Cutbacks signify lean times ahead for Maryland racing

It had to happen. When Maryland’s 2007 legislative session ended in April without any action having been taken to address the financial woes of the state’s racing industry, it was obvious that purse distribution could not remain at current levels.

The Pimlico spring meet went on as scheduled, but Maryland horsemen braced for cutbacks at Laurel Park’s brief August meet, and its lengthy stand that begins in September and continues into the spring.

With the purse account facing a $3 million shortfall, the only question was how far, and how deep, the cuts would extend. Would there be fewer days? Fewer races? Across-the-board purse cuts? A whittled-down stakes schedule?
The plan, covering the remainder of 2007, was announced in mid-June. And it looks to be a workable attempt to deal with a grim situation. The purse for every race will be reduced by $2,000, while the stakes program will be virtually dismantled. The track expects to card fewer races.

The only item left intact was the number of racing days, in an effort to cling as closely as possible to some semblance of a year-round racing program. Maryland tracks are on the way to offering their present quota of 180 live racing days in 2007. But a cutback in days is considered inevitable for 2008, unless the state takes steps this fall to provide racing with some form of purse enhancement.

Details of the stakes program have yet to be worked out, according to Lou Raffetto, who, as president of the Maryland Jockey Club, oversees Maryland’s two major Thoroughbred tracks, Laurel and Pimlico. “Some will be totally eliminated and some will be slashed [in purse value],” Raffetto said. He indicated that Laurel will likely offer no stakes with a purse value higher than $50,000. The Grade 1 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash is likely to be the exception; it’s expected to remain on the schedule, and its purse will probably not be lowered beyond $250,000, because doing so would cause it to lose its Grade 1 status.
The revised program was worked out in a June 7 meeting between track management and representatives of the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association.

With these cutbacks, Maryland racing has moved into a new era, best described as survival mode. How long this mode of operation will last depends on forces beyond the control of the industry.

There’s no doubt that the state’s Thoroughbred industry will continue to survive, in some form or fashion. But the cutbacks make it clear that racing, in Maryland, has reached a crucial turning point. Unless the state decides to help—in the near future—there is little hope that it will continue to exist as we have known it.