How we express our individualistic thoughts comes through in the our likes and dislikes, the clothes we wear, the cars we drive (or do not drive), the music we listen to, the movies we watch, the games we play, and how we play those games.

Yes, humans love to play games and have so for thousands of years. Historians traced the board game Senet back to 3,500 B.C. and it’s a damn sure bet games of some sort existed long before then. Perhaps the cavemen played games, but archeologists have to yet to find Tic Tac Toe grids on cave paintings. But for cavemen survival was the ultimate game which may explain why games to this day exhibit survivalist life and death motifs. Of course, the best games involve a mixture of skill and luck; especially those in which skill can overcome (or amplify) luck – again mirroring life itself.

We all live our lives alone (and will die alone I presume). Our lives are the product of our thoughts, decisions, and the associated consequences even if the impact of our thoughts, decisions, and consequences are shared by others. And we all play games alone. A “team” baseball game is 9 versus 9, but believe me the loneliest person in the world is a man at bat with 2 outs in the bottom of the ninth, down 2 runs with runners on second and third (the predicament faced by the “mighty Casey”). The second loneliest person may be the pitcher. If Football is your sport it may be the quarterback, or the wide receiver, or the field goal kicker. For Soccer, the goalie.

Or the horseplayer.

It’s his thoughts, his strategy, his money, and his reward (if “he” wins). The venerable horseplayer is the ‘man in the arena’ Teddy Roosevelt so eloquently described at the Sorbonne.

Despite suffering disdain, ridicule, or even pity, horseplayers persevere by employing their varying strategies, skills, and abilities. As horseracing’s lifeblood, they constitute a vibrant tapestry within a sport loaded with vibrant tapestries. And for horseplayers who go to the track with other horseplayers (there must be some), it remains a uniquely personal experience. The journey, the experiences, the treasures gambled, won, lost, and won again are uniquely theirs. A clear reflection of a desire to challenge oneself, risk of oneself, and rely upon one’s own wits and other God-given talents.

And anyone who believes modern life is more exciting than in the year 1,000 A.D., 3,500 B.C., or even during the time of the cavemen must not have experienced suffocating traffic after a 12 hour ball breaking workday. But when we play the races, those thrilling moments when we risk something of ourselves, we exist completely alone amidst our fellow horseplayers. And we commune with the spirits of our predecessors who live forever in our hopes, dreams, and games.

In part one of an ongoing series on thoroughbred rescue and retirement, I spoke with Caroline to understand the ecomics behind the issue, learn more about what horseplayers can do to support horses once their racing careers are over and discuss the potential impact of tracks alloting one percent of their takeout to thoroughbred rescue and retirement organizations.

Caroline Betts - Founder, Director and President of SCTR

DB: Set up the problem for me – of all the thoroughbreds that end their racing careers, how many are fortunate enough to end up with rescue organizations?

CB: It’s impossible to tell how many find a safe landing spot in non profits, although a national funding/granting organization for thoroughbreds (like Thoroughbred Charities of America) might be able to provide some proximate numbers. I’m guessing a pretty small fraction. Some are sold privately off the track to people looking for sport and pleasure horse prospects, and the number of those is unknown too. To my knowledge, there are no records or studies.  

Traditionally, the scale of the problem has been defined by proximate numbers of thoroughbreds slaughtered for human consumption in any year, which expressed as portion of the annual foal crop is believed to be about 50 percent. If recent foal crops average somewhere around 30,000, then the few slaughter plant records of breeds we have suggest that somewhere between 15,000 and 21,000 are slaughtered each year depending on the total number of horses slaughtered (thoroughbreds are about 15 percent of a total of 100,000-140,000 American horses slaughtered annually). Of course, these numbers include not only recently retired racehorses, but retired breeding stock (broodmares especially), culled youngsters, and older thoroughbreds that originally found homes post-racing but are subsequently discarded by private owners. We have no idea what the number of retiring racehorses is nationally of these. At local horse auctions where the animals are at high risk for being purchased for slaughter, recent racehorses (some from layup facilities) and discarded broodmares together constitute by far the largest portion of all thoroughbreds we find. 

 It’s important to note the distinction between “rescue” non-profit organizations like SCTR (which takes in horses that are already in the slaughter pipeline at auction and from feedlots), non-profit “retirement/transitioning” farms which intake thoroughbreds directly from the track, and programs like that of CANTER which work with trainers and owners seeking new homes for retiring horses by “listing” thoroughbreds available for sale/adoption directly from the track. 

One of the problems that thoroughbreds confront is in reputation and marketing for second careers; when horses that are transitioning directly off the track are marketed as “rescues”, I believe that damages their reputation with the sport horse world. The thoroughbred was formerly the breed of choice for many equestrian sports – that’s no longer the case in this country in general, and so they can use all of the good marketing they can get. Being perceived as “rescues” doesn’t help their cause.    

DB: It seems like there’s a greater awareness of rescue organizations, but is that translating to more donations and horses coming to organizations like yours?

CB: Not right now – but the economy is so weak that it’s hard to tell whether greater awareness is helping significantly or not.  Our intakes have stalled to a halt this year (2011) because adoptions are stalled (no horses are finding homes which would free up resources to take in more), and donations are so slow that we can’t possibly expand the number of horses we service. This year, we’ve had to fundraise at local events more frequently, and we’ve had to apply for many more grants to maintain the horses we have. 

DB: Where’s the disconnect - who needs to be doing more (horseplayers, tracks, national racing entities, etc)?

CB: Everyone needs to be doing more, as long as the industry’s horses are systematically winding up at slaughter; as a portion of the foal crop, if roughly 50 percent die at slaughter that is far too high. Recent efforts include several initiatives by the Jockey Club to assist non profits and private owners of thoroughbreds – the online searchable tattoo database, Thoroughbred Connect are examples – and the NTRA’s aftercare website is another. There is “chatter” about work of these organizations towards a national funding scheme, but we’ve seen nothing to emerge from any discussions to date.

My own view is that the burden of financial support, and marketing for, thoroughbreds transitioning off the track should be a shared burden by all industry participants, with owners and breeders taking on the lion’s share of it if correct incentives for responsible/accountable ownership and breeding are to be established. 

We have seen a couple of good funding initiatives recently. CARMA in California takes one-third of one percent of owners’ purses and distributes it to non profits for example. At least two Stronach tracks to my knowledge have dedicated matching funds towards other funding programs for retiring racehorses. There are some initiatives to apply “per start fees” towards funding for retiring racehorses.

But let me emphasize – these programs to date are NOT comprehensive funding schemes and frankly scratch at the surface of the problem which is of substantial scale. Recent race-track anti-slaughter policies targeting trainers found to send horses to auction and slaughter are really pretty useless, in my opinion, without associated support in physical and financial resources for owners and trainers to utilize alternatives.  

DB: People talk about the need for coordinated marketing efforts, or even a national campaign, to attract new racing fans, but is there any call or steps being taken for this type of effort when it comes to thoroughbred rescue and retirement?

I think the NTRA and Jockey Club efforts to promote retiring thoroughbreds are examples of this, but so far none of the efforts have resulted in a national funding program for thoroughbred retirement. If the perception of retiring thoroughbreds as rescues or charity cases is to change, and the reality that many of them are at high risk for slaughter, funding is crucial.

DB: As a purely hypothetical situation, if tracks were to allocate one percent of their takeout to support rescue and retirement organizations, what would be the impact?

CB: National handle per The Jockey Club was about $11.4 billion in 2010. One percent of that provides $114 million for retirement funding. If that were used to prevent any one of the currently 15,000+ thoroughbreds slaughtered from entering that pipeline, then each of them gets about $7,000. It works out to about $4,000 per member of a 30,000 foal crop.

That obviously isn’t enough to support a horse for the rest of its life.  But it is enough for most non-profit retirement and transitioning organizations to be willing to take the horse in, knowing that all of its expenses for roughly 12 months are covered. Some of those would be adopted over the course of a year, some would require permanent retirement due to injuries, etc., which is very costly. But – it’s a start. Other charitable and funding efforts could then be devoted to providing support for those that cannot transition into a second career and need to be supported in retirement indefinitely.

So if you had that – several thousand dollars for any thoroughbred at risk designated for it to be transitioned or retired through a non-profit – you’d have an automatic safety net for retiring racehorses and potentially also breeding stock which would fund each horse for at least a year.    

DB: Would this hypothetical one percent solve the problem, or is it only a band-aid on a much larger issue?

CB: I think it goes a chunk of the way towards solving the problem as I’ve described, but obviously continued and increased charitable and industry funding efforts for permanent retirees are needed. Why can’t non profits just take in every deserving racehorse that’s retiring today at the track as soon as they are asked?  Because they can’t afford to – not without jeopardizing the support and welfare of horses already in their care. 

A lump sum to support that horse for a year or more would shift that decision in favor of intake. Many retirement organizations currently require sponsorship of several thousand dollars to take in a retiring horse – and very few owners are willing to pay for that; although I take nothing from those owners that are and do, it simply is not the norm. It’s not a complete solution – but it is large enough to really make a substantial difference for horses at risk.   

I’d recommend that the funds be centrally managed by a reputable and credible national industry organization. A per capita fund should be associated one-for-one with each horse’s registration number. For horses able to transition directly off the track into the sport horse world privately, without entering a non- profit, or which go on to breeding careers, unused monies remain in the central fund until/unless that horse is identified via its registration number in a high risk situation subsequently, which triggers release of the fund to a non-profit for intake.

For all other retiring racehorses, the fund is triggered at time of retirement to permit admission to a non-profit. The central fund should be invested, and earn interest. Non profits receiving funds to admit horses should be thoroughly vetted.  

DB: Is there enough awareness among the racing public of how many rescue organizations are out there, and is the visibility of some of the larger ones making it tougher for smaller ones to attract donations?

CB: I think it’s very difficult (speaking from direct experience) for the racing public to know about all organizations in-taking retiring thoroughbreds across the country, much less understand the differences among them. I do know that many among the racing public want to help, however. One great thing about national and local non profits that solely raise funds for racehorse retirement and distribute them as grants, is that they do the screening on behalf of prospective donors.

All of them have some screening criteria for allocating grants in addition to establishing tax exemption and financial health; for example, the TCA requires written veterinary statements of properties and horses, CARMA directly visits properties (as does the ASPCA by the way, which also does allocate grant funding to organizations caring for ex-racehorses). So that function – figuring out which organizations are worthy of racing public support – is being played by the granting organizations.

While I would love to see more exposure given to all of us individual non profits, as a donor to charities myself – I want to know that my donations are being used wisely. So I recommend that donors either go VISIT a racing charity and its horses before donating or donate via the TCA, Blue Horse Charities, CARMA, After the Finish Line, Horse Aid Live, the ASPCA  (designate monies for ex-racers), etc. i.e. give to organizations that will do the screening for you.

In the meantime, organizations such as the NTRA and Jockey Club can help all of us by providing a full list of racing charities on their websites with links to our websites. 

DB: What can horseplayers do?  There are so many rescue organizations, and they might not know where there donations would make the greatest impact.

CB: We all need donations desperately, so despite the caveats I make above, I would never want to discourage donations to non profits which – for example – are already receiving regular grants from funding organizations and have been “vetted” in order to achieve that. Most rescue/retirement organizations will have a list of sponsors/grantors somewhere on their website, so check for that to see whether they are supported by granting and fundraising organizations.

If they are, the chances are that they are legitimate, have good horse care codes of practice, and also that they need desperately donations in addition to whatever grants they receive to support their horses.

DB: All signs seem to point to the sport struggling (lower attendence, lower handle), is it safe to say there’s a direct correlation to this and a ripple effect to rescue organizations?

CB: Absolutely there is, or will be, since the industry is a substantial (although not exclusive) source of fundraising and grants. As industry income and revenue contracts, so do funds available for grants from organizations like the TCA for example. I guess the upside is that if the industry continues to contract in absolute terms so should the number of thoroughbreds needing aftercare. I’m not sure that we are seeing that at this point, however, at least relative to the recent past. 

DB: What’s the long-term outlook for thoroughbred rescue in general? 

CB: I think it’s impossible to say much without knowing whether the industry plans to establish institutional/mandatory funding.  If that happens, and it is sufficiently comprehensive (and effectively managed), I think the outlook for retiring thoroughbreds could be better than it ever has been.

If it doesn’t, I think that despite increased awareness and currently a larger number of organizations working for retired horses, a combination of factors makes the outlook pretty grim. We have an economically contracting industry, which will find it difficult to justify prioritizing racehorse retirement; an economy in pretty long-term trouble; a hay producing sector that is both in contraction (substituting to corn and other more profitable crops) and also exporting more product to Asia, all of which are factors raising prices long term (independently of short term shortages due to weather conditions); and more organizations competing for a declining pool of within industry financial resources and adopters .

You will see “exits” from the current set of organizations available to assist thoroughbreds and possibly a decline in the quality of support that surviving ones can offer. Times are very difficult for all non profits that are directly caring for horses.

Along with the resources and organizations linked above, you can also follow Caroline (SoCalTBRescue) on Twitter, as well as through SCTR’s Facebook page.

While it’s great that an increasing number of racetracks have a presence on social media, they need to look past the numbers of Twitter followers and Facebook fans to create programs that drive fans to the gates.  Look at tracks in California, which are taking the initiative when it comes to using social media.  Santa Anita’s food truck festivals leverage both the track’s own social media fan bases, but also those of all of the food trucks to create buzz among food bloggers and non-racing media.

Photo credit: Hosie Thomas

 Del Mar leveraged their social media channels last year, which included an on-track event with tech bloggers and an aggressive social media campaign to increase attendance by 27,000 or just over 4 percent from 2009.

Tracks across the country need to develop programs that incentivize attendance throughout the meet, not just on big days, which leverage both their own social media assets as well as those of the fans who support the game. It would be so simple for tracks to run promotions through foursquare – $5 betting vouchers for everyone who checks in throughout the meet and $100 voucher to the mayor awarded the first Saturday each month. Encourage people to bring other fans and double the rewards or offer dining discounts when they check in with a friend.  It’s a small investment to make in order to bring more fans through the turnstiles and more money to the windows.

Tracks also need to take a greater role engaging fans on Twitter, to look beyond simple retweets when someone mentions the track.  How many times when fans have been discussing holding a Tweetup at a racetrack has the track done anything to support it?  Tracks need to be proactive and organize these Tweetups via their social media properties.  Promote $10 Tweetups and set aside a private dining room or even a designated area for fans to meet (Tweet & Found?).  Fans want to support the game and connect with other fans, and racetracks should support the fans by encouraging, facilitating connections and rewarding those who promote their product in social networks.

Too often, tracks take a siloed approach when promoting their product. They are promoting to a select group of influencers within the online racing community.  Successful promotion takes place when influencers in other circles can promote racing.

Prominent owners like Bobby Flay have massive followings outside of racing fans and tracks should create events that will appeal to wider audiences. So why not have Flay and other celebrity chefs host a Top Chef challenge at the track restaurant, or Jess Jackson* host a wine tasting festival?  The track could charge a premium ticket price, but the promotion would cross over into each celebrity’s fan bases and create greater appeal with casual fans.  Promotion then goes beyond racing circles and crosses over to a wider range of media outside of the racing industry by promoting the event with food reporters and bloggers.

Racing attendance has been on a steady decline for years. Tracks must become creative and move past simply having a presence in social media, but utilize their channels to keep current fans engaged and appeal to new fans.  Otherwise, racing’s stars will eventually be orbiting in an empty galaxy.

*Note: I wrote and posted this prior to learning of Jess Jackson’s passing this morning.  Jess was both a passionate fan and tremendous ambassador for racing.

Was it the decision not to broadcast races on network TV, the spread of state lotteries and Indian casinos, endless industry infighting, changes in demographics, or even the relaxation of clubhouse dress codes as this writer suggested?

Regardless, the most pressing question is whether or not racing can ever recover?  I believe it can, but it requires total commitment to the core product of horse racing.

Instead of focusing on horse racing, in the sprirt of “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em,” tracks are pursuing slot machines with reckless abandon.  And why not? They provide a steady stream of revenue, and for many tracks, a lifeline.

But the “racino” revolution caused a crack cocaine-like epidemic within the industry.  Profits haven’t created more racing fans and bettors, only more racinos.

While tracks spent millions building slick casinos, horseplayers were relegated to crowding around faded TVs in a neglected corner of the track to bet the races.  Tracks simply replaced one group of gambling degenerates with another, because they’re all the same, right?

Wrong.  The Horseplayers Association of North America (HANA) membership poll indicates their supporters are generally well-educated and, you might assume, have high incomes as well.  I’d wager your average horseplayer represents a more appealing customer than the average slots player.  A target market with expectations for quality, customer service, and unlikely to frequent tacky slots parlors or “all can-eat” buffets for that matter.

However, racinos are the new reality.  In most cases, slots machines & poker rooms are the difference between a race track’s profitability or bankruptcy.  And as more and more states legalize slots, it’s spawned an arms race of sorts.  For instance, fearing slots in neighboring Maryland, West Virginia approved table games and Delaware approved sports betting.

Where does it end?  Perhaps with states legalizing every possible casino game imaginable.  For state politicians facing overwhelming state budget deficits, raising money through legalized gambling is more palatable than raising taxes or cutting services.

Given this situation, you must wonder if anyone in the horse racing industry truly believes in its own product?  Yet for horse racing to become a viable and vibrant sport again, re-focusing on the core product is essential.

Horse racing is a great game, I believe the greatest.  But it’s not the easiest for newcomers to appreciate, or even understand at first.  In order to grow, racing must become more customer-friendly and accessible.

However, with a neglectful industry in disarray, horse racing is adrift. Those most likely to still believe in horse racing’s product–the horseplayers themselves–are the best qualified to spark its revitalization.

To that end, I’m creating WirePlayers.com - a boutique, customer-focused ADW site that will feature a first class internet wagering platform. Admittedly this is only a small step, but I hope one that’s in the right direction.  While I can’t guarantee success, I can say with certainty that WirePlayers.com is betting on horse racing.  Is anyone else?

“We are the ones we have been waiting for” – it gets to the heart of something that’s been bugging me about the state of racing, and the racing industry, for a long while now.  There are millions of racing fans and horseplayers out there who are die-hard followers of the sport.  And most of them are pissed (it’s true, read about it here) about the sport’s current state of affairs.  However, the simple fact they haven’t completely abandoned the sport altogether demonstrates how great the sport is and their dedication.  This is a powerful resource that should not be underestimated.  Furthermore, the “racing industry” tends to take horseplayers for granted and lump them into a generic category of habitual gamblers.  This is particularly insulting as horseplayers are on average more intelligent, sophisticated, and passionate than your everyday casino denizen (especially compared to slots players).

Furthermore, there’s been endlesss discussion, hand-wringing, blog-posting, meetings, symposiums, summits, and so on and so forth about what is going wrong in thoroughbred racing.  Everybody and their mother knows things are bad and change is needed, the only point of contention is where to start first: the inconsistent medication rules or the lax enforcement?  The excessive takeout or the poor customer service?  The ineffective marketing or the need to do better PR?  And don’t even get me started on industry fragmentation and infighting (“ADW signal wars” anyone?).  Not to mention its less than stellar record on support for thoroughbred retirement and backstretch workers, and the industry’s apathy toward the issue of equine slaughter (except Suffolk Downs!) are not helping its PR issues.  The list of problems goes on and on.  Everyone wants to figure out who is going to clean this mess up?  Some have called for federal intervention and/or the establishment of some form of “racing czar,” however,  this may lead to a case of “be careful what you wish for.”

Instead we have to quit sitting on our hands waiting for someone else to come along and solve these problems.  The people and organizations that are in charge, whether they have good intentions or bad, whether they are competetent or incompetent, are only going to keep doing what they’ve always done.  And what they have always done is to protect their turf and pursue their own self-interests to the detriment of the sport.  We are the ones who must drive change.  It’s up to us to make the things better.  The efforts of HANA to create a grassroots organization to engage the industry and lobby on behalf of horseplayers is a great example.  I believe we can take it to the next level.

Wise words indeed.  In fact, the elders’ philosophy aligns closely with the objective of this site - self-empowerment, interaction, participation, cooperation.  As everyday brings another bit of bad news, it’s finally time to stop waiting around for someone or something to “save” racing.  It’s time to act.