What is Racing's Biggest Current Hurdle?

[johnny pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Kasept

So 6-8 sophomores per year that may retire arguably early are responsible for stakes not filling to the brim? I don't buy that. While an overall lack of 'good' horses contributes to the problem, Stakes races with narrow fields are due to the inane overabundance of opportunities. There's too many stakes for the amount of horses. Cut down the stakes and boost the purses and you'll see what happens.

i agree, but how do you cut down on races when every bull ring track has a racino with higher purses? if anything they keep adding races that are not even needed. mine that bird runs at mountaineer during haskell and travers time. the penn derby is a million with 2 good horses and 6 or 7 pigs. you are right they don't want fans they want gamblers. fans know what crap is. there needs to be a reasonable mix of fans and gamblers. as a gambler i'm glad when theres fields where only two horses have a chance. in many cases one horse and its a 1-5 shot, then even gambling is a lost cause thats why pic's are so popular. you can't make cracker crumbs on that unless you play pic's. as a fan i know its all garbage. the half dozen or so true grade 1 horse can run at 4 or 5 different tracks year round, on their perferred surface. yeah, that makes for great competition and thats what creates the "buzz". tickets are cashed and torn up right after the race. great races between the best horses gets you on tv. phony controversies between what coulda ,shoulda, might of because horses don't race(each other) is just another bad sign for the game.

[MaTH716]

The most important that tracks/the sport needs is bettors. And the fact that they can't even get this right, reguarding the whole signal fiasco is amazing.

I've been looking foward to today all week, my first free day in a while just to sit relax and bet. I bought todays form and it covers:
Aqueduct Cancled
Gulfstream Signal dispute
Tampa Bay
Philadelphia Canceled
Fair Grounds Signal dispute
Santa Anita Signal dispute

Obviously the cancelations are bad luck. But we always discuss if there are to many races/tracks. But on this Sunday many people on the east coast only have access to about 2 tracks, Turfway and Tampa (not including Charestown and Hialeah). You would think that if racing can't fix this problem (where they are probably losing tons of money), how are they going to fix the other things that will supposedly make the game better. Bottom line is once again it's the bettors/fans that take it right in the shorts.

[smuthg]

http://www.r2collective.com/content/...he-first-time/

I found this article to be a good read...

"In the late 1970s, the groundbreaking book “Positioning; the Battle for Your Mind” was published. To this very day, it is often quoted by marketers. The authors contend that you, your business, or your organization must define who you are and market that definition into your customers’ minds. You “position” yourself, and hope that the position you have carved out is a good one. If it is, you succeed; if it is not, you fail."