Horses have little to do with current turf war in Maryland
What would they think of us now?

As the MHBA celebrates its 75th anniversary, one can only imagine what the organization’s founding fathers—who committed themselves to “the fostering and preserving of traditions pertaining to the horse everywhere and particularly the fine traditions of the horse in Maryland. . .”—would have to say about the state of Maryland racing in the early part of the 21st century.

My guess is, they’d be appalled. Simulcasting. Off-track betting. Wagering via computer and telephone. Hardly traditional, but these the fine old gentlemen might come to accept, as part of the evolution that’s kept Thoroughbred breeding and racing alive.

Slot machines to fuel the purses and breeders fund would be a tougher sell. But chances are the MHBA’s patriarchs (who after all were forward-thinkers in their day) would come around to the view of modern-day leaders, based on competitive pressures from surrounding states.
It’s the move away from the “fine traditions of the horse” that would stop the founding fathers in their tracks. Racing is less and less about horses, and more and more of a proving ground for lawyers.

Members of the legal profession turned out in awesome force for the April meeting of the Maryland Racing Commission. At issue was the transfer of the license to operate Rosecroft Raceway, the larger of the state’s two harness tracks.

The situation under which Rosecroft may be sold could be the most important decision ever to come before the Maryland Racing Commission. That’s because the business plan outlined by Rosecroft’s would-be owners is based on the construction of a network of off-track betting facilities—state-of-the-art sites that would derive the bulk of their business from simulcasts of out-of-state Thoroughbred races.

Currently, the only OTBs operating in Maryland are those controlled by the Maryland Jockey Club (which has sites in North East and Frederick) and Ocean Downs harness track (which last year opened a facility in Cambridge, on the Eastern Shore, far outside the Thoroughbred tracks’ market area).

The company, Northwind LLC, that is proposing to buy Rosecroft has as its majority (90 percent) owner Greenwood Racing, which is the corporate owner of Philadelphia Park.
For Maryland’s Thoroughbred industry, it’s an attempted act of piracy that, if allowed to occur, could drain the lifeblood from the business for years to come. The MHBA, Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (representing owners and trainers) and Maryland Jockey Club (which owns Laurel Park and Pimlico) are firmly united in their opposition to Northwind’s proposal.

The Racing Commission will continue the hearing on May 11 and 12 at Pimlico. After that, it presumably will make a decision. Let’s hope it’s one that allows Maryland’s fine traditions to continue.