
Oh, and of course, there’s this little slots referendum thing hanging out there — and an aggressive, organized opposition that’s already mobilizing to defeat it.
As always in the Free State, it’s a mixed bag. Which leaves us no choice but to enjoy a sunny spring at Old Hilltop, and hope for the best.
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John S.
April 21, 2008 at 10:26 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
The numbers were, indeed, alarming. The export signal has in recent years been the backbone of the financials, and people are turning away from the Laurel signal. I, personally, thought the racing held the line on quality at Laurel this winter, whereas in recent past meets the bottom fell out on far too many races. And did you agree about the “festive” crowd? It sure was a fun day for me! Best, John
admin
April 21, 2008 at 8:29 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thanks for checking in, John.
I didn’t make it up to opening day, actually. I was there on Saturday and had a good time (although I really was hoping the locals would take it to the shippers in the Tesio). And on Sunday, our Abbicadabra made it two straight wins with a five-length triumph, so I found the weekend pretty festive!
I thought most of the racing was OK at Laurel, too. My sense was that they replaced some of the better quality races — e.g., second and third level allowances — with first-level allowances and maiden specials to save money, although that’s just an observation and may not hold up empirically. One of the issues that is really confounding, to me, is that Laurel has a big, beautiful turf course that horsemen unanimously love — and they run their longest meet of the year during the time when there’s no grass. Sigh.
What’s your thought on why folks were turning away from the export signal?
Teresa
April 22, 2008 at 3:21 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Frank–
I’m heading to Pimlico for my first visit this Saturday–let me know if you’re going to be around…I’m looking forward to checking the place out–
Teresa
admin
April 22, 2008 at 4:00 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Hey Teresa,
Unfortunately, I won’t be there this weekend (up in Connecticut this weekend). Pimlico, frankly, is a little bit down at the heels; it’s a little lacking in charm (about as charming as a bus terminal) and has a gigantic plant that even on a day with a good crowd is mostly empty. It also has the absolute worst paddock in America — a tiny, crowded indoor paddock which has a sort of fishbowl effect since people crowd to the windows on one side.
That said, the outdoor seats in front of the grandstand are a fantastic place to watch the races if it’s a nice day, and the quality of Maryland racing is still decent, even in the face of slots-fueled competition. I like Pimlico — it’s a very Baltimore kinda place, and I’ve had lots of good experiences there. Up by the restaurant, there’s a little sort of hall of fame that you might enjoy.
Have a great time – hope to catch up with you at the races one of these days.
Frank
Brian
April 22, 2008 at 9:21 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Congrats on Abbicadabra’s win. Were you concerned when they opened up the track just before the first race? It was sealed and as it wasn’t raining at the time, they harrowed the track which turned it much deeper, especially with the additional rain that came later. In my race, the 2nd, one horse didn’t finish and the fav clearly had trouble with the surface. We finished 2nd and probably couldn’t beat the winner if the surface was Preakness level tightened up.
A small note about the lowered numbers. Don’t forget, last year they dropped the purses $2000 across the board. It’s like selling cars, removing the air conditioners and wondering why sales are down. The cars still run, but it’s not as an attractive product as before. Laurel’s winter meet also competes with Santa Anita, Aqueduct, Gulfstream, Fair Ground & Oaklawn and the Maryland circuit doesn’t have a triple crown prep race to draw national attention. That’s a tough road. If they insist on running in the winter, I’d like them to move the dates to Friday – Tuesday and take advantage of most of the big tracks being dark on Monday and Tuesday.
admin
April 23, 2008 at 9:46 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thanks, Brian — and congrats to you on the second place finish! I didn’t get out to the track — was stuck in traffic all day — so I didn’t worry about changing track condition. I can say, though, that when I saw it raining in the morning, I was happy about that — our girl’s a bit of a mudlark.
You raise an interesting point that I don’t quite agree with about the lower numbers. They did, of course, reduce purses by $2000 at the Maryland tracks, but I’m not at all convinced that that had much, if any, effect on bettors’ choices. Bettors haven’t really shown themselves to be “price sensitive” as regards something that really hits them hard — takeout — so I have a hard time thinking that bettors will make the decision that this allowance race used to run for $30k, but now it’s $28k, so I’m not as interested. And as for the other big meets with which Laurel competes, that’s all certainly true — but it was equally true last year.
I do think there is a kind of malaise at the Maryland tracks right now, and that is echoed by the purse reductions and may have an impact on wagering. I also think that you saw two other changes this winter: 1) Philly, which had long been perceived as pretty much third-rate, suddenly has huge purses thanks to slots; and 2) the foolishness and instability of MEC, which had pretty much swirled around but not affected Maryland, hit home with the firing of Raffetto. Finally, the squabbling, internal and external, over the slot machine issue probably is wearing people out. But hell, could be lots of other things, too…
ThatsAmoreStable.net » Blog Archive » Dragone out in Maryland?
May 13, 2008 at 3:24 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
[...] about a month ago, I had predicted (here) that Mr. Dragone, who had seemingly questioned corporate headquarters, might soon find himself in [...]