Travis Stone

As if racing needed more negative press, two major newspapers on the East Coast recently announced their decision to cease the daily publication of racing information. This is disheartening news for horse racing, comparable to the elimination of box scores for football or baseball in the sports section. Certainly, fans of those sports would be up in arms if editors made such a decision.

Although more information is available on-line compared to a daily newspaper, there are plenty of individuals who acquire their entries and results from such publications.  Racing cannot afford to lose these participants even if they are a small percentage of the fan base. This event emphasizes how racing is in need of a single voice to thrust us into the mainstream sports media and give horse racing a spark.

The decision by editors at the Washington Post to eliminate their horse racing coverage is a narrow indication of a broad problem with racing in the state of Maryland. The Boston Globe made a similar decision, citing shrinking popularity. Is it coincidence that the home states of these newspapers are in complete disarray over legislation, slot machines and the future of horse racing?

Even more discouraging is that the editors at the Washington Post polled their readers asking them to indicate what sports they read the most. Horse racing came in last. In every race there is a horse that finishes last, but does that mean it was never competitive? Horse racing might not generate the interest of a Super Bowl or World Series, but it is never ignored. This near-sightedness of sports editors is frustrating.

Horseplayers have long fought a generalization by society that they are degenerates, lacking the skills to function in what is called, “normal society.” Combating this mindset is where racing needs to start.  Lost in the message is that handicapping a horse race requires a decent amount of skill, knowledge and analytical thinking. Certainly luck is a component, but luck applies to anything, not just horse racing.

Do we necessarily need the daily entries, results or standings on the statistics page of a newspaper? No, such information does little to entice new fans. The devoted fans who sought their information from the Washington Post or Boston Globe can simply go elsewhere.

But imagine if only the result of the Preakness was published, and there was no accompanying editorial or feature commentary. There would be a simple line, hidden amidst a flurry of statistics from other sports, indicating just the winner’s name and payoffs. Would Afleet Alex’s acrobatic win have reached so many eyes? Despite the uncertain future of the New York Racing Association, this past weekend there was an emphatic 14-length win by Achilles of Troy to kick off New York’s road to the Kentucky Derby. This is not to say that NYRA and its future is not news, but which topic would contribute more in attracting a new fan to the racetrack? 

Slide show   Images of the Triple Crown See images from the 2005 Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes.

Horse racing needs a daily or weekly summation of what happened at the racetrack: Who is making headlines? What horse won the weekend stakes? What captivating story surrounds the connections of this horse? Rather than compiling meaningless surveys and questionnaires, the editors should take a few moments to examine racing and it’s wealth of material.  There would be enough there to fill the sports page for months.

The voice of racing needs to promote the livelihood and excitement of the sport to these publications. It cannot let decisions by the Washington Post or the Boston Globe shatter the hope that racing will one day shine again. Numerous sports are growing in popularity at a rapid rate, why can’t racing be one of them?

Slide show Year in Pictures 2009 - Sports Experience an audio slide show of the best sports and news images from around the world and close to home.

Currently the racing leaders are too caught up in slot legislation and legal rumblings. As a result, they are ignoring their purpose of promoting our sport, and the task has fallen upon us — the core fan. We need to let our local newspaper know how much we appreciate whatever racing coverage they bring, and how more can only be better.

The Washington Post and the Boston Globe’s decisions should make us realize the need for this appreciation. The fall-out of our unwillingness to act could be devastating. Imagine the Kentucky Derby, going from front cover, to inside page, and then to a minor statistic before being taken off the press completely. The potential exists and it is time to step up. We may have broken slow, but it is too soon to ease ourselves out of this race.

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