Local News Archive
April  - May 2005

Hamburg, NY, May 31, 2005 -

Hamburg, NY, May 28, 2005 -

Batavia, NY, May 24, 2005 -

BATAVIA DOWNS

Gaming center attendance higher than predicted

BATAVIA - The new gaming center at Batavia Downs is far exceeding attendance predictions, with a daily average of 3,506 patrons over the first five days of operation, OTB officials said Monday.

Western Regional Off-Track Betting, owner of the harness race track now with 586 video lottery terminals, had estimated 1,200-1,500 weekday crowds and 2,500 weekends.

Courtesy The Buffalo News

Hamburg, NY, May 20, 2005 -

Batavia, NY, May 20, 2005 -

Finally, the payoff

Batavia Downs celebrates a 'new beginning' with some help from about 5,000 new friends

By Tom Rivers
Daily News Staff Writer

BATAVIA — Rich Nobles had already placed a bet, one he was hoping to lose, before going to Batavia Downs Wednesday morning.

Nobles told his friends he expected a small crowd for the opening of a new video gaming center. But when Nobles pulled into the parking lot just before the 10 a.m. opening, most of the spaces in the 1,100-spot lot were taken. A line of customers extended far out of the Downs’ front doors.

By 10:30, he was among 700 customers who filled the second floor Genesee Room in the Batavia Downs. Nobles had lost his bet with his friends in overwhelming fashion, and he couldn’t have been more gleeful.

“I can’t remember the last time the parking lot was like this,” said Nobles, the owner of Sport of Kings restaurant in Batavia. “And I had a hard time finding a seat in here.”

By the end of the day, nearly 5,000 people tried the new video gaming center, including Terry Lange of Holley, who won $4,000 playing “Jacks or Better.” An Alexander woman won $5,300.

Nobles was smiling by late morning, thinking of the spin-off business for Sport of Kings and other restaurants in town. He said his 24-hour-a-day operation gets surges in business when the Downs has horse racing in late summer and the fall. But that’s seasonal, and not every day. The new video gaming center will be open almost 365 days a year, from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. It will only close on Christmas and Easter.

The new video gaming center has about 200 employees working in the gaming and concessions business, with the potential for another 100 workers. Nobles said they, as well as Downs customers, will likely frequent other Batavia businesses.

Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. spent about $2.2 million readying the second floor and building a marketing campaign for the new gaming center, which has nearly 600 video lottery terminals, colorful and beeping devices that resemble slot machines.

The VLTs have given the historic race track and its mammoth main complex “a new beginning,” said Nancy Palumbo, director of New York Lottery. She led WROTB officials in cutting a ribbon during an opening ceremony. Batavia Downs joined four other tracks in opening VLT gaming centers. Saratoga, Buffalo Raceway, Finger Lakes Race Track and Monticello all opened video gaming centers last year.

Palumbo, a native of Victor in Ontario County, said her family used to go to the Downs. Her grandmother told her the place was often packed about a generation ago.

But a decline in the popularity of harness racing saw the crowds dwindle. The Downs was struggling so much that it was headed for the auction block in 1998. WROTB bought it for $2.48 million that year and spent another $10 million upgrading the track for its return to racing.

“In its glory days Batavia Downs was known as the pride of the city,” Palumbo told reporters and a crowd of WROTB officials and employees before the ribbon cutting. “I hope that this new video gaming facility will revitalize Batavia Downs and bring back the crowd that once filled those grandstands. Batavia Downs Gaming will be the new pride of this great city and the Genesee region.”

The facility is expected to generate about $30 million in profits annually, with 60 percent going to the state for its public education fund. Lottery’s various games last year raised about $2 billion for the state’s education fund, she said.

“As we celebrate the grand opening of this video gaming facility and enjoy the excitement that surrounds us here today, please remember who the winners are: the students of the state of New York,” Palumbo said.

The real star of Wednesday proved to be the VLTs.

Betty Lander has tried casinos in Las Vegas and Niagara Falls. The Batavia resident, 77, said she will try the VLTs, but she won’t go overboard.

“If I do well, I’ll come back right away,” she said. “If not, I’ll wait a month.”

She said the machines can be a powerful draw, especially for the winners.

“I don’t know how to explain it,” she said. “I guess you get a high. But I’m not going to get addicted to it.”

Marty Krause and Ralph Marsocci were among the first wave into the Downs and they liked the new paint job, sporting sections of purple, red, yellow, tan and green. The Bergen residents said they came because they were curious to see how the Genesee County landmark had been transformed into a modern attraction.

“I’m impressed,” Krause said while standing in the Genesee Room, which used to serve as a concessions area. “I can remember this space being pretty much wasted space. Now it’s beautiful.”

Krause, 64, retired a year ago as Bergen’s public works supervisor. He believes the video gaming center will draw people from outside the county to Batavia and other neighboring towns. He said he’ll stop by to try his luck.

“They’ll probably get a little of my money,” he said.
Marsocci, the owner of Ralph and Rosie’s deli and pizzeria in Bergen, said the VLTs offer a gambling outlet for residents where most of the profits will be returned to the state and local governments.

“I like that this is in New York state and not in a sovereign nation,” he said, referring to the Native American-owned casinos. “I’m not a gambler. I just wanted to see what’s going on in my community.”

Downs: WROTB officials see brighter days ahead

By Tom Rivers
Daily News Staff Writer

BATAVIA — The board meetings were getting tense, especially last summer when Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. canceled its harness racing season.
The corporation couldn’t afford to take another $2 million hit in operating the track.

Instead WROTB leaders wanted the corporation to focus on what it believed would be its financial salvation: new video lottery terminals. The board had pushed ahead with a $7.7 million overhaul of the first floor of the Downs in early 2004, trying to turn it into a video gaming center with about 750 video lottery games that resemble slot machines.

But after going out to bid, WROTB ran into a problem. It couldn’t find a lender to loan it the money for building the gaming center. Not only had WROTB suffered from buying, renovating and operating the track, but its OTB parlors were generating less funds, a 10 percent drop from 2003 to 2004 alone.

Potential lenders also didn’t think the state was helping WROTB and other tracks with VLTs to make money. At the time the state kept 71 percent of the profits, while tracks were fully responsible for the operational and marketing costs. They also had to share another 8.75 percent of the profits to boost racing purses and a breeder’s fund.

With that gloomy picture, some on the WROTB board suggested getting rid of the track, forgetting the VLTs and somehow rejuvenating 38 OTB betting parlors, which were taking hits from new casinos, indoor smoking bans and a population exodus from western and central New York.

“It’s been stressful the last two years,” said Tom Wamp, a WROTB board member from Livingston County.

Besides WROTB struggles, board members faced pressure from their home counties about WROTB. The corporation wasn’t sharing nearly the revenue it once was with its 15 member counties and the cities of Rochester and Buffalo.

“The county leaders were not happy,” Wamp said.

But in August, WROTB found a solution by scaling down the VLT plan. Instead of a big overhaul on the first floor, WROTB would focus on transforming the second floor Genesee Room into a video gaming center. That room already had extensive renovations as WROTB renovated parts of the Downs for its return to racing.

Instead of $7.7 million, the construction cost would be about $1.6 million, with another $600,000 needed for a roof repair, marketing and cash on hand for VLT winners.

Instead of 750 VLTs, WROTB initially projected 400 machines for the Genesee Room. But with some reconfiguring and use of the lobby, 586 VLTs fit comfortably in the second floor gaming center for opening day Wednesday.

Board members were in happy moods Wednesday morning when they saw the rows of bright-colored machines. They became even happier when the saw a large crowd quickly fill the gaming room after it opened at 10 a.m.

“We’re excited about the turning the corner,” Wamp said. “This is the thing that will push us over the top.”

State legislators and Gov. George Pataki also have come through, easing off the state’s take in VLT profits. Instead of 71 percent, the state only will keep 60 percent, giving WROTB and other track owners more money to operate and market the gaming centers.

Richard Siebert is happy to see the track brimming with people and enthusiasm again. Siebert represents Genesee County on the WROTB board of directors.

“It’s an emotional day for me because this has been a long time coming,” Siebert told reporters before a ribbon-cutting ceremony. “This track means so much to this community. Batavia Downs was about to shut down, the lights were out. We spent a lot of money to repair it and make this venture go. Today is the day it’s paying off.”

WROTB purchased the track in 1998 for $2.48 million. The track was headed to the auction block before WROTB stepped in, Siebert said. The corporation spent another $10 million upgrading the facility and about three years chasing licenses so it could return harness racing to Batavia.

“It’s been a long difficult road for us,” Martin Basinait, president of WROTB, told reporters Wednesday morning. “We’re very excited about this whole opportunity.”

The new video gaming floor is expected to generate about $30 million in profits during a full year. Besides the 60 percent that will go to New York Lottery for education revenue, about 8 percent will be used to boost racing purses and increase breeders’ funds. WROTB will have 32 percent to market and operate the facility. Anything left over, expected to be at least $1 million annually after covering the track operational loss, will be divvied up among 15 counties in western New York and the cities of Buffalo and Rochester.

The VLTs will give the corporation a financial life-line while it also works to upgrade its OTB parlors. Greg Davis, WROTB board chairman, sees new hope in that side of the business as well. WROTB is pushing to get downsized OTB operations into restaurants, bars and bowling alleys in the region. The first so-called E-Z Bet parlor opened Dec. 14 in Le Roy at the L.B. Grand, a Main Street restaurant.

The VLTs, E-Z Bets and harness horse racing, which WROTB entered when it bought the Downs in 1998, are all ways the corporation is reinventing itself to stay viable in the competitive gambling environment, Davis said.

“Just like McDonald’s added breakfast we can add products,” he said.

Raymond Coniglio
Assistant News/Business Editor
Batavia Daily News
(585) 343-8000 Ext. 2127
rconiglio@batavianews.com

Rochester, NY, May 18, 2005 -

ANNETTE LEIN staff photographer Maintenance worker Kevin Farrell paints the facade of Batavia Downs last week in preparation for today's opening with 586 video lottery terminals. Racing at the Western Regional OTB-owned track resumes Aug. 3. What's at stake The success of Batavia Downs Race Track directly affects taxpayers. Its owner, Western Regional Off-Track Betting, shares its profit with the 15 counties and two cities — Buffalo and Rochester — it operates in. So if the track loses money, the municipalities get less revenue. Track's revival rides on video lottery terminals   Batavia gambling center opens today, a $2M bet on prosperity. Joseph Spector Staff writer (May 18, 2005) — In its glory, Batavia Downs Race Track would attract 6,000 people on a Saturday night. But in recent years, the oldest nighttime harness track in America has been a shell of its former self. After the track was shuttered a year ago, cobwebs replaced racing fans in the grandstand seats and the rush of the wind, not the rustling of animals, could be heard near the aged horse barns. But the track, opened in 1940, adds a new chapter to its history today when owner Western Regional Off-Track Betting opens 586 state-run video lottery terminals, or VLTs, under that same grandstand. The slot machine-like terminals have been a savior for horse racing in New York and across the country, and no track may be more in need of an infusion than Batavia Downs. OTB officials are confident that the machines, plus a new law that gives tracks a better cut of the revenue, will put the track on solid footing. That's important to taxpayers because OTB shares revenue with the municipalities where it operates. "There's no question this is going to keep the facility going," said Martin Basinait, Western OTB president. After buying the track out of bankruptcy in 1998, Western OTB pumped more than $15 million into renovating the track and in the process put its own corporation into financial peril. Western OTB reopened the track in 2002 but shut it down less than two years later after Batavia Downs piled up a nearly $4 million deficit. With the VLTs, the track is expected to make a profit in its second year. And, to the delight of area horsemen, Batavia Downs will resume racing on Aug. 3 with a 53-day meet. The track will also employ about 300 full- and part-time workers and about 100 people more when racing starts. Installing the VLTs is "just something Western OTB had to do" to be financially solvent, said Bennett Liebman, coordinator of the Racing and Wagering Law Program at Albany Law School. Gambling market Batavia will become the state's fifth racetrack to operate VLTs since the state Legislature in 2001 — after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks — approved the largest gambling expansion in New York history. The law allowed VLTs, run by a central computer system in Albany, to operate at eight racetracks. The addition of Batavia Downs' "racino"will make western New York the most competitive gambling market in the state. Within a two-hour drive from Rochester, there are three American Indian casinos — in Salamanca, Cattaraugus County; Niagara Falls; and Verona, near Syracuse — and three racinos, in Batavia, Buffalo and Farmington, Ontario County. Batavia's entry will certainly create competition with Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack for Rochester-area gamblers. And with the law that lets tracks keep a greater cut of revenue and sets up a marketing fund, the two tracks will have more money to advertise and offer better incentives, track officials said. "I think they'll be a strong competitor for the Rochester market with us," said Chris Reigle, general manager at Finger Lakes. Yet officials at both tracks believe there are enough customers to go around. Experts say that industry standards for market saturation are generally one slot machine per 100 people. So with about 1.1 million people in the Rochester metropolitan area, it would take at least 10,000 machines for Rochester to max out, experts have estimated. The combined total for Batavia and Finger Lakes is only about 1,600 machines. That's probably a good reason why investors continue to explore building an Indian casino in Monroe County, viewing it as a market ripe for more gambling. But Ray Scott, director for the DePaul Problem Gamblers Program in Rochester, said the proliferation of gambling in western New York is troubling. In the past year, the center has added about 150 cases, roughly a 40 percent increase. Scott attributes the increase — particularly among women over age 50 with disposable income — to the new facilities. "Statistics have shown that as you expand the gambling opportunities, the number of people with problem gambling or compulsive gambling increases," Scott said. Effect on taxpayers Basinait admits that Batavia Downs' racino isn't as fancy as the one at Finger Lakes. It has 424 fewer machines, though with similar titles — including video poker — and doesn't have an expansive food court. Yet the facility will have daily lunch and dinner buffets in its clubhouse and a concession stand in its horseracing parlor. It will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m., seven days a week. Batavia spent about $2 million on its VLT facility; Finger Lakes, owned by Buffalo-based Delaware North Cos., spent about $10 million. Originally, Western OTB wanted to spend $7.7 million and install 750 machines in the vacant first-floor grandstand. But the struggles at Batavia Downs forced Western OTB to scale back its VLT facility. Yet Basinait said the scaled-down version may make the Downs more profitable because it will have fewer machines and less debt. Basinait estimates the machines will produce $180 a day each in net profit — on par with Finger Lakes and Saratoga Race Track, the state's most successful VLT facilities. Finger Lakes and Batavia will also likely draw from different markets. Batavia will pull more from the west of Rochester and into the Southern Tier, while Finger Lakes may pull more from the east and into central New York, officials said. Unlike Finger Lakes or any other track in New York, the success or failure of Batavia Downs directly affects taxpayers. Western OTB, a public-benefit corporation, shares revenue with the 15 counties and two cities — Buffalo and Rochester — where it operates. Yet the money has dwindled in recent years — about $1.5 million less in 2003 than in 2001. Western OTB estimates the track will produce a $3 million profit over time. Liebman said he knows of no other track in America that is essentially run by the government, raising questions about whether the state should be directly operating a gambling hall. "It's just a question of social policy," he said. "Should government be running a racino?" Regular patrons to Batavia Downs say they are glad to see the improvements. "It's keeping up with the times," said Barbara Schultz, 68, of Elba, who goes to Batavia Downs daily to bet on races at other tracks. The track's reopening is also expected to help nearby businesses. George Forsyth, who owns Georgie Porgies restaurant, said Batavia Downs is so ingrained in the history of the city and town that it has become a needed attraction. "It's very important to the community, not only from an associated sales standpoint, but from the employment it creates for the community," said Forsyth, a former Batavia town councilman. "It's a relief to see that it's going again." JSPECTOR@DemocratandChronicle.com

Verona, NY, May 17, 2005 -

Lawsuit alleges track owner's fraud

Vernon Downs board member says Scott gained his ownership by deception

Tuesday, May 17, 2005
By Glenn Coin
Staff writer
 
The majority owner of Vernon Downs obtained control through fraud and deceit, according to a complaint filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

In fact, the complaint states, Shawn Scott shouldn't have the rights of majority ownership at all because he obtained his 52 percent of the track's parent company through deception.

The complaint was filed by Dominick Giambona, a board member and stockholder of the racetrack's parent company, Mid-State Raceway. Giambona and two partners invested $1.5 million in Vernon Downs in 1999.

Scott's lawyer said the complaint is "incoherent" and inaccurate. The lawyer, Deborah Deitsch-Perez, points out that a federal judge dismissed a separate lawsuit last year that made similar charges against Scott.

Giambona has asked a bankruptcy court judge to throw out the deal that allowed Scott to buy more than 50 percent of Mid-State in 2002.

With a majority share, Scott could block any plan to bring Mid-State out of bankruptcy, said Giambona's lawyer, Lisa Tang.

"You can end up in a stalemate where any plan that's proposed can be shot down, which means the track will never open and Scott and Vestin (Mortgage) get their way and liquidate the company," Tang said.

Vernon Downs closed in July, and Mid-State filed bankruptcy in August. Racing normally resumes in late April, but there is no opening day in sight.

The complaint says that since Scott invested in Mid-State in early 2002, Scott and his business partners engaged in "a deliberate pattern of fraud, deceit, concealment, duress, economic coercion, collusion and cover-up." They lied to the Mid-State board and pressured board members to approve loans and payments that provided millions to Scott and his partners, the complaint charges.

Scott took control through a "loan-to-own" scheme that gave him control of stock and the Mid-State board in return for ever-increasing loans, according to the filing. The scheme allowed Scott to stack the board with accomplices - including his mother - who approved his deals, the complaint says.

"Scott through his affiliates and accomplices systematically looted and diverted the assets" of Mid-State, the complaint charges.

Deitsch-Perez said the lawsuit is just an example of sour grapes. Giambona, she said, tried to sell his own rights to Scott to buy more Mid-State stock, but those rights had already expired.

"What Giambona tried to sell (Scott) didn't exist," Deitsch-Perez said.

Deitsch-Perez said she's glad the complaint was filed so the stock ownership issues could be resolved.

The complaint alleges that Scott's associates benefited from the "loan-to-own" scheme. Among them:

Ö Scott's partner, John Baldwin, was paid $500,000 "directly, indirectly and surreptitiously."

Ö Scott's lawyer, Martin Gersten, received nearly $653,000 in legal fees in two years.

Ö Hoolae Paoa, Scott's right-hand man who ran the track until he lost his management license, "reaped significant economic benefit."

Albany, NY, May 17, 2005 -

Batavia, NY, May 14, 2005 -

Track gets ready for gambling By TODD FIELDING Genesee Correspondent 5/14/2005

Derek Gee/Buffalo News Jerry Birke of IGT sets up one of the company's new video lottery terminals Friday at Batavia Downs.   BATAVIA - Hundreds of guests gave Batavia Downs Gaming's 586 new video gambling machines a test run Friday night. People were given $500 of "play money" to try their luck at the flashy machines. An estimated 1,200 people were expected to attend the invitation-only "Friends and Family" evenings Friday night and tonight. Dottie Velletta of Oakfield couldn't wait to play the new games. "I think it looks great," said Velletta, a homemaker. "I was really surprised. There are a lot more machines than I expected." Track officials hope the new machines will turn around the fortunes of the track, which had been closed for one season. "It does look great," said Mark Wolf, Downs director of video gambling. "People will be very comfortable." Many of the facility's 300 new employees come from throughout the region. They were still working on last-minute details in preparation for Friday's event, which precedes a grand reopening to the public at 10 a.m. Wednesday. Track officials said the video gambling machines are overseen by the New York State Lottery, while the track is run by Western Regional Off-Track Betting. Track officials said $2 million was invested in the new machines, and they project revenues up to $30 million annually. The track will be open four days a week from August to November and three days a week from September to December. The gambling facility will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily.

Nichols, NY, May 16, 2005 -

Tioga Downs racetrack awaits June 14 lottery vote

KARA M. CONNERS
Gannett News Service


NICHOLS -- Legislation to build a multi-million dollar racetrack with video slot machines in Tioga County is headed toward a June 14 vote, with a public hearing set to take place early next month.

The measure cleared a local hurdle last Tuesday when Tioga County lawmakers set legislation for a local lottery law in motion. The board unanimously voted to introduce legislation that would allow the operation of video lottery gaming at the Tioga Downs Racino in Nichols.

Legislator Dale Weston, R-Spencer, said he's received some positive and negative feedback from constituents regarding gambling in the county. But, Weston said, the benefits of the track dramatically outweigh the negatives.

"I feel these (video lottery terminals) are no different than scratch-off cards or off track betting," Weston said. "That's condoned on every street corner where there is a convenience market."

The Court of Appeals agrees with Weston.

Last week, the court upheld the law that authorized video machines at racetracks. It was part of the most sweeping state court decision on gambling in decades.

That recent ruling, paired with the county legislature's Tuesday vote, cleared the way for Tioga Downs.

"I don't see any more roadblocks for this project," said Jeffrey Gural, who will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of Tioga Downs once it opens in 2006. "We're on track."

Tioga Downs, located off Route 17, last consistently hosted racing in the 1970s. Since then, it has been the site of flea markets and seasonal events. Tioga Downs Racetrack LLC, which was formed by Ontario-based TrackPower and Southern Tier Acquisition, will run the new track. The company took title to the park last year.

The track will have harness racing, video-lottery terminals, Simulcast racing, a restaurant, buffet, sports bar and lounge. In the first year, the park will see about $55 million in revenue, and the project will create 377 jobs, Gural has said.

Tioga Downs has asked the Racing and Wagering board for a license to operate a harness track meet 54 days a year, from May through early September. The rest of the services at the park will operate year-round.

Gural said he met with Racing and Wagering board officials on Monday to discuss licensing. Obtaining the needed permits and licensing won't be a problem, he said.

Final construction plans for the facility will be completed by the end of the week. Bids for the $20 million project will be awarded by the end of the month, he said.

After bids are awarded, Gural said he'll have an idea of when the project will be completed.

'We're looking to move forward and I'm not expecting any problems," he said.

Verona, NY, May 15, 2005 -

Difficult times in Vernon

Sunday, May 15, 2005
By Glenn Coin
Staff writer

It's quiet these days at Vernon Downs, where horses last raced 10 months ago.

It's also a little quieter in the tack shop, the local hardware store, the barbershop and the grocery store.

"We've suffered substantially," said Jack Heintz, who's owned the Foodland grocery store on Route 5 for 35 years. "The track employs hundreds of grooms, drivers, people who wait tables, horsemen who own horses and train them. Those people are my customers. They're the nuts and bolts of my operation."

Vernon Downs hasn't raced since July, when the state suspended the track's racing license over bounced checks. In August, the track's parent company, Mid-State Ra now track officials are talking about mid-June at the earliest.

Vernon Downs would have to hire a race secretary, bring in racing equipment, hire judges and choose a company to run the betting machines, said Mid-State board member Justice Cheney. None of that can be done until the track has a license to operate, he said.

"There's a lot of infrastructure that needs to be put in place and a lot of contracts that need to be let," Cheney said. "You wouldn't spend any of that money if you weren't going to race in 2005."

In the meantime, horse owners based year-round in Vernon drive to other tracks to race their horses. The costs of racing at other tracks eats into owners' profits, and all the while they're on the road, they're not spending money in Vernon, said Oliver Peterson, who owns the tack shop on the track grounds.

"People can't buy much because they're not making money," Peterson said. "They've got to go to Saratoga, they've got to go to Buffalo. And nowadays, gas prices are ridiculous."

Inside Peterson's Harness Shop, colored halters and extension cords hang from the ceiling. A back room holds several sewing machines for fixing harnesses. Outside, racing carts - called sulkies - lie about in various states of disrepair, waiting for Peterson to fix them.

"When racing is going on, I have to come down here two or three times a night just to get stuff for people racing," Peterson said. "We don't make money on repairs."

About 500 horses are boarded on the track's grounds now, a few hundred fewer than normal at this time of year. Owners are using Vernon Downs now as a training ground.

Even the local barber says his business is down. Without racing, fans aren't coming to the track and driving past the shop on Route 5.

"You do lose customers, that's the bottom line," said Dick Roberts, owner of Dick's Barber Shop. "You probably won't find anybody in Vernon that's not affected by what's going on over there."

At Foodland, Heintz estimates his business is down 30 percent because of the track's closure.

"You lose 30 percent and now it's hard to pay the $5,000 Niagara Mohawk bill and the insurances and all that goes with running a business," Heintz said.

Hamburg, NY, May 15, 2005 -

Binghamton, NY, May 11, 2005 -

Hamburg, NY, May 11, 2005 -

Just a reminder:

2 yr. old schooling will begin this Saturday, May 14, at 11:00am.

We will school for 2 weeks and then baby races will begin on Friday, May 27.

If you wish to participate in schooling, please contact the Horseman's office before Saturday morning!!

Hamburg, NY, May 7, 2005 -

Batavia, NY, May 3, 2005 -

Training begins at Downs for new gaming center

BATAVIA - After a two-year delay, training began Monday for nearly 100 employees who will staff the new gaming center at Western Regional Off-Track Betting's operation at Batavia Downs race track.
About half the nearly 600 video lottery terminals are already in place and operating in a renovated second-floor space in the Downs grandstand.

A $1.6 million renovation is nearly complete, and a May 18 date has been set for a grand opening, which, based on the experience of three other New York tracks with VLTs, could attract thousands.

WROTB has to overcome delays in financing, state lottery approvals and a late delivery of the VLT terminals. Because of a state ban on slot machines, the VLTs use script instead of coins. A race meet is required for the gaming center, and the Downs will resume night harness racing, canceled last year because of heavy operating losses, in August.

An MSNBC Special Report May 3, 2005 -

Daniel P. Derella / AP

Derby road is littered with high-priced flops

Top trainers like Baffert, Lukas end up saddling long shots

Trainer Bob Baffert has a Kentucky Derby long shot in Sort It out.

By Vic Zast
NBCSports.com contributor
Updated: 4:45 p.m. ET May 3, 2005Sort It Out didn’t exactly stink it up in the Coolmore Lexington Stakes at Keeneland, but his remote second to a winner who hadn’t even run in a stakes before didn’t make him smell like a horse with the perfume of roses, either.

Trainer Bob Baffert gave jockey Brice Blanc one instruction in the pre-race paddock. “Try to get in the Derby with him. You’re my last chance,” Baffert said to Blanc, knowing that the New York-bred son of Out of Place needed Graded Stakes earnings to qualify for starter’s orders in the Kentucky Derby. By finishing second, Sort It Out aggregated $65,000 and barely squeezed into the 20-horse list.

Baffert’s paddock instruction illustrates the desire that even sated trainers have for the Derby, and typifies the lengths to which owners go to be part of the Churchill Downs festivities on the first Saturday in May. Baffert, who in one span of six years won eight of 18 Triple Crown races, took over the training of Sort It Out when Bob and Janice McNair of Stonerside Farm bought the Whirlaway Stakes winner privately, then paid a $6,000 late nomination fee, with the Kentucky Derby prize in mind.

Whatever the McNairs paid for Sort It Out is peanuts compared to the money shelled out by other owners in search of Derby winners. Baffert had a fancy colt by Fusaichi Pegasus named Fusaichi Rock Star that cost Fusao Sekuguchi $850,000, and one by Seattle Slew named Christian Eagle that set Mark H. Stanley back $350,000. Neither of these two horses, nor any of the other 11 horses that Baffert nominated for the Derby will make it, including Roman Ruler, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile favorite from 2004. Roman Ruler is a $500,000 yearling purchased by the Fog City Stables of David Shimmon and William Bianco.

A race without privilege

Participation in the Kentucky Derby proceedings is without privilege, unlike membership in a restricted club. There is no explanation why gifted horses fall into certain hands. One need only look back a year to see trainer John Servis at the bridle of Smarty Jones. Look back two years and remember Barclay Tagg.

How is it that these guys were able to prevail when the sheikhs of Godolphin, the world’s most powerful stable, can’t buy a ticket to Kentucky even though they own Emirates Airlines, and Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel, the Graded Stakes king who is zero for eight in Derby tries, is bupkis in the one Graded Stakes that counts for everything?

In 2004, facing the frustration of prior years, trainer Saeed al Suroor, acting on behalf of Goldolphin, nominated no horses. This year, he nominated six, although none will start. Godolphin led owner nominators for the Triple Crown in 2001, 2002 and 2003, nominating 17, 20 and 19 in each of those years, respectively. Frankel nominated 16 this year; he will run one, the Louisiana Derby winner High Limit. In his dustbin is Saint Anddan, a $1,850,000 yearling.

The amount of money that owners spend in search of the Kentucky Derby winner is incalculable, unless one is willing to undertake the rigors of an IRS audit. But it is not crazy to estimate that the Triple Crown nominations list alone represents a figure approaching $70 million dollars of investment.

Baffert liked his chances

The current candidacy of Sort It Out notwithstanding, Bob Baffert thought earlier this year that he would have a decent shot in this year’s spring classics. Although once the turn-to trainer for owners with Kentucky Derby aspirations, Baffert had to buy War Emblem for Prince Ahmed Salmen for $900,000 in April of 2002 to get in. Last year, Baffert’s lightly-raced Wimbledon was scratched at the midnight hour, breaking the trainer’s string of eight consecutive years in which he saddled at least one Derby starter.

Baffert’s dry spell is no surprise to people who realize how difficult it is to get a horse at his peak for one specific day of his life. No prior history of giddy success in the Derby guarantees that one can duplicate it. No accumulation of riches provides a pass for its starting gate. Having a stable full of high quality 3-year-olds in your care isn’t the answer.

Last year, the fast-spending owners of 35 Kentucky Derby-nominated thoroughbreds placed their trust in trainer Todd Pletcher. Pletcher, the 2004 Eclipse Award winner for trainer of the year honors, managed to start only two – Limehouse, who finished fourth, and Pollard’s Vision, who finished last. This year, Pletcher had 34 nominated horses, and will start three, including Coin Silver, the inexperienced colt that beat Sort It Out in the Coolmore Lexington.

‘We'll give it a shot’

To say that Coin Silver has a chance in the Derby is like saying that actor Ron Silver might campaign for Hillary Clinton. A stoic Pletcher put the good face on things in the Keeneland winner’s circle by saying that “anytime a horse comes around this time of year, you’ve got to love it,” but this statement was nothing more than dog-whistle politics for “sure, we’ll give it a shot, boss.”

Coin Silver is owned by Peachtree Stables, a pseudonym for a syndicate of racing fans whose interests are managed by John Fort, a horse hustler from Georgia. A Derby runner is a boost to Fort’s fund-raising efforts, so Coin Silver’s emergence signifies more than a belated turn to form for the colt. Fort actually struck gold in a previous Kentucky Derby when Peachtree’s 55-1 Invisible Ink finished second to Monarchos in 2001. With this flip of the Coin Silver, he might simply be happy to be in the field.

The mighty D. Wayne Lukas, winner of four Kentucky Derbies, might be forcing the issue, too. His one Derby starter, Going Wild, a $650,000 son of Golden Missile, finished in Coin Silver’s wake at Keeneland. His other Derby starter, Consolidator, a $1.25 million Storm Cat purchase, was retired on Sunday after suffering a fracture during training. In addition to these two, Lukas began his walk down the Derby trail with horses by such highly-respected sires as Grand Slam, Lemon Drop Kid, Forest Wildcat, Cat Thief, High Yield and Mr. Greeley. The survivors, while very fashionably-bred, are merely adequately talented.

Lukas magic runs thin

The dish on Lukas for years is that he starts horses that don’t merit being in top races to satisfy his ego, and that of his owners. But no trainer is more dangerous with the ones least suspected. Charismatic is the Kentucky Derby winner that comes to mind when looking to the past in search of the Lukas magic. But the currently-dismissed Going Wild may represent the present.

And, speaking of the present, the rage these days is trainer Nick Zito. With a full fourth of the Derby starters under his care, how can 2005 not be Zito’s year again? Zito will send out Bellamy Road, the expected favorite; High Fly, the Florida Derby winner he picked up when the owner suffered a case of trainer fright in February; the Tampa Bay Derby winner Sun King; a $1.15 million yearling purchase named Noble Causeway, and Andromeda’s Hero, a plodder who may be this year’s biggest surprise.

The affable Brooklyn boy (now 53, but still with that trademark twinkle in his eye) won in 1991 with Strike the Gold and in 1994 with Go For Gin. Nevertheless, what people forget is that he’s lost with 12 Kentucky Derby starters, too, and he didn’t have a starter in either 2002 or 2003. Does this sound like a record of a man with the Derby mo-jo?

Winning the Kentucky Derby is so tough an assignment that owners believe that the more they spend, the better their chances. These high-rollers believe that only the big outfits such as those trained by Baffert, Pletcher, Lukas and Zito can get it done. To this extent, fifty percent of the Derby field will be horses trained by only three trainers. The reality is that Kentucky Derby champions aren’t easily purchased or pre-ordained. They’re made in the stretch of a long, grueling mile and a quarter where timing and prayer play a more important role than calculated planning.

© 2005 NBC Sports.com

Albany, NY, May 3, 2005 -

New York Court Upholds Racetrack VLT Law

by Tom Precious
Date Posted: 5/3/2005 11:58:14 AM
Last Updated: 5/3/2005 6:16:42 PM

New York's highest court upheld as legal the spread of video lottery terminals to racetracks in a ruling issued May 3, a major victory for the state's racing industry.
With the recent increase in VLT revenue to the racing industry, the decision by the Court of Appeals likely represents the last major hurdle for the New York Racing Association to begin its long-stalled VLT operation at Aqueduct.

The Court of Appeals rejected a challenge brought by gambling foes who argued VLTs are actually slot machines, and therefore banned by the state constitution. The plaintiffs, a group of religious and civic leaders, as well as two state lawmakers, also challenged the VLT revenue split that permits some of the gambling proceeds to go to purses and breed development.

But the high court, in the highly anticipated ruling, said VLTs are not slot machines, and that they meet the mandatory test of being a lottery game. The VLTs are run by the state lottery division and are hooked up to a central computer from which winning numbers are determined.

The court, in a majority decision written by Judge Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick, said "if the video lottery is a lottery, the statute providing for it is constitutional regardless of whether the terminals used to play the lottery also look like, or even meet the penal law definition, of slot machines."

The court also said the constitution is not so rigid so as to prevent modernization of lottery betting machines, even if they are made to resemble slots. "It is of no constitutional significance that the tickets are electronic instead of paper. The particular methods of conducting the lottery are subject to change with time," the court determined.

The ruling also backs the revised laws determining how racetracks are to be paid from VLT proceeds, as well as money for purses and breed development. "The revenue to be reinvested belongs to the racetracks in the first place," the court said and that it is "generally not for the courts to determine whether a particular vendors fee set by the legislature is reasonable."

The court also defended the VLT revenue-sharing provision for the racing industry. "While we can perhaps imagine a case where a fee was so excessive as to constituting nothing more than a flagrant end-run around the requirement that the net proceeds of the lottery be applied exclusively to education, the fee at issue here does not begin to approach that standard," the court ruling said.

The VLT law, as well as an expansion of Indian casinos and a new lottery game, were approved by lawmakers shortly after the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. Lawmakers and Gov. George Pataki at the time insisted the gambling spread was needed to bring more revenue to the cash-starved state. Besides the VLT provision, the court also upheld Indian gambling expansion and New York's entry into a multi-state lottery game.

In April, as part of the state budget, lawmakers approved changes to the VLT revenue split intended to deal with an earlier court ruling that said it was illegal to direct VLT proceeds to purses and breed development. Under previous law, 29% of VLT revenue, after payouts to bettors and the state, goes to tracks. A portion of that money, on a sliding scale, goes to purses and breed development.

Interestingly, the court's decision would appear to have made the legislature's VLT revenue-sharing fix unnecessary. Lawmakers took that route to deal with a mid-level appeals court ruling on the matter. But the high court made clear the earlier revenue-sharing deal, including awarding money for purses and breed development, was acceptable.

Under the new provision, tracks get 32% of the first $50 million in annual VLT revenue, 29% on the next $100 million, and 26% on anything above that amount. In addition, lawmakers added a "marketing and promotional" payment that would provide an additional 8% on the first $100 million in VLT revenue, and 5% on everything over that figure. For Aqueduct and Yonkers Raceway, the fund for marketing, promotion, and associated costs of VLT operations would be capped at 4% of all VLT revenue.

Money for purses and breed development would then come out of the track's VLT proceeds, subject to separate deals between tracks, horsemen, and breeders. Currently, VLT casinos are operational at Finger Lakes Gaming and Racetrack and three harness tracks--Buffalo Raceway, Monticello Raceway, and Saratoga Raceway.

The court's decision – upholding the earlier law that set specific revenue sharing levels for purses and breeding funds – appears to provide a stronger negotiating stance for horsemen and breeders as they negotiate with tracks over VLT splits. Both groups have strong ties at the state Capitol and could convince the legislators to undo the "fix" that was devised last month to give more VLT money to tracks without specifying an exact VLT share to purses and breeding accounts.

NYRA President Charles Hayward and representatives of the horsemen's organization at NYRA did not return calls for comment Tuesday.

But Barry Ostrager, the head of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc. said he expects NYRA will want "to partner with the horsemen and breeders to have a synergistic, cooperative and happy outcome" over VLT splits. Asked if his group plans to go back to the Legislature in the next couple months to get the old VLT revenue sharing law back, Ostrager said, "If the NYRA agrees promply to a contract we won't. If they don't, we will."

"We have every hope and expectation that the NYRA, with which we've had a long and successful relationship," he added, "will honor the Legislature's intent and adhere to the original agreement that they made when they went with the breeders and horsemen to the Legislature and proposed to the Legislature the (VLT) percentages outline in the (original) legislation."

While the plaintiffs are talking about appealing the decision involving Indian casinos to the U.S. Supreme Court, they said further challenges to the VLT law are now over.

Bennett Liebman, head of a racing and wagering think tank at Albany Law School, said the decision does leave a key question remained unanswered: what is a legal lottery game. While the court said the racetrack VLT program is a lottery, and so therefore legal, it did not "really clarify what exactly a lottery means."

That could be important because tracks have been considering expanding their VLT offerings to include such games as video poker. "Would video poker, which combines both elements of chance and skill, be a lottery under this definition?" Liebman wondered.

Copyright © 2005 The Blood-Horse, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Hamburg, NY, April 30, 2005 -

Verona, NY, April 27, 2005

Vernon Downs has new suitor

Deeply indebted Colorado gaming firm considers buying bankrupt racetrack

By Glenn Coin
Staff writer

A national gaming company that runs three casinos and a horse track is interested in buying bankrupt racing track Vernon Downs.

But Jacobs Entertainment of Colorado is itself deeply in debt. According to documents filed with the federal government, the company has a "significant amount of indebtedness" that could hamper its operations and potential growth.

Jacobs officials have said they want to buy Vernon Downs' parent company, Mid-State Ra its license was suspended in July. Mid-State has not filed a complete application to get the license reinstated for this year. Vernon Downs already has missed its traditional starting date in late April, and officials say now that racing might not resume until June. The offer from Jacobs is similar to the one proposed by New York City businessman Jeff Gural but would be better for Mid-State stockholders, Deitsch-Perez said. Gural plans to invest $1.2 million to get the track running this year. He also has agreed to provide an additional $7.3 million to get the casino building open. According to Mid-State financial reports, the casino could bring in gross revenue of $47 million per year.

Latham, NY, April 27, 2005 -

FFI: M. Kelly Young, Harness Horse Breeders of NYS, 518-785-5858

NYSS YEARLING NOMINATIONS NOW DUE MAY 15

LATHAM, N.Y.—The Agriculture and New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund has adopted several condition changes for the New York Sire Stakes program. These changes will be applied to the yearling crop which is nominated this year (foals of 2004) and races in 2006 and 2007.

One of the most important changes is that yearling nominations are now due May 15, instead of the previous July 15 date. The nomination fee remains at $30 per horse for eligibility to all New York-bred events.

Other important changes are as follow:

SUPPLEMENTARY ENTRIES: The supplementary entry fee (for 2-year-olds that were not nominated as yearlings) has been changed to $500. This fee is due by February 15 of the 2-year-old year, in addition to the normal February 15 and April 15 sustaining payments, to become eligible to the New York Sire Stakes program.

QUALIFYING STANDARDS: To declare into a NYSS race, horses must still show a satisfactory charted performance line within 30 days of declaration and meet the qualifying standards. These standards will be in effect beginning in 2006 and will not apply to the New York-Bred Late Closer series. The modified qualifying standards are:

BICARBONATE TESTING: There is no longer a separate testing level for horses on Lasix (furosemide). Now, if any horse is tested and has a TCO2 blood level equal to or exceeding 37 millimoles per liter, the stated penalties will apply, including the horse's 60-day disqualification from the New York Sire Stakes.

BREAKING RULE: If an eligible horse shows two consecutive breaks in its last two races, the horse must re-qualify and show a satisfactory charted performance line including qualifying time, without a break, before being entered in a NYSS event. Officially charted workouts before judges will not be allowed.

RECALLS: Recalls in a NYSS race will be only for broken equipment, interference behind the starting gate, a horse falling before the word "go", a horse scoring ahead of the gate or a horse assuming incorrect post position, or malfunctions of the starting gate. This rule is a clarification of what was already in practice.

This is only a summary of the condition changes; Harness Horse Breeders urges both nominators and those who intend to own or train an eligible foal of 2004 to carefully review the full conditions. The revised conditions are printed on the yearling nomination blank, in the USTA 2005 Stakes Nomination Booklet, and they may be forwarded to you from the HHB office. If you have any questions or would like clarification of the conditions, contact Harness Horse Breeders at any time by calling 518-785-5858.

Yearling nomination blanks were mailed to the owner of record of mares bred to a New York-eligible stallions in early April. If you have a foal of 2004 but have not received a nomination blank, please call the Breeding Fund to request one at 518-436-8713.


M. Kelly Young
Executive Assistant
Harness Horse Breeders of New York State
400 Troy-Schenectady Road
Latham, NY 12110
Tel: 518-785-5858
Fax: 518-785-5848
nyss@nysirestakes.com
www.nysirestakes.com

Hamburg, NY, April 23, 2005 -

Hamburg, NY, April 20, 2005 -

As of Wednesday, May 11, we will begin racing a 4 day per week schedule which will include Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. That schedule will continue until Sunday, July 31.

In addition, we will also race on Monday, May 30. We are aware that we currently have a surplus of horses, and management was receptive to our proposal for a fourth day being added sooner than originally scheduled. Hopefully, the additional dates will allow all horses to race on a weekly basis so that everyone has a chnace to participate in the increased purses.

Albany, NY, April 20, 2005 -

New York legislators to conduct hearing on future of horse racing

Senator Bill Larkin (R-Cornwall-on-Hudson) and Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow (D-Yonkers) will conduct a May 17 hearing on the future of horse racing in New York.
Larkin is chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Racing, Gaming, and Wagering, and Pretlow is the chairman of the assembly’s Standing Committee on Racing and Wagering.

Only those invited will be allowed to give testimony at the hearing. Expected topics include recommendations from industry experts to the Legislature to improve conditions and make horse racing more viable in New York, factors impeding the success of horse racing in the state, decreases in handle on in-state races, expanded gaming in surrounding jurisdictions, and management of the New York Racing Association, the state’s racing franchise.

ThoroughbredTimes.Com

Hamburg, NY, April 19, 2005 -

Owego, NY, April 14, 2005 -

OWEGO -- Nearly 100 Southern Tier residents packed the Tioga County office building auditorium Wednesday night to hear plans for a multimillion-dollar race track in Nichols.

 

David Climans with Climans Green Liang Architects Inc., based in Toronto, shows an artist's rendering of the new Tioga Downs Racino building while officials with the new harness racing track and gaming project gather Wednesday in Nichols.

CHUCK HAUPT / Press & Sun-Bulletin

The grandstand at the former Tioga Park race track in Nichols will be demolished to make way for the new 9,500-square-foot Tioga Downs Racino building that will house the operations for harness racing and gaming.

For the first time since Tioga Downs Racetrack LLC took title to the park last year, the public heard specific plans about development and employment possibilities there.

"We're using Tioga as an experiment to see if we can revitalize racing," Jeffrey Gural said Wednesday. Gural will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of Tioga Park once it opens in 2006. He said racing has been on a steep decline in the past three decades, but he hopes his $20 million investment in the Nichols park will spark a resurgence of the sport.

The park will be known as the Tioga Downs Racino.

The track will have harness racing, video-lottery terminals, Simulcast racing, a restaurant, buffet, sports bar and lounge. In the first year, the park will see about $55 million in revenue, Gural said. He said the project will create 377 jobs -- and he's already received 2,800 job applications. Gural and several local, regional and state officials attended the meeting.

Scott and Colleen Stannard said the Southern Tier needs the financial shot in the arm. The Endicott couple, formerly of Owego, attended the meeting to get more details about the financial impact of the project.

"The community needs it because around this area, there is nothing like this," Scott Stannard said.

There are four race tracks across the state; five more tracks, including Tioga, are planned.

Tioga Park, located off Route 17 in Nichols, last consistently hosted racing in the 1970s. It has since been the site of flea markets and seasonal events. Tioga Downs Racetrack LLC, which was formed by Ontario-based TrackPower and Southern Tier Acquisition, will run the new track.

Tioga Downs has asked the Racing and Wagering board for a license to operate a harness track meet at the site 54 days a year, from May through early September. The rest of the services at the park will operate year round, Gural said.

Before the park can become a reality, the Tioga County Legislature must approve the project; the Town of Nichols also must vote on it. County lawmakers expect to vote within the next two months.

"We have taken a gamble," Gural said. "Time is money, and we wanted to get a head start."

© 2005 Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin

Owego, NY, April 14, 2005 -

Tioga Downs may bring benefits

By: Patrick Abdalla 04/14/2005

Tioga Downs CEO and owner Jeff Gural, right, talks with Tioga County Manager John Byrne during a work session with the county legislature Wednesday. OWEGO, N.Y. - Tioga Downs will bring in about 400 new jobs and more than $40 million into the local economy, the racetrack's owner told the Tioga County Legislature Wednesday night. The racetrack will operate from May through September; however, the video lottery terminals will be open year round, said the prospective racino's owner, Jeff Gural. Gural, a businessman from Manhattan, explained that early on there would be about 450 people working at the Downs, including those handling the horses, and that number would drop off after so many years. He also admitted that after the first couple of years, the money generated by the casino would drop off but remain steady. According to Gural, the impact of the racetrack will matter on how well it is marketed. "This isn't like 'Field of Dreams' where 'If you build it, they will come,' " he said. "If you market it and promote it right it will work." He said the impact from the new jobs and the secondary impact from businesses that would support the track, such as convenient stores, gas stations and improved business in the area from traffic, would be between $42 million and $48 million dollars. While a court has said the terminals are unconstitutional in the state, Gural explained after the meeting that the question of constitutionality concerns where the money would go. He said that the law in question has money going to the horse racers, and not education. Gural also said the track could expand in years ahead to include a hotel and maybe even a water park. As it is planned to be built now, the racetrack will include a sports bar and simulcast facility, a buffet and a gift shop. Throughout the information session Gural touched on several subjects including problem gamblers.  "I'm not going to lie to you and say there isn't going to be people in there that shouldn't be in there," he said. However he said there are ways to support those individuals. He also said that because there will be about 150 people coming to live in the area for the racing season, a hotel would be built.  "If it's successful," he said, "either we'll build a hotel or somebody else will build a hotel." While people were allowed to comment about the racetrack at the end of the meeting, no one provided any negative points about the business. State Sen. Tom Libous, said the racetrack provides a prospect local officials must take advantage of.  "I think it's a great economic opportunity," he said. "Creating an opportunity for Tioga County that would (be) dangerous to act negatively to." For the track to operate within the county and Town of Nichols limits, both governments would have to pass legislation allowing the Downs. Nichols Town Board member Charles Quick said he was personally in favor of the racino.  "Aside from the Lockheed Martin deal, Tioga county needs a shot in the arm and this would be it," he said. Marty Borko, the Tioga County legislative chair, said the legislature could move on the issue in May or June.

©Towanda Daily and Sunday Review 2005

Albany, NY, April 13, 2005 -

Late last night, the Governor signed the Budget Bill which included new VLT language submitted word for word by our industry coalition. This is a great day for racing in New York State. I will be sending out a newsletter to all of our members shortly explaining the details of the new legislation and what effect it will have on us. Congratulations to all of you who have hung in there through the tough times.

Bruce

Pataki Approves VLT Bill More Beneficial to Tracks
by Tom Precious
Date Posted: 4/13/2005 8:22:41 AM
Last Updated: 4/13/2005 8:22:41 AM

New York Gov. George Pataki. Associated Press

The new bill also extends the VLT law, now set to expire at the beginning of 2014, until the end of 2017.

Albany, NY, April 12, 2005 -

Deadline today for Pataki to veto racetrack bill

The fate of bankrupt Vernon Downs could hang on Gov. George Pataki today

Pataki has until today to decide whether to veto legislation that increases the amount of money racetracks would receive from video gambling parlors.

On March 31, the state Legislature voted to double the percentage of gambling proceeds available to tracks, from about 20 percent to as much 40 percent. Vernon Downs officials say it would be easier to find investors or buyers if Pataki approved the legislation.

Bloodhorse.Com, April 8, 2005 -

Study Shows Cold Air Can Induce Airway Obstruction

Date Posted: 4/8/2005 12:55:11 PM
By Melissa Sykes

Researchers at Oklahoma State University recently completed a study on airway cooling and mucosal injury during cold weather exercise. Using the Thoroughbred racehorse as a model, scientists found that even cantering in subfreezing temperatures can induce airway obstruction (bronchoconstriction, or airway contraction). The research appeared in the February issue of the Journal of Applied Physiology.

Human subjects that routinely perform strenuous exercise in cold conditions have a higher prevalence of chronic airway inflammation and hyperactivity (often referred to as "ski asthma" because its effects are often found in cross-country skiers). The scientists set out to determine whether exercise while breathing cold air could cause chronic airway disease in the equine athlete.

Previous studies in both humans and horses have confirmed that when exercising in subfreezing temperatures with low humidity, the upper airways fail to fully warm the inhaled air, leading to considerable loss of heat and water from the lower airways. These studies also confirmed that this stimulus is associated with airway mucosal damage.

"Our data show that exercising in cold air can provoke airway changes in otherwise healthy horses and may in fact be a part of the cause of the eventual development of chronic airway disease in equine athletes," explained lead researcher Dr. Michael S. Davis.

The effects were seen in horses exposed to exercise/cold air during a single challenge (five minutes of easy cantering).

"We intentionally ran the horses at a slow canter to avoid airway bleeding and, as a result, had to reduce the temperature of the inhaled air to compensate," said Davis. "We published an earlier study (in a supplement to the Equine Veterinary Journal in 2002) in which we demonstrated that a similar challenge will be delivered at a fast canter or gallop with air temperatures above freezing. Thus, this is not just an issue for horses running way up north or in the dead of winter. Part of our previous study was done on horses training at Pimlico (in Baltimore, Md.) in late March and early April."

Once the challenge was over, the airways returned to normal, but, "We don't know how long it took as we allowed them a minimum of two weeks before we tried anything else."

Davis added, "The reality is that horses that experience one challenge are likely to experience repeated challenges three to four times a week while training. The time it takes these cumulative challenges to resolve is probably quite a bit longer.

"We've done similar studies in sled dogs and found that it takes more than four months to resolve," he said. "We are considering studies in both horses and sled dogs to see if they perform better if and when we make the airway inflammation go away."

Researchers feel the effects of cold weather exercise might inhibit the immune response.

But, Davis stressed, these studies do not demonstrate conclusively that the horse's immune system is suppressed, "Only that they have trouble responding to certain types of infection."

"We're currently developing those studies (on the immune response)," added Davis.

"Obviously, the results would potentially apply to humans since the cold and flu season seems to be in the winter."

Copyright © 2005 The Blood-Horse, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Hamburg, NY, April 7, 2005 -

Batavia, NY, April 5, 2005 -

Gaming center opening at Downs faces delay

From the Buffalo Evening News

BATAVIA - A new gaming center at the Batavia Downs racetrack should be complete by the middle of this month, but a delay in obtaining video lottery terminals from the manufacturer might postpone the opening until early May.

The historic track - owned for four years by Western Regional Off-Track Betting - has converted a second-floor area to accommodate nearly 600 of the devices, which are similar to slot machines but use script instead of coins.

After being dark last year, the track will resume night harness racing in August.

Daily Racing Form,  April 4, 2005 -

New York budget boosts slot revenue to tracks

By MATT HEGARTY

The New York legislature passed a budget on Thursday that includes provisions to increase revenues to racetracks from slot machines and to provide guarantees to the New York Racing Association's business partner in a long-stalled casino project at Aqueduct.

Under the budget, tracks that operate slot machines will get 32 percent of the first $50 million in annual revenue, 29 percent of the next $100 million, and 26 percent of any revenue above $150 million. In addition, the budget gives most tracks, with the exception of Yonkers and Aqueduct, additional money for marketing and advertising expenses - 8 percent of the first $100 million in slots revenue and 5 percent of the revenue above $100 million.

Yonkers and Aqueduct, which have not opened slot-machine casinos yet, would receive 4 percent of all revenue for advertising and marketing. The casinos at those tracks, which are in the New York City metropolitan area, are expected to be the highest slots revenue generators in the state. Aqueduct is one of three tracks operated by NYRA.

The budget includes a guarantee that the contract held by NYRA's business partner, MGM Grand, to develop a slot-machine casino at Aqueduct will not be threatened if NYRA loses its franchise to operate Aqueduct, Belmont Park, and Saratoga. NYRA's franchise expires on Dec. 31, 2007, and the political contest surrounding the renewal effort is expected to be bitterly contested by racing and gambling companies intent on getting a share of the slot-machine revenue.

Slot machines were legalized at eight New York tracks in 2001, but since then only four have opened slot casinos: three harness tracks - Fairgrounds Gaming and Racing in Buffalo, Saratoga Harness Raceway, and Monticello Raceway - and one Thoroughbred track, Finger Lakes. Two other harness tracks, Batavia Downs and Vernon Downs, have not opened casinos.

Combined revenues from the four track casinos have been below projections, and casino operators have blamed a lack of funds to market and advertise the facilities in the face of competition from nearby Native American casinos. Under the original law, a flat 29 percent of slots revenue was earmarked for the racing industry, including money to cover advertising and marketing expenses.

Charles Hayward, the president and chief executive officer of NYRA, said Friday that he expected the budget to go through several revisions before being signed by Gov. George Pataki, who has indicated that he opposes several elements of the slot-machine provisions. But Hayward said he was confident the budget would survive in a form that would allow Aqueduct to begin construction on its casino.

"I think that the entire industry - the Thoroughbred tracks, the harness tracks, the horsemen, the owners, the breeders - are in agreement that this is a good bill," Hayward said. "We think there will be some changes, but we still think that a good bill will eventually pass."

Hayward said that Aqueduct would likely have a casino open by the summer of 2006 if the bill is passed in a satisfactory form. Gov. Pataki has until April 12 to approve the budget, but he is expected to press for some changes.

Under the budget, subsidies for purses will be provided through agreements between the racetracks and horsemen's associations. Under the original law, horsemen were guaranteed a portion of the 29 percent of slot-machine revenue retained by racetracks, but that provision was ruled unconstitutional last year by the New York Supreme Court, which held that slot-machine proceeds could not be used to provide subsidies for racing. The budget does not specify that horsemen will get a percentage of slots revenue. But Hayward said that NYRA and its horsemen are working on a contract that would spell out the contributions horsemen would receive, likely to be about 8 percent of total slots revenue.

Hamburg, NY, April 1, 2005 -

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