Racing boost???

[AeWingnut]

I have some friedns that got the Horseracing Channel on their cable for free. They stay up hours of the night and watch it. They don't even bet the races, at least not with an online account.

I don't have cable because.. I don't watch TV and I got mad at the cable company about geez 15+ years ago. They were the only game in town at the time and didn't take my business seriously and I haven't missed it until now.

I am moving in August so I'll re-up just for HRTV. The neighbors will wonder what all the shouting is about

[Zippy Chippy]

Originally Posted by SentToStud

The only horse racing game I ever played was in Vegas. The one that had 4 mechanical horses under a plastic dome. Bet quarters on which exacta would come in...the odds changed for every race. I spent a lot of hours in the 80's playing that game.

I've wasted a lot of quarters playing that machine at the Riviera . . .

[Zippy Chippy]

Originally Posted by mikekay

I'm no genius, but am a cable/racing junkie who likes to gamble. If they really want to boost interest in the 'Sport of Kings' they should show the horse racing channels for free. Whenever they show an hour or so of free horse racing (it happens sometimes on my system), i always think, "Damn, I want to get in on that sort of action, I would have had that winner". I don't subscribe 'cause I would be too consumed to lead a normal life, but other channel surfers my get intrigued and begin to follow the sport. I'm I being naive, or am I on to something?

Fifty years later and we are still having this same debate: is it better for horse racing to lose a few bucks but gain much more exposure by giving the product away for free? Or should the industry squeeze every last penny out of its existing fan base and HOPE that a new generation will somehow become rabid about a sport it has largely been denied access to?

Fifty years ago, major league baseball and the NFL decided to "give their product away" and the short-term revenue they "lost" was made up by a massive increase in their sports' fan bases. It's crazy to think that the horse racing industry refuses to learn this lesson of history. The industry is making the same bad decision it made back in the 1950s despite all the proof that it was a bad decision

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by Payson Dave

Not sure that you get my point... and I'm guessing you are not real interested in even trying to.

I get your point. I have heard it many times and think it is crazy. Horses have not been an important part of American culture for at least 75 years. Just have a hard time understanding why people not being associated with horses would keep them from betting on the races

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by Payson Dave

All that is well and good but it would not hurt to be bringing a few more new "customers" into the game....and racing may have been bigger in the 30's and 40's when the milkman did deliver the milk by horsey

Dave
Outside of the few big events of the year and special meets like Saratoga and Del Mar, no one is going to see the horses. They are going to bet on them. I'm sorry if this sounds harsh but if you are a fan and don't bet, you are of little value to the industry. We dont have tickets sales or merchandising or TV contracts as a source of revenue. We only have betting handle as our sole revenue source.

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by Zippy Chippy

Fifty years later and we are still having this same debate: is it better for horse racing to lose a few bucks but gain much more exposure by giving the product away for free? Or should the industry squeeze every last penny out of its existing fan base and HOPE that a new generation will somehow become rabid about a sport it has largely been denied access to?

Fifty years ago, major league baseball and the NFL decided to "give their product away" and the short-term revenue they "lost" was made up by a massive increase in their sports' fan bases. It's crazy to think that the horse racing industry refuses to learn this lesson of history. The industry is making the same bad decision it made back in the 1950s despite all the proof that it was a bad decision

I think you make good points . However I think that TV was a new medium then just as the internet is now and even as Congress gave us internet betting on a silver platter the greed of the tracks has screwed that up. The insistence of a few of the bigger racetracks companies to do things their way on their terms with no thought to the longterm health of the industry (or shortterm for that matter) will cause disharmony for years to come.

[GenuineRisk]

Pmayjr,

No, it's not too much to ask, but you're right; it's a pipe dream. The two major influences in racing are gambling and breeding, and those two industries are completely independent of each other. The only way I can imagine the average fan influencing the decision of when horses should be retired is if every person who gambles on races (or at least a sizeable majority of them) agreed to unite and boycott all the big stakes races until the NTRA imposed some sort of nationwide rule about what age horses have to be to breed. Otherwise, it'll have to be up to the racetracks, if they ever start to care about declining attendence, to push for something like that, and I just don't see it happening. But I'm with you; it'd be a big deal. Heck, I'd push for 6 years old being the minimum age for a horse to breed.

Cannon is right; it's a gambling-driven industry with no money to be made in merchandising and licensing. As fans, we just don't have any economic clout to influence people to keep their horses in training. And gamblers are in it to pick winners and make money, and that has nothing to do with whether Street Sense runs at 4.

Though yeah, greedy tracks cutting the percentage they take would help, too. I also think a few months of the year where there is no horse racing would be good, too. It's harder to follow a year-round sport than one that runs a limited number of months per year.

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

Pmayjr,

No, it's not too much to ask, but you're right; it's a pipe dream. The two major influences in racing are gambling and breeding, and those two industries are completely independent of each other. The only way I can imagine the average fan influencing the decision of when horses should be retired is if every person who gambles on races (or at least a sizeable majority of them) agreed to unite and boycott all the big stakes races until the NTRA imposed some sort of nationwide rule about what age horses have to be to breed. Otherwise, it'll have to be up to the racetracks, if they ever start to care about declining attendence, to push for something like that, and I just don't see it happening. But I'm with you; it'd be a big deal. Heck, I'd push for 6 years old being the minimum age for a horse to breed.

Cannon is right; it's a gambling-driven industry with no money to be made in merchandising and licensing. As fans, we just don't have any economic clout to influence people to keep their horses in training. And gamblers are in it to pick winners and make money, and that has nothing to do with whether Street Sense runs at 4.

Though yeah, greedy tracks cutting the percentage they take would help, too. I also think a few months of the year where there is no horse racing would be good, too. It's harder to follow a year-round sport than one that runs a limited number of months per year.

Where evryone misses the boat on the retirement issue is that in many places that those retired early horses race, SAR, KEE, DEL MAR, T Crown, BCUP, attendance is been at record levels recently. The big events and big meets are doing just fine. It is the day to day attendance and weekends when there is no big races that are suffering. This is an apples and oranges argument.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Where evryone misses the boat on the retirement issue is that in many places that those retired early horses race, SAR, KEE, DEL MAR, T Crown, BCUP, attendance is been at record levels recently. The big events and big meets are doing just fine. It is the day to day attendance and weekends when there is no big races that are suffering. This is an apples and oranges argument.

You're right, but I think the hope might be if the superstar horses would stay around long enough to generate some casual fan interest, then maybe the casual fan might go to the track on some of those other days because a day at the track can be a lot of fun in and of itself. Because, as long as OTBs and gambling via the Internet exist, there isn't any reason for the gambler to go to the track.

I think the tracks should try to get the TV coverage on the big days to include segments on Handicapping 101's- make it funny and informative and comprehensible and I think a casual viewer might get a little intrigued and want to test his or her luck at the track. But as much as gambling is huge business, on some level I think America still regards it as a bit dirty and sinful- we do it, but we don't want to talk about it. Like lots of other fun things, come to think of it...

[disappearingdan_akaplaya]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

It is free in KY as long as you pay the cable company

lol yep all hotels have TVG in KY. when i visted keeneland or when i shipped and ran@cd or tp ive watched tvg in the hotel. i swithced from the dish back to cable and i pay a measley 5 bucks a month extra for a sports package that includes tvg, comcast is gonna need to offer HRTV soon

[MaTH716]

Gallop Racer was not bad. I believe that there are two versions out there. The Breeders Cup game with Ghostzapper on the cover is absolutley awful. There is a game called G1 jockey, that is probably the best one. They were supposed to come out with a new version of it, but I have not been able to find it.

[Payson Dave]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Dave
Outside of the few big events of the year and special meets like Saratoga and Del Mar, no one is going to see the horses. They are going to bet on them. I'm sorry if this sounds harsh but if you are a fan and don't bet, you are of little value to the industry. We dont have tickets sales or merchandising or TV contracts as a source of revenue. We only have betting handle as our sole revenue source.

I'm sure that your perspective is more relavent and informed than mine...and I'm serious when I say that...I just think that one way to get more people involved in the wagering aspect of the game is to start by getting more people interested in the game in general...my thoughts are that turning $2 bettors into $20 bettors is something to work on after you have gotten them interested in the first place....granted baseball, nascar, football, ect ect are not dependent upon wagering...in those sports the fans are spectators... in horseracing the fans are both spectators and participants...the more fans there are the more participants (ie people wagering) there will be....I'm trying to say that I think that people will become more involved in the wagering after they have been exposed to the game as a spectator...I'll shut up now and leave the thinking to the more informed.

[letswastemoney]

Make the Breeder's Cup a prime time event.

[zippyneedsawin]

Originally Posted by SentToStud

The only horse racing game I ever played was in Vegas. The one that had 4 mechanical horses under a plastic dome. Bet quarters on which exacta would come in...the odds changed for every race. I spent a lot of hours in the 80's playing that game.

I played that.. It was in the MGM.

[MaTH716]

Originally Posted by Payson Dave

I'm sure that your perspective is more relavent and informed than mine...and I'm serious when I say that...I just think that one way to get more people involved in the wagering aspect of the game is to start by getting more people interested in the game in general...my thoughts are that turning $2 bettors into $20 bettors is something to work on after you have gotten them interested in the first place....granted baseball, nascar, football, ect ect are not dependent upon wagering...in those sports the fans are spectators... in horseracing the fans are both spectators and participants...the more fans there are the more participants (ie people wagering) there will be....I'll shut up now and leave the thinking to the more informed.

The main problem is that people are lazy. It takes time to dope out all those pick 3's 4's 6's and so on. There is so much information to compute. As a beginner that information seems like it is in another language. Even simple bets could seem difficult. As opposed to knowing that the starting QB for the jets is out and they should lose by 30. The majority of the people on this site enjoy handicapping the races. If there is a way to simplify all the information for the real beginners, so they really understand why they should bet the closer because of all the speed in the race. Then maybe they could catch the fever and see how interesting and exciting the sport is. If they understand then maybe they will bet more based off their own opinions. Until then they will be betting two dollars on there favorite numbers, names and whoever the newspaper picks.

[Payson Dave]

Originally Posted by MaTH716

The main problem is that people are lazy. It takes time to dope out all those pick 3's 4's 6's and so on. There is so much information to compute. As a beginner that information seems like it is in another language. Even simple bets could seem difficult. As opposed to knowing that the starting QB for the jets is out and they should lose by 30. The majority of the people on this site enjoy handicapping the races. If there is a way to simplify all the information for the real beginners, so they really understand why they should bet the closer because of all the speed in the race. Then maybe they could catch the fever and see how interesting and exciting the sport is. If they understand then maybe they will bet more based off their own opinions. Until then they will be betting two dollars on there favorite numbers, names and whoever the newspaper picks.

We are sort of saying the same thing....you are not gonna get very much new blood interested enough to put the effort into learning how to handicapp without getting them interested in the game in general. I bet that the majority of the people on here started off as small bettors and spectators...catching the fever so to speak probably did not start off without some interest in the spectator aspect of the game...

[MaTH716]

Originally Posted by Payson Dave

I bet that the majority of the people on here started off as small bettors and spectators...catching the fever so to speak probably did not start off without some interest in the spectator aspect of the game...

I would think that most people here probably became interested as kids. I remember my old man taking me to the track when I was a kid. He gave me $2 dollars a race. As I got older, I fell in love with the sport more and more. Now I watch racing all the time whether I am betting them or not. But for a first timer, going to the track and looking at the program can be a confusing moment. Without someone showing them what to look for, they might be missing out on a very exciting day.

[ShadowRoll]

Originally Posted by SentToStud

The only horse racing game I ever played was in Vegas. The one that had 4 mechanical horses under a plastic dome. Bet quarters on which exacta would come in...the odds changed for every race. I spent a lot of hours in the 80's playing that game.

They have this game at an arcade on the boardwalk in Wildwood, NJ. Boy, it's a lot of fun.

[Payson Dave]

Originally Posted by MaTH716

...I fell in love with the sport more and more. Now I watch racing all the time whether I am betting them or not....

You are a spectator and a participating bettor...it is the combination of the two that makes horseracing so great...but when your father first brought you to the track you were less of a bettor and perhaps more of a spectator...my Grandmother use to bring me to Saratoga for breakfast during the morning works...I was a spectator before I was a wager making participant.

[Cajungator26]

Originally Posted by Payson Dave

You are a spectator and a participating bettor...it is the combination of the two that makes horseracing so great...but when your father first brought you to the track you were less of a bettor and perhaps more of a spectator...my Grandmother use to bring to Saratoga for breakfast during the morning works...I was a spectator before I was a wager making participant.

I'm still mostly a spectator.

I'm in it for the horses.