Anti-Racing in PA

[jnunan4759]

This story published repeats and frequently echoed false narrative in PA.

http://www.philly.com/philly/business/horse-racing-casinos-slots-purses-gaming-20180406.html

Casinos are only in PA because the law dictates a percentage goes to the industry. Casinos were not going to pass unless they did that, it was the only way they could pass the law. The horse industry flourished after that until Gov. Tom Corbett discovered he could take money from the Race Horse Development Fund to use it for other things. He depleted it by millions and devastated the breeding industry in PA. Breeder's realized that the RHDF (which provides bonuses for PA Bred horses) was not something to count on. Breeding is a 4 year process, and if you're going to invest in it, you want some confidence in the environment.

Due to the snatch of funds, several operations closed down PA operations.

The accusation that West Coast and Arab owners reap benefits from PA races is true, with a big caveat. They are referencing the PA Derby, which is totally funded by PARX and Greenwood Racing. No slot money funds that race. Even if a PA Bred runs in that race, the PA Bred bonus does not apply because of the purse size. PARX horsemen have always objected to any of the PA funds going to those big races. Rightly so.

Brian Sanfratello and the PA Breeder's did a great job in securing the RHDF with a law preventing it from being raided by a governor. As he mentions on his advertisements on "At the Races". It's a step, but will take a long time to recover.

New York horses do win at PARX, but they also win at Gulfstream, Tampa, Keenland and even Santa Anita. PARX horses sometimes win in NY.

I just wanted to highlight the anti-racing/breeding bias by the uninformed and what we face in PA.