Louis Cella, president, Oaklawn Park: While our national patron base is becoming increasingly older, Oaklawn Park focuses on attracting a younger patron base. That simple. We market that it is fun and “cool” to attend the races—not to gamble but to have fun. We are in the business of selling horse racing, not gambling. We offer daily marketing programs for our fans to receive free food and free gift shop items and free wagers by simply showing up. We subsidize all our F&B items. We offer petting zoos and climbing walls for kids in the infield during our warmer months. We host Hall of Fame days where all national HOF trainers and jockeys are celebrated, and our fans get to interact with them and receive souvenir posters and can receive autographs and pictures with them. We sell horse racing and the pageantry surrounding this great sport. And our fans respond. In part, this is why we had over 17,000 fans (on Dec. 9). If we do our job correctly, the wagering part will take care of itself.
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Wagering
Dennis Cornick, part owner of Flightline through West Point Thoroughbreds: Marketing in our industry is awful. I don’t know any other way to say it. Having headed up marketing and sales for a $6 billion organization, I am appalled at the industry approach to marketing. Marketing is the branding of an organization, and how it is viewed both internally and externally. The industry does an awful job. Every significant industry decision going forward should have an associated marketing conversation with it. While marketing is done at a local racetrack or organization level, it is not consistent and does not consider the industry as a whole. I strongly believe a national marketing organization should be funded and created to address the problem. This group should work hand in hand with local organizations and racetracks. It should also coordinate with HISA as they appear to have no marketing sensitivity at all. There are many lessons learned and best practices that can be adopted from corporations and sports leagues that have had issues, and worked hard to change perceptions. Marketing is a journey and long-term process. Perception does not change overnight. The issue is that every day we don’t have a coordinated industry approach and focus, the brand gets tarnished more and more.
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Marketing
Dennis Cornick, part owner of Flightline through West Point Thoroughbreds: HISA was originally created to implement, for the first time, a national set of integrity and safety rules that are to be applied consistently throughout the industry. This was their obviously much needed mission statement and something that will be beneficial to the industry in the long-term. No individual should question the intent, need, and mission. What they have done well to date is to lay a foundation to hopefully reach their desired goals. Unfortunately this has been overshadowed by what I feel was poor planning, and a group that moved way too quickly out of the gate without stepping back and understanding the true consequences of decisions that were not well thought out. Communication was not a strong point, and the consistency objective seemed to take a back seat. Lessons learned will tell you that anytime an organization is embarking on a road that has never been traveled before, the question of unintended consequences of any and all actions is a primary consideration in its planning and implementation. No embryonic organization can take one step forward and two steps back and maintain credibility. Rebuilding this credibility should be a short-term focus, and run in parallel to any policy changes and enforcement. They did not at all consider the negative impact on the brand of the industry while trying to do the right thing. If they did, someone made some serious mistakes in judgement along the way.
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses HISA
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Racing Calendar
An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea.
Buddha
Mike Repole, owner, commissioner National Thoroughbred Alliance: I think spending time planning on decline is a defeatist attitude. I think we should gather in one place, people from all ends of the industry, and have a round table where we have a real agenda with real issues and we have some tough conversations. Then all of a sudden you can make decisions. The only way this sport thrives is if everyone has a seat at the table and we trust a third party to make decisions based on the best interests of the sport. At the end of the day that might impact somebody negatively but if it’s good for the growth of the sport then people have to accept it. Right now people want the sport fixed as long as it doesn’t affect what they are doing. To me that’s a selfish attitude. Why can’t we have revenue sharing like the NFL? If you want to take 10% of my earnings as an owner and spread it around for the good of the game, I’m for it. Nobody is working together to grow the sport, which is stupidity. There isn’t a business mind in this sport that impresses me. We need to grow the sport. The way to grow the sport is dealing with issues and fixing them. The level of frustration for almost everyone in the sport is at an all-time high. Once we make positive changes we can market the sports to fans, gamblers and owners. Let’s grow the sport.
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Foal Crop Size
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Racing Surfaces
Phil has a question:
How much of this will the Undertaker and Clark Kent read.
How much of this will the Undertaker and Clark Kent comprehend.
How little of this will the Undertaker and Clark Kent act upon.
The Ringer – The Ringer’s 49 Favorite Sports Moments of 2023
ESPN – Joe Lunardi – 2024 NCAA Tournament Bracketology
Imagine that, a fall-back position where California would be like New Jersey.
Los Angeles Times – John Cherwa – California horse racing is at a crossroads. Can it survive?
TDN – Dan Ross – What Does Next Year Hold For California Racing?
TDN – Letter To The Editor: Nick de Meric
TDN – Letter to the Editor: Clark Shepherd
Shepherd Equine – Clark Shepherd – Public Opinion: Mastering Thoroughbred Racing’s Media Plan
TDN – Letter to the Editor: Suzi Prichard-Jones
We are dealing with the best-educated generation in history. But they’ve got a brain dressed up with nowhere to go.
Timothy Leary
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses HISA
13. Say Goodbye When It’s Time To Leave
When it’s time to go, say goodbye and thank your host on your way out. Leaving too early can be seen as a snub to the host, while lingering around too long may cause annoyance.
“If an event has a start and end time listed on the invitation, you should expect to stay for the whole thing,” writes Southern Living Features Editor Betsy Cribb in her etiquette guide to exiting parties. “The hosts have likely planned out activities accordingly, and to leave early would be to snub their efforts.”
If the party is open-ended, look for signals that the party is winding down—lights brightened, cleaning up, and music turned down are all clues, writes Claire Bahn, a personal branding consultant.
Southern Living – 15 Tips For Being A Great New Year’s Eve Party Guest
Phil has a clue:
When the host(ess) shows up with a broom that means it’s time to leave.
Canadian Thoroughbred – Ivan Bigg – Stewards Hand Down Massive 384 Rulings, Penalties in 2023
TDN – Stephanie Grimm – Saturday Insights: Pletcher Duo Kicks Off Pegasus Preview Day At Gulfstream
Bloodhorse – Eric Mitchell – Ontario Launches Bonus Program for 2024 Foals
Canadian Thoroughbred – CTHS Ontario Introduces $1M Foal Incentive Program
TDN – Dan Ross – What Does Next Year Hold For California Racing?
The Globe and Mail – Grant Robertson – Failing grades
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – Repole’s Tweaks Include Supporting Hall of Famer Zito
The Ringer – Daniel Joyaux – The Grand Historical Epic Is Back in Fashion
Bloodhorse – Maryland Interests Reach One-Year Deal With 1/ST Racing
Paulick Report – Newly Turned 3-Year-Olds Seeking Derby Points In Monday’s Smarty Jones At Oaklawn
Bloodhorse – Byron King – Lagynos Proven at 1 1/16-Mile Distance of Smarty Jones
I don’t think it’s a good thing to have Christian states, Muslim states, or any kind of ethnic states.
Norman Finkelstein
Phil has a question:
Isn’t be better than Trump a pretty low bar.
Women who seek to be equal with men lack ambition.
Timothy Leary
Sports Business Journal – Kraken sued over Winter Classic Jersey
Front Office Sports – The Year’s Biggest Headlines in the Business of Sports
One of the most important elements in teaching, conducting, and performing, all three, is listening.
Itzhak Perlman
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Racing Calendar
An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea.
Buddha
TDN – Promoting the American Thoroughbred Industry: Letter to the Editor, Justin Casse
TDN – Fasig-Tipton’s Boyd Browning Urges Industry To Join In Action In 2024
Southern Living – 25 Traditional New Year’s Recipes To Cook Up Lots Of Good Luck
Southern Living – Mary Shannon Wells – Our Best Family-Friendly Dinners To Try In 2024
If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas.
George Bernard Shaw
Thoroughbred Racing Commentary – Nancy Sexton – The world’s ten most expensive sires for 2024
Bloodhorse – Eric Mitchell – Controversial Calumet President J.T. Lundy Dies at 82
TDN – Bill Finley – J.T. Lundy Passes at 82
Phil has a question:
Will Lundy be buried at Calumet.
Bloodhorse – Tom Dixon – Alydar’s Final Hours
Paulick Report – Broken: New Book Investigates 1990 Death Of Hall Of Famer Alydar
Bloodhorse – Molly Rollins – Newly-Turned 3-Year-Olds Begin Year in Mucho Macho Man
Bloodhorse – Trainer Russell Takes Aim at Maryland Racing History
Canadian Thoroughbred – CTHS Ontario Introduces $1M Foal Incentive Program
Paulick Report – Natalie Voss – Rejected: 2023 Paulick Report Story Ideas That Didn’t Make The Cut
The Ringer – Manuela Lazic – Bradley Cooper Is Trying So Hard
Literature adds to reality, it does not simply describe it. It enriches the necessary competencies that daily life requires and provides; and in this respect, it irrigates the deserts that our lives have already become.
C. S. Lewis
Mike Repole, owner, commissioner National Thoroughbred Alliance: I think spending time planning on decline is a defeatist attitude. I think we should gather in one place, people from all ends of the industry, and have a round table where we have a real agenda with real issues and we have some tough conversations. Then all of a sudden you can make decisions. The only way this sport thrives is if everyone has a seat at the table and we trust a third party to make decisions based on the best interests of the sport. At the end of the day that might impact somebody negatively but if it’s good for the growth of the sport then people have to accept it. Right now people want the sport fixed as long as it doesn’t affect what they are doing. To me that’s a selfish attitude. Why can’t we have revenue sharing like the NFL? If you want to take 10% of my earnings as an owner and spread it around for the good of the game, I’m for it. Nobody is working together to grow the sport, which is stupidity. There isn’t a business mind in this sport that impresses me. We need to grow the sport. The way to grow the sport is dealing with issues and fixing them. The level of frustration for almost everyone in the sport is at an all-time high. Once we make positive changes we can market the sports to fans, gamblers and owners. Let’s grow the sport.
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Foal Crop Size
Bloodhorse – Bob Ehalt – BH Survey: Industry Panel Discusses Racing Surfaces
Bloodhorse – Bulk of 2024 NYRA Racing to Take Place at Aqueduct
Sports Business Journal – Political resistance shows uncertainty for the future of sports betting
Phil has a question:
In Texas and California is it a question of allowing sports betting or a question of who’s going to run sports betting and reap the rewards.
America’s Best Racing – Patrick Read – 2024 Kentucky Derby Prospect Profiles: Track Phantom
America’s Best Racing – Tom Pedulla – Smarty Jones: An Unlikely Hero and Beloved Fan Favorite
Bloodhorse – Murphy Looking Forward to Competing at Gulfstream Park
538 – Nathaniel Rakich – What I got wrong in 2023
Bloodhorse – Byron King – Wachtel, Barber Continue Private Purchase Excellence
Bloodhorse – Alan Porter – Frac Daddy Good Fit in Mating That Produced Daddysruby
TDN – Chris McGrath – Value Sires For 2024, Part 4: Into The Teens
Bloodhorse – Eric Mitchell – Classic Empire Sold to KRA, Standing in Korea for 2024
TDN – Tina Bond Elected NYTHA President
Bloodhorse – Bond to Lead NY Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association
The Ringer – Nora Princiotti – 2023 Was the Year of the Girl
Front Office Sports – Orioles Clear Key Hurdles, but Family Feud Over Ownership Remains
The Ringer – Ben Solak – Unraveling the Mike Tomlin Conundrum
ESPN – Jeff Legwold – Broncos to bench Russell Wilson, will start Jarrett Stidham
ESPN – Why was Russell Wilson benched? Is he done with Broncos?
Sports Illustrated – Gilberto Manzano – Where the Russell Wilson Deal Ranks Among Worst NFL Trades
Trade a player a year too early rather than a year too late.
Branch Rickey
Phil has a question:
Can you really feel sorry for a player who collected and will collect as much as Wilson did.
Southern Living – Cameron Beall – What To Do With Your Christmas Tree After The Holidays
Garden and Gun – Adrian Miller – Why Do We Eat Black-Eyed Peas on New Year’s Day?
The Ringer – Alan Siegel – How ‘Ferrari’ Was Forged
The Ringer – Claire McNear – How Mayim Bialik Lost Her Role as the Main Host of ‘Jeopardy!’
Southern Living – Kaitlyn Yarborough – 44 Retro Party Appetizers We’ll Never, Ever Stop Making
Sports Illustrated – Albert Breer – Why Antonio Pierce Could Get the Raiders’ Job
Bloodhorse – Byron King – O’Connor Back for Another Try in Harlan’s Holiday
Harlan’s Holiday has always been one of Phil’s favourite named horses. Phil’s not gonna debate whether Harlan, his sire, was named after the county in Kentucky or R. Harlan Smith through his CFCW contacts, but with Christmas in Aiken (Phil’s surmising the city in South Carolina) as the dame that makes Christmas Harlan’s Holiday.
Horse Racing Nation – Caroline Greer – First Look: Pegasus preps, Derby points race are on tap
Bloodhorse – Solid Handle, Large Crowd Greet Return of Santa Anita
Imagine that, a fall-back position where California would be like New Jersey.
Los Angeles Times – John Cherwa – California horse racing is at a crossroads. Can it survive?
Phil M Stockmen
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