First off, Kentucky’s thoroughbred industry is NOT in trouble and does NOT need saving. All segments of the thoroughbred breeding market are more robust than they have ever been, as evidenced by the outcome of the various 2007 sales at Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton. In addition, the Quarter Horse industry has been blossoming partially as a result of the state Breeders’ Incentive Fund. Not many people realize that the 37,000+ quarter horses in our state make it the most numerous breed in the state and nation.
If you accept the figures promoted by slot parlor pawns like the Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP, or what we call “GIM-ME”), then consider this scenario: to achieve $500 million in new revenue for government, citizens will need to wager more than 22 times more money at casinos than they ever have on horse races in Kentucky, creating an industry that dwarfs horse racing. One KEEP official has even made the delusional comment that he thinks this gain can be achieved without a “proliferation of gambling.” This same individual said he hopes casino-derived tax revenue will be used for character education in public schools. What is he thinking?
Casinos will in fact help the race track owners (and hopeful casino owners), such as the publicly traded Churchill Downs and gambling giant Harrah’s, but the horse industry will suffer its demise. As casinos become established at locations other than tracks, competition for the gambling dollar will intensify and our horse industry will be one of the big losers. Even in the slot parlors at the tracks, the slow, genteel pace of a day at the races will be replaced for most gamblers by the face-paced, addictive atmosphere of full-blown slot parlors. If you’ve been to Las Vegas, you’ve likely noticed that there is not a single thoroughbred race track there. Can you imagine the thought of Keeneland with neon and a few prostitutes thrown in?
Closer to home, if you’ve been to the track in West Virginia, then you may know that the purses for some maiden races are a bit larger than at Turfway Park. The only problem is THERE ARE NO SPECTATORS WATCHING THE RACES! In fact, it’s proven that horse players will cross over to play slots, but slot players DO NOT cross over to play the horses. How can something that takes away dollars wagered and takes away spectators from Kentucky’s biggest spectator sport be in its long-term best interests?
The slot machine lackies within Kentucky’s thoroughbred industry pushing the slot machine agenda are driven either by gross ignorance or outright greed. Either way, the industry really shouldn’t be following their lead, and in fact, it really isn’t. The thoroughbred industry is deeply divided over the casino agenda of the Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP or GIM-ME).
At the same time, there is some innovative thinking going on in the thoroughbred industry by members who recognize the threat posed by slots and casinos. For example, one major farm and its manager have been negotiating for months with NASCAR to develop joint merchandising and race team efforts. While many in the thoroughbred industry would scoff at the thought of becoming more like NASCAR, they might think twice when they see the hundreds of thousands of spectators at a NASCAR event and the billions of dollars spent on NASCAR merchandise every year.
The last thing that Kentucky’s signature industry and biggest spectator sport needs is something that drains it of spectators and contaminates its image. What it does need are innovative thinkers who don’t resort to the worse possible alternative to what ails them. Forget the false prophets carrying the slot pushers’ water and join us in our campaign. The horse industry needs you, and Kentucky needs you too.
