Questions Maybe You Want Answered

So the TTimes interview was a bit of a puff for me.  I don't fault them, it's a good interview, but not sure it appeases the fans or tells us anything we didn't know.  So I did a little email myself.  The below conversation occurred.  Do you think these questions are over the line?  Why can't these questions be answered?  By doing this the BC shorts the fans.  They know we're not happy with the thought of 1 site, they know we're not happy with the utter darkness most fans are kept in, and yet they stone wall some simple questions where w/ some specific honest answers they could look good.  This is why retirement was easier.  I wrote ___________________ Mr.  Field, hope you don't mind just a few extra questions from this fan.  I'm part of a group of horse racing bloggers that have had contact with the people at BC and just wanted to get into a few more specifics.  Feel free to just stick your answers in anywhere to questions you feel comfortable answering. Thanks! You said that the Breeders' Cup "is already a world-class sporting event in many ways," but they are not strong enough to have a moving last day of championships.  What % increase to revenue do you think local sponsorships can bring?  Do you think seeing local sponsorships on the grounds and possibly in TV shots might cheapen the brand?  [I'm thinking I know when I'm watching minor league baseball because of all the local advertisement they need to stay afloat.]  How would a rotation of 3 or 5 tracks be disruptive, how are the benefits outweighed by the negative of a small rotation?  Benefits being: no home track advantage, staying away from the dirt/synth debate, appeasing multiple factions of breeders, bringing the race to the fans. Do you think that the Breeders' Cup at location X could grow to be like the Master's at Augusta or do you think it will eventually have to move to grow? Making sure the BC highest the 2 days in purses seems key to keeping the luster on the brand, and luckily Dubai has other things to worry about, but is there a point where it doesn't have a marginal return and how far away from that are we? About the Racing Series Are you aware of the American Graded Stakes calendar?  The horses that perform well through out the Graded Stakes seem to also do well when it comes to the Eclipse awards, how is this not a good structure to start from? The AGSC have been in place for quite some time and do have an international structure, do you believe a new schedule that includes/excludes some of these races will sit well with longer-term fans and international fans? How is the AGSC wrong in their assessment of important races? Why wouldn't A NASCAR type points system (or a simpler one) based on the American Graded Stakes not work in leading up to the Breeders' Cup? [There are a lot of Graded stakes, but a focus on I's and II's would nicely fit into a weekly schedule] Thanks Patrick _____________ This is what I got back, silence would have been better _____________ Hi Patrick, thanks for your email.  Would you mind directing any such questions through Jim Gluckson at the Breeders' Cup PR team?   (Mr Gluckson's Email)  Regards, William ______________ So I emailed Mr Gluckson ______________ Mr Gluckson I'm forwarding you on a few questions I'd like Mr Field to field.  They are a bit more pointed than those in the Q&A from TTimes and they would certainly clear up a couple things for the longer term fan.  This isn't a set up, I'm for change, I just want to get into a bit more of the specifics, and you can see that by the questions below.  Would you allow Mr Field to answer or maybe you can answer them? Mr Field, Thanks, I am forwarding it on as we speak, but I am a bit disappointed, you are the key outside idea man on this and I was hoping some specific questions after the TTimes piece would really clear things up for some of the hard core fans like myself.  You know we're the ones that do all the leg recruiting new fans when it comes down to it. Thanks Patrick ______________ And finally I got this ______________ Patrick: We are standing behind Mr. Field's answers in his Thoroughbred Times interview on the main issues about our current options in our stratgic planning, and respectfully decline further comment. -Jim ______________ Not sure what they are actually standing behind; a bunch of amorphous answers to questions that contradict one another.  I wouldn't expect anything better from the BC.

The Most Dangerous Word in Our Sport: Consultants

I wrote this back in January with a little input from other people, and I just came across the recent interview w/ William Field on Thoroughbred Times (part I part II).  I'm still well into retirement, but something about consultants really pisses me off, and I seem to do my best writing angry so here's an old post w/ some new curse words. In the recent article by Bloodhorse the pillars of the future of racing have been described: --Explore the feasibility of a single permanent host site location for the Breeders' Cup World Championships; --Establish a new Breeders' Cup Racing Series in partnership with North American and European racetracks to better define and market the road to the Breeders' Cup World Championships; --Expand brand marketing and commercial development programs, with an emphasis on digital marketing and social media; --Take a new approach to nominations to significantly expand the number of Breeders' Cup eligible horses. Pillars is such a great word, I wonder what it cost?  I wonder about the cost, because I wonder about what exactly we got.  I wonder about what exactly we got because the above pillars have been discussed for the past 20 years, and no one in the industry wants to do much about them.  If the people on the BC board needed consultants to point this out to them, why are they on the board in the first place?   Have you seen William Field's answers?  Please take a moment to go read the Thoroughbred Times piece if you haven't.  Ok?  You're back?  You feel good about what he's said right?  Of course, I did too.  Right now you think he deserves every penny he gets. The feasibility of a permanent home.  It sounds nice, but how feasible is it when the money from the BC comes from breeders across the country and settling on one permanent site favors one state over the others.  Add in that only college football has quasi-permanent homes for end of season games, and I wonder why it's a good idea in the first place.  Finally, didn't two years at Santa Anita nearly create a revolt from the fan base (Thank God that Zenyatta was as good as billed, and Sea The Stars didn't come).  Even a rotation plan of several select tracks makes more sense than this.  Seeing that Jim Gluckson has said that this is already "likely" makes me wonder how much exploring has been done, and whether this whole thing is a charade to pay consultants and make it appear as if thought is going into these type of decisions.  My follow up question to Mr. Feild is if there is "strong support for the Championships being an international championships" why are we regionalizing the Championships by holding it in one place every year?  If we want to have a global brand what damage is done by local advertisers appearing in what should be major brand placements?  Finally, does the small revenue generated by local advertisers by being consistent make that much of a difference to the BC purses? Does the BC really need the best purses to attract the best fields?  If the Kentucky Derby was only a $500k race I think they'd still get the best field.  The best part is that in part II he contradicts himself (somewhat) "{The BC] is already a world-class sporting event in many ways. The single most important reason why it stands shoulder-to-shoulder with other great events is that it brings together so many of the world’s best horses. The quality of any sporting event is a product of the caliber of the competitors. That is why maintaining and building on the quality of the fields is essential."  This sentence alone probably cost 6 figures. Maybe cementing the BC as a championship day not in name alone would be a good angle, which brings me to the next pillar.  Establish a new Breeders' Cup Racing Series.  The Thoroughbred Bloggers' Alliance is a believer that this is a possibility, but it's the American Graded Stakes, not something that a group will create in one year and tell us that it's important.  No fans, whether new or old, have bought into the "Win and You're In" angle.  Why must consultants always mess with something that's actually working?  Hours billed.  Sorry that question was rhetorical.  Seriously, these bullshit answers hurt my head the most. If you're a consultant, sorry, if you're a good consultant the "lack of a centralized authority with the ability to mandate the necessary schedule changes and participation by the top horses and tracks" should NOT slow you down.  You work with what you've got and you make the best of it.  Seriously, this guy at the end of the day has some of my money in his pocket, and I want it back.  Supposedly "the Breeders’ Cup will have more to say about that in the coming weeks."  If it's an expansion of Win and You're In and picking and choosing what races count for what, I'm out.  I'm just going to play Monmouth Park and be done with the rest of the country.  William Field only spoke on two of the pillars I guess, but I wanted to chime in on the others.  Digital Marketing and Social Media.  I'm a user and a believer of both, but again, it took consultants to point this out?  How many panels in how many states must we have before, as an industry, they make a joint effort?  Furthermore, it's the content, stupid:  Race videos, past performances, workouts, and entries, all behind either a pay wall or behind a wall where the user can't manipulate the information. Please stop f'ing your customers. New Nominations procedure.  Ok, that sounds like a good idea, but only because I don't know much about the current procedure, is it really broken?  I guess so if the consultants say so, right? Here are my 4 pillars: --Explore the feasibility (internally, not by consultants) of a mass review of contracts that govern this sport.  --Establish a link between the Breeders' Cup and the graded stakes, here and abroad. --Expand the usefulness of information.  Create API's for any and all information produced by the industry.  Review contracts that govern past performances. --Take a fresh approach to nominations

I'm Doubling Down

Just want to stick my head out here from retirement and cheer on a cause I believe in, and support 110%.  I'm doubling down at Monmouth Park.  I've heard that Monmouth needs to double its handle to turn a profit this upcoming Summer, and while that number is even being debated, I'm here ready to do just that.  What caused this Favre-esque post is the post by the ever dour Pricci. With an opening paragraph close of, "Monmouth Park has created a template by which racing will not only survive but even thrive in the future, the smart money is betting against." I mean why bother even having the meet?  Let's cancel it and just run $2,000 claimers 7 days a week 12 races a day, and when the AC money dries up just bulldoze the whole place and put up Xanadu South.  (I should point out I'm being facetious, as someone in Jersey government might just take me seriously, [f'ing Xanadu])  Also, Pricci only commends the effort in his comments, I was already putting the hose in my car window by the time I got down there though. Listen, I'm a cheap gambler.  But, I support Monmouth Park and this experiment.  I mean it's what I've always wanted.  I think horse racing will only survive with fewer race days, higher purses, and horses competing head to head.  Monmouth is doing that, and for us (writers, fans, gamblers, sourpusses) to poo-poo that 10 weeks before opening day is just... well... racing being racing, but I'm not standing for this shit anymore. I support Monmouth Park not only because it's my home track, but because what they are doing is right.  They've updated their homepage, they've been approved by the NTRA health and safety, they embrace a family atmosphere at the track, they've gone all in on the social networking, the facility always looks top notch.  I'll be there opening day (May 22nd) and Monmouth will be the only track that gets my money this summer, and it will mostly be live and in person.  I'm Doubling Down!  Will you?