Would you look at that

They are showing dark day simulcasting on the ghost of the OTB channel, this is faster progress than expected with regards to New York racing and simulcasting.

NYRA Video Streaming Approved in New York

After four years the state finally approved streaming video. This was along drawn out battle that lasted longer than WWI. The reason for the delayed approval was the state protecting OTB's interest. The idea from Albany is that if New Yorkers can't watch NYRA at home they will be compelled to OTB parlors or watch the OTB channel. For some this was ridiculous as not every county in New York had an OTB or an OTB channel. These people were caught in the crossing fore between OTB and reason and ended up with access to only TVG if they were lucky to have satellite TV. This is the principle of might is right. OTB had the might in NY state and dictated the terms.

We sent letters three years ago to no avail, the only action or elected officals took was accepting kickbacks for the Aqueduct casino. Four years of no racing video and no real coverage in the press. Too bad it wasn't the Yankers or NFL, if the would have been front page news if video was blocked of those sports. It took the crisis shut down of NYCOTB to finally stream video in New York. Rushed, desperate and reactionary are adjectives that describe how how business is done in New York. With this odyssey under the bridge I look forward to booting up NYRA rewards and watching streaming video next time I play Aqueduct.

The week long nightmare is over

No need to change the primary start-up channel from 71 to something else anymore. The in-home simulcast feed made a triumphant return today and there is talk about NYRA opening wagering teletheaters as a replacement to the shuttered NYC OTB locations.


Off track betting won't die without a fight though, it is still on the Time Warner Cable listings. Channel 71 will probably be listed as OTB on NYC TV long after the bankruptcy proceedings conclude.


Update, after Aqueduct's live program the blue screen of doom reappeared. Unfortunately, there is no after hours simulcast shown after the conclusion of racing from Aqueduct, hopefully they work towards rectifying this. Some live racing in the living room is better than none though.

NY Times is a Source of Disinformation

As chief journalistic representative of a culture that supposedly has a love of diversity- the NY Times does a great job of proving otherwise. While the talking class drones on about a love of diversity- the esoteric truth is that this culture from top to bottom is racing towards homogeneity. The NY Times racing coverage affirms this truth. Niche sports like racing doesn't have any room in New York according to the Times "It is hard to shake a feeling that Aqueduct’s precious 192 acres in South Ozone Park, Queens, might be put to better use, perhaps for parks or for reasonably priced housing, which goodness knows the city sorely needs. " When the Times and the cultural masters are done manipulating opinions this world will be a one trick pony- horse racing will not be providing the pony.

While most can agree with that opinion that aqueduct is not a venue enjoyed by all the Times really goes off the rails when it becomes a medium for disinformation. "With the failed bookie operation known as the New York City Off-Track Betting Corporation forced to shut its doors, the numbers of horse players trooping to Aqueduct racetrack have swelled." NYCOTB was never a bookie operation, it was a parimutuel outlet- this is a huge difference in complexity and the nature of the operation.

If the New York Times is going to send a reporter to Aqueduct-- shouldn't he be informed? Why report these facts while taking them totally and completely out of context. OTB operated as a political patronage mill and was filled with inefficiency and mismanagement. OTB often acted against ( banning streaming in-home video for example) the best interest of the product. It was the fact that government corruption and ineptitude killed OTB; not the lack of appeal from the racing product. This is not clear in the piece as shows how reporting misinforms rather that informs.

While I have to agree that Aqueduct certainly is not an ascetically appealing new construction palace- I contend that Aqueduct holds a different type of charm. Certainly in this world there are diverse experiences and tastes- especially in New York. Aqueduct is a remnant of old working class New York- like an old pair of jeans that are the most comfortable, rugged and familiar article of clothes in your wardrobe. Everything in the wardrobe can not be a new suit. Must we steamroll/cleanse everything in this culture for the sake of homogeneity? Do we really need to demolish Aqueduct to make way for yet another Wal-Mart or Starbucks or Wal-Mart or Starbucks? Do we need to raid the taxpayers for billions to construct new stadiums -three here in the NYC area just the last two years- so the masses can consume more ball games and only ball games. Does every sport have to be a TV show masquerading as a team sport? If it doesn't fit the narrow mold of Mr. Haberman's world it must be demolished. This is the cultural homogeneity that the NY times silently yet ubiquitously promotes. The worldview is narrow and it is the cultural equivalent of rainforest slash and burn farming. The old is neglected and new turf is constantly slashed and burned to provide the fresh newly built experience that is requisite for "bucolic retreats"

Disinformation and cultural provincialism is not enough to drive the point home for the Times. They have to supplement this with the old stereotype. This is the old "punter as loser" stereotype that constantly appears in the press and by extension in the culture at large. The Times is very careful not stereotype most ethnic groups and certainly does not stereotype ballgame fans as braindead TV watching dolts. Why does the horseplayer always have to be stereotyped as a loser over and over.

I can’t look at horses anymore — there’s no fun,” said Michael Partridge, 69. He regularly added money to his account, but never withdrew. “I got the pleasure of it,” he said. “To handicap horses every night.”

More lackadaisical journalism from the times. There are winners at handicapping and some very sharp handicappers. This can not be read about in the New York Times. For them it is just easier to stereotype the entire group as losers and idiots. I guess if the goal is to demolish racing and get rid of all horse racing from the sports pages it is intellectually convenient to paint them with a broad brush as losers. This way when they are removed from the landscape the cultural guilt will be minimized.


This quote really highlights the poor understanding Mr. Haberman has of twentieth first century parimutuel operations:

The New York Racing Association, which operates the Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga tracks, has begun busing displaced OTB devotees to South Ozone Park. But even with higher attendance figures as a result, the amount bet at the track — the handle, in racing parlance — remains a small fraction of the overall wagering.

On Saturday, for example, the handle from all betting sources for races run at Aqueduct was nearly $8.8 million. At the track itself, in relatively mild weather, the handle came to just over $1 million. That ratio of about nine to one was not significantly different from that of a comparable Saturday last December.

Are ballgames a failure because millions watch on TV with only a few thousand in the stands? Are women abandoning shopping as a source of amusement because the business has migrated to on-line while brick and mortar flounders? The fact that most wagers are being placed on-line or at distant locations is a sign of progress. Mr. Haberman completely misses this point in his piece. Does he not know about simulcasting? As most of us know this gives racing the ability to reach almost everyone in the country. Now snowbound fans in Duluth Minnesota can play Aqueduct from their couch or fans in Chicago can bet Aqueduct from their Hawthorne racecourse. This is progress and not a sign of a game in crisis. Haberman stands this fact on its head and uses it to make the point that horseplayers have found "other ways to throw away their money". Anyone who does not understand this elementary fact should not be an information source- conversely this is the mark of a source of disinformation.

Two can play this game

Hollywood park took out an ad in the Saturday racing form making their case for Zenyatta as horse of the year, clearly they are using this to submarine our bid to make Stormy's Majesty horse of the year. Much like Hollywood Park we believe that defeats or in our case multiple defeats does not matter when deciding year end honors. Time to start up the propaganda machine for Stormy.


The ball is in your court Hollywood Park.

NYCOTB Closing Is Great News

It would seem that NYRA is truly in crisis mode without the handle from NYCOTB. They are chartering buses to funnel OTB players to the Big-A, pressing to overturn laws that prohibit live video and predicting that there may be purse reductions. Even the head of failed NYCOTB went on record to say that " there’s a definite possibility that the Saratoga Race Track will close as a result of the shutdown of OTB". The numbers after one day do not agree with this dire assessment. Instead of true crisis this could be a case of crisis as a means to an ends. It was Hillary Clinton that said "never waste a good crisis". NYRA could be using this "crisis" to accomplish goals which have stagnated in the sea of Albany dysfunction for decades. Beneath all the doom and gloom there may be a light which will be the start of a new paradigm for NYRA. A novus ordum of New York racing that will benefit the long term health of the industry.

Last Thursday 02DEC10 Aqueduct handled a total of $5.6 million including $475,000 on track and $1.3 million at all OTBs within New York state. Attendance was 2101. This week on Thursday 09DEC10 Aqueduct handled a total of $5.2 million with $536,000 on track and $822,361 from in state OTBs. Attendance was 2,704. While handle did drop a total of $416,000 Aqueduct enjoyed increased on-track handle along with more bodies in the plant. Every dollar wagered on track must be worth at least three wagered at OTB. With OTB in bankruptcy there were no guarantees that NYRA would ever see these funds wagered at OTB. With more people at the track converting to NYRA one accounts-- NYRA is gaining market share over the local handle. The fact that on- track handle has increased from last weekis a positive sign and will help NYRA weather the storm of decreased total handle.

A big part of that $416K deficit is that OTB players are still in scrambling mode looking for a place to book their action. This $416,000 deficit will likely close as players find a new home and return to action. The deficit may not be a long term affliction. How could these OTB guys just give up the greatest game so easy? Some will land off-shore, some will land with bookies, others with NYRA one and even with national ADWs like expressbet. When this all settles most of the OTB players will transition into a new vendor; some may even find a new love for the game -or a small profit- without that onerous 6% tax on winning levied by OTB. Of course there are some players -the type that used local OTB as a social club- that will be transitioning into a new hobby. These people will focus their dollars on things like lotto, dominoes or local cockfights. Maybe a few will execrate vice from their lives which is what many of these souls need.


In the end I believe that the primary effect is a livened up Aqueduct. A game with vitality. As a whole horse racing in New York will be better positioned to jettison that hardcore degenerate reputation that effused from the corner OTB like the pervasive smell of smell of rotting rubbish on a sultry summer night. NYRA will gain control over local market share and eliminate a divisive competitor that stifled the simplest initiatives live streaming video. Maybe I can begin to tell people I follow, watch and wager on horse racing without the expected gamblers anonymous hazing. From a holistic point of view the loss of NYCOTB may be just the tonic the game needed here in New York- we should have on-line video soon and the political dog and pony show will be over as racing interests are consolidated.

Blue Screen of Doom

Channel 71 has long been the primary start up channel for my cable box, looks like it is time to pick a new channel. NYC OTB for all of it's industry innovation such as in home simulcasting and telephone accounts has kicked the bucket. The in home simulcasting is one of the great things done in the last thirty years of the game, it has given the serious horseplayer the option of staying home to keep track of the racing card at his or her convenience. It would serve well for the New York Racing Association to take up where NYC OTB left off on the in home feed, lots of NYRA Rewards players wager on the races from their couch because it is easier than going to the plant.

In the absence of a live feed for the racing fans in the five boroughs I suggest signing up for HRTV online, you have to pay for the signal but they offer a live non-delayed signal from the NY tracks. If they ever restore the TV broadcast you have a a way to watch the out of state tracks during the broadcast of the NY card, it is a win-win situation. The link is listed below.

http://www.hrtvlive.com/hrtv/

Aqueduct....Its For Old Guys