IllinoisRacingNews_July2016ORIGINAL

VOL. 44, NO. 7/JULY 2016Editor A PUBLICATION OFJoan Colby THE ILLINOIS THOROUGHBREDPublisher BREEDERS AND OWNERS FOUNDATIONIllinois Thoroughbred Breedersand Owners Foundation “Past Performances reprinted by permission of copyrightExecutive Director owner, Daily Racing Form, Inc. Reproduction prohibited.”Dan ArrigoProduction Manager CONTENTSDena GervasiGraphic Design & Page Layout River Bear: Champion Sprinter Enters Retirement By Neil Milbert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3Ann E. Littleson June is for Illinois-breds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . By David Zenner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5Photo/Art Editor A Smorgasbord of Food for Thought . . . . . . . . . . . By Neil Milbert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7Jesse Saenz, Jr. ITBOF President’s Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . By Dan Sullivan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9Mailing Director Dan Arrigo: 2015 Person of the Year . . . . . . . . . . . By Gail Radke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Tom Mikulski Point of View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . By Ray Hallett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12Advertising Sales &SubscriptionsDan Arrigo Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Professional Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Copyright 2016. Written permission must be ON  THE  COVER:obtained to reprint photographs and editorial material. Thanks to Paulette Cigliana for this ILLINOIS RACING NEWS, (ISSN  #1083-8309), is stunning photo of River Bear celebratingpublished bi-monthly by Illinois Thoroughbred his retirement at Joe and Jackie King’sBreeders and Owners Foundation for $24.00 per year.Periodicals Postage paid at Oak Brook, IL  and at Indian Hills Farm. River Bear is owned byadditional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send Dana Waier Thoroughbreds.address corrections to: Illinois ThoroughbredBreeders and Owners Foundation, P.O. Box 578, Cover design by Jesse Saenz, Jr.Arlington Heights, IL  60006. (847-253-3670). Unsolicited manuscripts and photographs arewelcome, and all will be considered. Return postagemust accompany all submitted materials if they are tobe returned. ILLINOIS RACING NEWS assumes noresponsibility for loss or damage thereto. Any materi-al accepted is subject to such revision as is necessaryin our sole discretion to meet the requirements of thepublication. Opinions expressed in this publication are thoseof the writers and do not necessarily represent theviews of the management.

by Neil Milbert Is River Bear your friend on Facebook? Success came immediately. Their first joint venture was Dana Waier’s 11-year-old gelding, who is remembered as one Thelma Lawson, claimed from Noel Hickey’s stable at Oaklawnof the best Illinois-bred sprinters of the decade, is now living “the Park. In the filly’s debut for Waier and Hellman she took them tolife of Riley” at Joe and Jackie King’s Indian Hills Farm near Ed- the Oaklawn winner’s circle.wardsville. “He’s transitioning wonderfully,” said Jackie. “He’s got a re- They bought another horse and he did well, and in 1996 theyally good personality. He really likes people and has visitors all claimed Jabber.the time. He’s big-boned and big-bodied, a very tall and good-looking horse. When you put a halter on him, you’re on your Following a relatively successful racing career, Jabber was re-tippy toes. He has a lot of energy and he eats more than a typical tired in 2000 and she was bred to Unreal Zeal.thoroughbred. “He is not a candidate to be a riding horse; Dana wants to “The foal was Lady Riss, the only horse ever to make morekeep him for life and give him the life of Riley. He’s enjoying his than $100,000 at Fairmount Park,” Hellman said. “I think shedays. won 14 of 17 and had two seconds at Fairmount. I’d take her to “He has his own Facebook page and he has quite a following. I the Chicago tracks and she’d run third or fourth, but down herefeel very honored to have him on our farm.” they couldn’t beat her. She was the queen of Fairmount Park.” Indian Hills is primarily a breeding and foaling farm. It covers30 acres and from 30 to 35 horses reside there. Because Lady Riss turned out to be such a good runner, Waier Waier and her husband, Melvin, live in Florissant, Mo., which decided to send Jabber back to Unreal Zeal, who by then hadis about a 20-minute drive from the farm and she often drops by moved to Harvey and Nancy Vanier’s Fairberry Farm in Waterloo.to visit the 2010, 2011 and 2012 state champion male sprinter. Melvin and his racing partner, Francis Hinke, preceded Dana “I did some nicking and saw the cross of Mr. Prospector (ain the racing business. Their involvement dates back to the mid- grandsire of Unreal Zeal) and Riverman (a great grandsire of Jab-1980s. ber) was pretty solid, so we tried again,” remembered Waier. “I branched out from those guys and went a whole differentdirection,” said Dana, who went on her own as a horse owner in This time the coupling of Unreal Zeal and Jabber produced a1995 when she hired Rusty Hellman, who’d been an exercise male offspring and he was named River Bear.rider, as her trainer. “He was raised at Gallagher Farms and then I sent him to be broke and trained by Rusty,” said Waier. “Starting out, Rusty ran him in maiden special weight races three times and then ran him in the Troy Our Boy at Fairmount where he got his first win in his first stakes race. Then, we jumped back up and tried him in stakes races in Chicago and we got a lot of seconds.” According to Hellman, “He was good as a two-year-old and a ILLINOIS RACING NEWS / JULY 2016 / 3

three-year-old Waier cred-and then he be- its Hellman forcame four and he bringing out thehit a groove.” best in River Bear. For Waier and “Rusty knewHellman, River his little quirksBear’s most unfor- and protectedgettable race was him quite a bitthe $100,000 the whole time heWhite Oak Handi- raced,” she said.cap at Arlington “Breeding a mareInternational Race- you claimed to acourse on June 20, $2,500 stallion and2009. making almost a million dollars “I missed my with the horse that came out ofniece’s wedding for the breeding is a dream comethat race,” Waier said. “I had a true.”gut instinct that day was going The ability to come from farto be a good day and I wasn’t behind in sprints was the thrillinggoing to miss it. His form cycle trait that made River Bear a mul-was on an incline, so Rusty and tiple stakes winner and one of theI decided to test him. most popular Illinois-breds in re- cent memory. “Storms came through St. “River Bear wasn’t a normalLouis the night before. Finally, I horse,” Hellman said. “He was agot out the morning of the race. horse you had to give a lot of at-I had to fly into Midway and be tention to. I couldn’t just shiptransported by cab to Arlington. him the night before. You had toThe cab dropped me at the back time it just right. If you got him there too early he’d pound thegate. Rusty came and met me stall. One time at Prairie Meadows, we kept him outside andand we sat in the barn until it grazed him for about six hours before the race. He ate grass non-was time for the race. I was wearing a long maxi-dress and when stop and then he went out and won in 1:09 1/5.we went to the track the back of it was covered with dirt from sit- “Every year I kept thinking: ‘Is he going to come back and beting in the shedrow. as good next year?’ “He was the horse of my career. Now, I walk by his stall and “From there it was a whirlwind. We stood there watching the there’s nobody going to fill it. He was a blessing and a half.”race and then Rusty looked at me and said, ‘We won!’ and I said Waier and Hellman planned to race River Bear in 2015, but‘Oh my gosh, we won!’ I was so overwhelmed. It was the most when his ankle became inflamed after he kicked a stall wall theythrilling moment, one I’ll never forget.” decided the time had come to call it a career and send River Bear to retirement at Indian Hills Farm. Following the winner’s circle trophy presentation, Waier told There the grand old gelding still is treated like a celebrity.members of Arlington’s hierarchy that she had to rush back to “Paulette Zigliano, who has horses on Jackie’s farm as well,Midway to catch a flight back to St. Louis for her niece’s wedding does a lot of photography work and when she goes there she pho-reception. But, they said not to worry because a cab would be tographs him and sends the photographs to me so I can update hiswaiting to take her to the airport if she stayed for the track’s tradi- Facebook page,” said Waier. “He has transitioned into his retire-tional champagne toast ceremony. The thrilled owner-breeder said ment life and he loves it.”“Absolutely!” Meanwhile, Dana Waier Thoroughbreds, LLC is continuing its involvement in the sport and she is making her mark as a com- Defending White Oak champion Mighty Rule was the horse mercial breeder.River Bear defeated at long odds that afternoon and the loser Two of her yearling fillies, daughters of Lookin at Lucky andwent on to be crowned the 2009 Illinois-bred champion male Sky Messa who were raised at Gallagher Farms, have been ac-sprinter. cepted for the elite Fasig-Tipton Select Yearling Sale in Kentucky on July 12. But, Waier nonetheless had her first Illinois-bred champion “Being accepted was a big deal,” Waier said. “I’ve sold a cou-that year, Deviant Behavior, a son of Ecton Park and Jabber, who ple already at sales and they’re doing well. I’m happy for theirreigned in the two-year-old colt and gelding division. owners.” Then, in 2010, River Bear began his three-year run as the statechampion male sprinter. Hellman pointed out that he owes a debt of gratitude to trainerLarry Rivelli for making his River Bear success story possible. “Larry called to say he was going to claim him and he asked ifI was okay about losing him,” Hellman related. “I said, ‘No, Idon’t want to lose him.’ Larry is an honorable guy. He didn’tclaim him and next time out River Bear won that first $100,000race.”4 / ILLINOIS RACING NEWS / JULY 2016

June is for Illinois-breds by David Zenner State-breds had their first chance for stakes races in June at regaining the lead, Recount stopped the timer in 1:11.01 for the six fur-Arlington International Racecourse with five races for prairie-staters longs over Polytrack.contested over the course of three weekends. “It looked like [Sweet Luca] was going to blow by us, but he didn’tThe Purple Violet Stakes know I had some horse left,” Montalvo said. “It was a little surprise. As soon as I went to the left-hand stick, he gave me another gear.”Go Lady Jay For Recount, the 2016 Addison Cammack was his seventh tally in 19Ch. f. ‘13, by Run Away and Hide – Military Mama, by Include trips to the post. The son of Limehouse added $31,482 to his earnings, which now stand at $345,999.Breeder: John Truscott Racing & Run Away and Hide Syndicate (Ill.) Shanghai Red overtook Sweet Luca by a neck late to gain the placeOwner: John Truscott money. Armando’s Star, Creative Art and the 6-5 favorite Lewys Vaporizer completed the order of finish in the six-horse field.Trainer: Bradlee Rainwater Sent off as the 2-1 second choice, Recount paid $6, $3.60 and $2.60.Jockey: Jesse Lantz Shanghai Red returned $4.20 and $3. Sweet Luca paid $3.20. John Truscott’s Go Lady Jay made easy work of her eight rivals in the $54,600 Purple Violet Stakes The Isaac Murphy Handicap leading at every call en route Puntsville to a length and a quarter vic- Gr./ro. f. ‘12, by Cashel Castle – Deville, by Petionville tory in the race restricted to Breeder/Owner: S. D. Brilie Ltd. Partnership Illinois-registered three-year- Trainer: Michele Boyce old fillies. Jockey: Victor Santiago Jesse Lantz rode the S. D. Brilie Ltd. Bradlee Rainwater-trained Partnership’s PuntsvilleGo Lady Jay. Photo courtesy of daughter of Run Away and scored a front-runningFourFootedFoto. Hide who covered the victory in the $54,500,Polytrack mile in 1:37.78 after posting splits of 23.58 seconds, 48.12 taking the command earlyseconds, 1:12.85 and 1:24.99. The Purple Violet was Go Lady Jay’s on, leading by as much asfourth victory in 10 starts and the $31,450 winner’s share boosted her three lengths and thebankroll to $87,642. holding off a late run by“She started messing around right before they opened the gate,” Dandy Gal to earn a 3/4-Lantz said. “She just kind of hopped out of there and this filly runs length tally in the six-fur-much better on the lead, so I said, ‘you know what I’m just going to go long race for Illinois-reg-ahead and send her,’ because she’s gonna relax once she gets out there, istered distaffers.she’ll be good.” Puntsville. Photo courtesy of FourFootedFoto. With Victor SantiagoFlin Flon chased the leader from third position, moving into second in the irons, the Michelein the stretch and holding off third-place Missalaney. Boyce-trained daughter ofSent off as the fourth choice in the wagering, Go Lady Jay paid Cashel Castle covered the distance in 1:10.87 after posting fractions of$11.60, $6 and $4.20. Flin Flon returned $7.60 and $4.60. Missalaney 22.21 seconds, 45.16 seconds and 57.55 seconds.paid $3.20. “I’m very pleased with her progress,” said Boyce.Dundalk Bay, favored Silver Lode, Crusader Girl Too, Partay, Lakota The Isaac Murphy was the second stakes win for the four-year-oldRose and Pura Lica completed the order of finish. filly and her seventh victory in 12 starts overall. The $31,392 winner’s share pushed her earnings past the $200,000 mark to $216,944.The Addison Cammack Handicap It was another 2 1/4 lengths back to third-place finisher ChurchRecount Road who was followed through the wire by Laur Net, Canette, LookingB. g. ‘12, by Limehouse – Lucky in Love, by Bold Badgett for Bits, Karla With a K, Wildwood Kantharos and 11-10 favoriteBreeder: Barney and Anne Gallagher Richies Sweetheart.Owner: Doubledown Stables Inc. Puntsville, the second choice in the wagering, paid $7.80, $5.20 andTrainer: James DiVito $4.60. Dandy Gal returned $13.20 and $8.60. Church Road paid $5.80Jockey: Carlos Montalvo Defending champ The Mike Spellman Memorial Handicap Stormin Elle Doubledown Stables’ Ch. m. ‘10, by Stormello – Elle Belle, by El Prado Breeder: Triple C Thorobred and Dick Lossen (Ill.) Recount held serve and Owner: Joseph and Don Cochonour Trainer: Wayne Catalano won the $53,000 Addison Jockey: Jose Valdivia, Jr. Cammack Handicap for Joseph and Don Cochonour’s Stormin Elle took the lead at the top of the stretch en route to a one-length tally in the $53,800 Mike Spellman the second straight year Memorial Handicap. Jose Valdivia, Jr. was aboard the Wayne Catalano- trained daughter of Stormello. battling back gamely after The 1 1/16-mile turf race for Illinois-registered runners was named being headed in the in honor of the Daily Herald turf writer who died suddenly in January 2015. stretch to retake the lead Stormin Elle the pace of 24.72 seconds, 49.39 seconds and 1:13.68 and draw off to score by set by Kentucky invader Cabana before edging to the front and drawing clear to cover the distance in 1:43.05 over firm going. two lengths under jockeyRecount.

“The whole plan was Giant’s Causeway, led to be forwardly placed every step of the way set- with her, whether it was ting a leisurely pace of on the lead or laying sec- 25.29 seconds, 49.92 sec- ond or third,” Valdivia onds, 1:13.63 and 1:37.04 said. “She broke like a en route to the win, his shot and sat off the other fifth in 18 starts. He filly, but she was very earned $31,037 to boost comfortable. When I his bankroll to $142,304. turned her loose turning “He felt great from the for home she just explod- start,” Torres said. “I hadStormin Elle. Photo courtesy of ed.” Cammack. Photo courtesy of FourFootedFoto. the horse underneath meFourFootedFoto. Picking up her fifth from the get-go. The frac- win in 13 starts, the six- tions showed it and heyear-old mare earned $31,634 to push her bankroll to $170,766. prevailed when I called on him.”Lovely Loyree, the heavy 2-5 favorite in the field of seven, was Revolt was another 1 1/2 lengths back in third. Five Green Stars,never far back and got up for second late, a half-length ahead of Smiling Bold Rally, Sweet Luca, A Step Ahead, He’s Dann Good, Amen KittenGambler. Fleet Encounter, Prado’s Sweet Ride, Rosie My Rosie and and Empirestrikesagain completed the order of finish in the 10-horseCabana completed the order of finish. lineup.A 10-1 long shot, Stormin Elle paid $22.60, $5.60 and $3.60. Lovely Cammack paid $16.40, $8.40 and $5.40. Peej returned $3.40 andLoyree returned $2.40 and $2.20. Smiling Gambler paid $4.80. $2.80. Revolt paid $6.80. Finish lines: Defending champion Jose Valdivia, Jr. leads the riderThe Black Tie Affair Handicap standings with 38 winners through June 19, 14 more than MitchellCammackDk. b./br. g. ‘10, by Giant’s Causeway – Fort Pond, by Fortunate Murrill. Carlos Montalvo and Carlos Marquez, Jr. are tied for third withProspectBreeder/Owner: Team Block (Ill.) 18 victories each. Chris Emigh and Edgar Perez are tied for fifth withTrainer: Chris BlockJockey: Francisco Torres 16 tallies apiece. One week after the Addison Cammack Handicap was run, the horse Larry Rivelli has a one-win lead over Mike Stidham in the trainers’named for him—Cammack—won the $54,450 Black Tie AffairHandicap by a half-length over 9-5 favorite Peej. The Chris Block race 21-20 through June 19. Steve Manley and Leonard Slager are nexttrainee covered the 1 1/16 miles in 1:42.82 over a course listed as firm. with eight scores each with Mike Reavis rounding out the top five with Under jockey Francisco Torres, the six-year-old homebred son of seven wins. Patricia’s Hope LLC is tops in the owner standings with 10 wins through June 19, two better than Earl Hughes. There are seven owners tied for third with four victories apiece. CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING • SAFE • CERTAIN HERD REDUCTION • EFFECTIVE WOUND PROTECTION FILLY AND BIOZIDE® GEL BROODMARE PROSPECTS FOR WOUND DRESSING SALE Antibacterial • Antifungal 847-381-6199 It is the BEST!Use for Wounds • Incisions • Lacerations • Barbed Wire Cuts• Topical Infections • Nail Wounds • Trauma • Rope BurnsPUT IT ON…IT STAYS PUT! Biozide Gel is a registered Trademark of Does Not Melt or Run Off 1% Available IODINE —— PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS INC. —— St. Louis, MO 63166 • USASpecial Gel Formula Lets The Wound Breathe 314-421-0300 • Fax 314-421-3332 FOR FASTER HEALING Toll Free 888-890-0659Available in 6 oz. and 20 oz. Jars Distributors WantedORDER AT www.biozidegel.com or through your tack shopMOVING? Please let Call 1-630-887-7722 us know to report your change of address (Please allow six weeks for change to take effect.) so you don’t miss an issue ofPlace your Classified Advertising in ILLINOIS RACING NEWS1-inch boxed ad 2-inch boxed ad Please contact Dan Arrigo at ITBOF: $30/month $50/month P.O. Box 578, Arl. Hts., IL 60006; 847-253-3670; ilracingnews.com

Broodmare Management Foaling Layups ™ Retireeswww.indianhillstbfarm.com At Stud: Wild Gambler & Ameriheart 618-792-3398A Smorgasbord of Food for Thought by Neil Milbert Question: Where has the $2 bettor gone? people to become the successors of the senior citizens who have been life- Answer: If he’s a Republican, he’s attending a rally for Donald Trump; long lovers of the sport.if he’s a Democrat, he’s attending a rally for Bernie Sanders. Yes, we’re being a bit facetious. Nevertheless, during the last 40 years There are other contributing factors that the Illinois track owners andthe economic vitality of America’s middle class has been fading like a horsemen have no control over: strong competition from riverboat casinos,sprinter hitting the homestretch in a 1-1/4-mile race, and the unexpected the lengthening of the baseball, football, basketball and hockey seasonsoutpouring of support that Trump and Sanders have received is a manifes- and the corresponding expansion of television and print coverage of thesetation of the frustration of those left behind. sports. During this same time frame, attendance and handle at American race-tracks have been declining. When it comes to racing, the people putting out the sports section of The think tanks of the racing hierarchies have come to the conclusion the Chicago newspapers are clueless.that “the racing model is broken.” If only it were that simple. The Chicago Tribune no longer prints the local tracks’ entries and re- “The U.S. system of market capitalism itself is broken,” was the con- sults, and last year stopped advancing and covering all of the major thor-clusion reached in a May 23 Time Magazine cover story. oughbred and harness races with the notable exception of the international “The American public understands just how deeply and profoundly the races on Arlington Million day.economic order isn’t working for the majority of the people,” the articleemphasized. Once there were astute comments on every horse in every race by “Financialization has funneled money up, not down, which is partly Elmer Polzin and Dave Surico that provided a wealth of information forwhy middle class wages have hardly budged since the 1960s. Average bettors and charts of all the races. Now there’s nothing.hourly pay has increased just $1.25 in 50 years after adjusting for infla-tion.” Even though there wasn’t a horse going for the Triple Crown this year, According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, among the 50 history and tradition make the Belmont one of the most important eventsstates Illinois ranks fifth in total personal income, but only 17th in per in American racing. The Tribune’s advance coverage consisted of one sen-capita personal income. Median household income in the state is $47,987 tence in the Friday paper, and the result coverage in the Sunday paper con- A trifecta of consolidation, privatization and deregulation has pro- sisted of four short paragraphs atop the page 8 Press Box column thatduced job layoffs, lower wages and limited options for consumers. encapsulates happenings in a variety of sports. Are Illinois thoroughbred and standardbred owners, breeders, trainersand fans better off now that there are only two thoroughbred tracks and Amazingly, the Tribune devotes a relatively significant amount ofone harness track in Chicago instead of the four thoroughbred and four space to auto racing, even though the Chicago Motor Speedway venture atharness tracks the circuit had in 1990? Sportsman’s Park in the late 1990s and early 2000s turned out to be one of No, they’re much worse off. the biggest financial and artistic fiascos in Chicago sports history. Arlington International Racecourse and Hawthorne Race Course are tobe congratulated for their laudable attempts to attract younger people. The bottom line: Chicago is a sophisticated entertainment market and Acquiring expertise is essential in order for one to become a racing people didn’t show up to see a sport that has a fanatic following in theaficionado, but time and money are in short supply these days. Deep South. Just as Chicagoans were turned off at the sight of cars and The Associated Press reports that U.S. undergraduate students last year trucks driving around in a circle at high speeds, people in Talladega, Ala.finished college with an average of $35,000 in student debt and the aver- would have scant interest in seeing a theatrical production of Hamilton.age graduate student debt load is $75,000. Reducing vacation time for employees has become the norm. The Perhaps the absence of regular racing coverage in the Tribune and Sun-Chicago Tribune reports that workers in the metropolitan area have an av- Times was the reason that the Chicago television ratings for this year’serage of 10 vacation days per year, but many are afraid of using all of their Kentucky Derby were the lowest in four years even though last year Amer-time off, fearing that it will move them up on the potential layoff list. ican Pharoah became the first Triple Crown winner since 1978 and the The point of all of this isn’t to paint a picture of doom and gloom. It’s 2016 field was headed by the undefeated Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winnermerely an attempt to focus on the most significant reasons that racing at- Nyquist. (The 8.9 rating/22 share was appreciably lower than an 11.8 rat-tendance and handle have declined and how difficult it is to entice young ing/29 share in 2015, an 11.0 rating/26 share in 2014 and a 10.8 rating/25 share in 2013). It’s conceivable that the absence of the Chicago circuit’s only race for Triple Crown candidates, the Illinois Derby, from Hawthorne’s stakes schedule also had something to do with it. Although it isn’t on the list of Kentucky Derby qualifying races, inau- gurated by Churchill Downs in 2013 the Illinois Derby generated a buzz with sport fans in the Chicago market because of the WGN telecast and was the biggest day of the year at Hawthorne. ILLINOIS RACING NEWS / JULY 2016 / 7

Unfortunately, economics dictated that Hawthorne eliminate all of its Arlington’s annual August presentation of its four international races—thestakes races this spring to put the money in daily purses and a ripple effect Arlington Million, Beverly D., Secretariat and American St. Leger—by in-may have been the dip in interest in the Kentucky Derby telecast. creasing public awareness of Europe’s finest horses. Some of these horses show up at Arlington on Million day. In trying to “fix the racing model” racing’s high command have madesome dubious moves. Meanwhile, Arlington this summer has done a commendable job of trying to broaden interest on its live programs by introducing several new Exhibit A: the Breeders’ Cup. When it was inaugurated in 1984 at events. They include State Fair Family Day (May 28), Horses and Hounds(now-defunct) Hollywood Park the championship series consisted of seven (June 18), Singles Social (June 25), Little Super Heroes Family Day (Juneraces run on the same day—the Classic, Turf, Distaff, Mile, Sprint, Juve- 26), Christmas in July Family Day (July 31), Luck of the Irish (Aug. 20),nile Fillies and Juvenile. It was a compact TV package and it was easy for Art in the Park (Aug. 27) and Family Day Luau (Aug. 28).sports fans who weren’t racing fans to pick up on the story line. Arlington also had introduced a 50-cent Pic 3 wager. That is a very Over the years, the Breeders’ Cup has evolved into a confusing two- good gimmick to get horseplayers of limited means to increase their in-day mishmash with TV coverage split between two channels. A few years volvement at the betting windows.ago, there were 15 races; now there are 13. But, that’s still far too many forsports fans who aren’t racing fans to get a handle on. Racing IS NOT a dying sport in Illinois. But, in these dire economic times for the typical $2 bettor, it is a sport that desperately needs the sup- One of the biggest objectives of the Breeders’ Cup founding fathers port of Gov. Bruce Rauner and the General Assembly.was to increase interest and awareness of the sport and they accomplishedthat goal until their successors decided to “fix it.” If the governor and legislators finally set aside their differences and work for the common good of those who make their living in racing, However, there have been some encouraging developments in racing in maybe then, someday, our national government will find a fix for thethe aftermath of American Pharoah’s Triple Crown triumph that was biggest problem of all, namely the subject of the seven-page May 23 Timenamed Sports Event of the Year by Sports Business Journal. cover story: In its June 11 edition, the New York Times noted: “Two television con- “The U.S. system of market capitalism itself is broken.”tracts announced in recent weeks made a splash, with NBC landing a If it gets fixed, railbirds will no longer be on the endangered speciesmulti-year agreement to broadcast the Royal Ascot meet from Britain in list and $2 bettors will start coming back to the track.the United States, beginning in 2017, and Fox Sports securing a multi-yeardeal to broadcast more than 80 hours of live coverage from Saratoga RaceCourse on FS2.” The Royal Ascot arrangement could turn out to significantly benefit PROFESSIONAL SERVICESBREAKING-TRAINING-LAYUPS-FOALING Churchill Lending Partners LLC HORSE VANNING 1/2 Mile training track, Starting Gate, COMMERCIAL real estate lending Creech/Drexler Horse Transportation 3 miles from Fairmount Park for a broad range of properties. 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Controlled Awnings, Interlocking Rubber Pavers Back Taxes, IRS Issues Hotwalker, pond for swimming, 62+stalls. LANCE BEAULIEU 11255 N. Sparrow Lane, Mt. Vernon, IL 62864 4415 East Skene Road • Elizabeth, IL 61028 618-244-0700 Phone & Fax: (815) 598-3077 618-292-5100 618-214-0444 (Rick Lacey’s cell) Mobile: (815) 985-4758 email: [email protected] Place your listing in theILLINOIS RACING NEWS PROFESSIONAL SERVICES DIRECTORY$20/month $100 for 6 months $200 for 1 year Please contact Dan Arrigo at ITBOF: (2 free months) P.O. Box 578, Arl. Hts., IL 60006; 847-253-3670; ilracingnews.com(billed monthly) (1 free month)8 / ILLINOIS RACING NEWS / JULY 2016

President’s UpdateITBOF By Dan SullivanPurses—Nothing But Purses! A check with ITBOF’s lobbyists confirms what the press has a horse thinking he or she can pay for the horse and realize arepeatedly stated. The little kids down in Springfield are still profit.playing games instead of acting like adults facing big boy prob-lems that affect all of us. So, the chances of getting a gaming bill There are very, very few owners that have enough money toeven considered, at least this year, appear remote and extremely put a horse at the track and pay for all these people as if theyunlikely. were recipients of a charitable cause. And, those very few that are extremely wealthy usually get there by not throwing money So, if you are an owner hoping and wishing for subsidies to at a certain losing endeavor.keep your horse racing participation alive and competitive, onthe same basis as existed historically, is just like praying for your So, what keeps an owner buying horses and racing in Illinois?fairy godmother to get you money to pay the next vet bill. Purses—nothing but purses. However, keeping owners in Illinois racing is really simple in Without a gaming bill supporting a business model that sta-these times that are unlike the past where all the stakeholders on tistically forbids success, it is inevitable the back stretch, as wellthe backstretch could belly up to the slop trough and take some as the track itself, will lose the honey pot that allows the exis-money. The business model allowing continued racing in Illinois tence of the entire enterprise.without a gaming subsidy is so simple. Yet those people who relyupon racing for a livelihood basically ignore it. This means the business in Illinois must be rationalized to support the owner and keep the owner putting horses at the Every aspect of racing in Illinois rests upon being able to pay Illinois tracks. How is this done? At a minimum, there should becompetitive purses to the owner of the horse. Nothing else no money for the purses that are designated by the statutes andcounts. If the owner of the race horse receives an adequate regulations as purse money, used for the payment of anything butchance at purse money that will support the owner’s involvement purses. That is the starting point. That is blindly resisted at thein horse racing, every other person involved with Illinois racing present. Not all purse money is used for purses.will succeed. Because it is blindly resisted, horse racing in Illinois is on a If the owner doesn’t have a chance to receive adequate fund- collision course with that grim reaper standing around the cornering for owning a race horse, nothing else will matter. There with a smirk on his face. Horse racing will die.won’t be any concern about the welfare on the back stretch. Thisis because the back stretch will be closed down and empty. There Further, it is no good hoping gaming will bail out a businesswon’t be any concern by trainers as to the cost of hay because no model that allows one penny of the purses to be diverted fromhay will be delivered to the back stretch and there won’t be any the owner. Gaming in every state starts by supporting racing.trainers. The hay wholesalers and trainers will find something Then every legislature finds that money is better suited forelse to do or move to another area. The vets can transition to a schools just like Illinois did on the impact money. Gaming is asmall animal practice or move to a rural area. The track owners short term fix for a long term problem that has to focus on purs-will make a killing by developing the track for some other com- es to keep owners buying horses.mercial purpose. The failure to thoroughly realize this basic fact will affect The horse racing business model can be thought of as an more than the back stretch and the track. This failure to rational-inverted pyramid setting on a base that is the breeding farm. ize the industry has resulted in a reduction in the Illinois breed-Horse racing is precariously balanced upon the inverted pyramid ing program that is so severe it is rapidly fading into the sunset.with the owner as the single individual holding up the entireindustry. The upside down pyramid depends upon ownership by The present irrational conduct is backing will back up to theentrepreneurs buying a horse hoping to win a race to pay for that farms.horse and make a profit. This is because horses are a capital intensive livestock invest- Keeping that horse means the owner pays for a people inten- ment. Compared to cattle, the investment in feed, veterinariansive support staff. The upside down pyramid spreads the owner’s and, most especially, in labor is huge. There must be statisticsmoney to hired help that usually starts with the trainer. Most (if somewhere that show the difference but the number of people itnot all) trainers don’t perform hands on training. They hire takes to care for the breeding, foaling, raising, breaking andgrooms and hot walkers who indirectly depend on the owner’s training a single horse will probably allow a farmer to handle atmoney. The trainers arrange vets and farriers so necessary to the least 100 to 200 head of cattle.well-being of the horse that directly depend upon the owner’smoney. There are the hay merchants, grain merchants, tack shops So, one can only hope that very soon those involved in anyand other businesses accessorial to a two-minute race that way with the purse account will make an effort to get the entiredepend upon the owner’s money. But, at root they all depend purse distribution to the people who should receive it—the own-upon the owner taking a chance at making money by buying and ers.owning a horse. They depend entirely upon the owner who buys



Dan Arrigo: 2015 Person of the YearBy Gail Radke The 2015 Person of the Year incorporate his volunteering with hisAward has been presented to one of other passion, cooking. On the backthe unsung heroes for the Breeders side he has cooked breakfast for tonsand Owners. Our Person is someone of folks over the years.who has dedicated a tremendousamount of time and energy behind I have personally sampled his ribsthe scenes in serving the needs of and they are outstanding. They areour organization for the past several only matched by his homemade iceyears. He is a no nonsense straight cream and chocolate, which is to dieshooter, easy to talk to and com- for.mands a great deal of horse knowl-edge from all facets of the industry. One time at a Keeneland sale, DanIn other words, he is older than dirt cooked breakfast and lunch for theand been a race tracker a long, long, workers and anybody who neededlong time. I am referring to Dan food. He saw this big guy cut into theArrigo. front of the line and he went over and yelled at him to get to the back of the Dan’s strong work ethic comes line. The guy sheepishly went to thenaturally. His dad would get Dan up back of the line and someone askedearly to hitch up the horse to a Dan, “Do you know who that was?wagon and off they’d go downtown That was country western singer Tobyto the docks to pick up the bananas and other fruit for his Keith.” Dan didn’t miss a beat, “Ifather’s produce business. It was a good thing the horse knew the don’t care who he is, you don’t cut.”way, because Danny would fall asleep and the horse made the Dan travels all over for the ITBOF and it seems I am alwaystrip without any direction. talking to him when he is in the car. I believe talking on the phone while driving is illegal in Chicago. He puts in countless Dan’s love and association with horses and horsemen started hours, seven days a week. He is a one man show, helpingas a youngster. He hung around the tracks while in grade school. Breeders and Owners, fielding phone calls all hours of the dayAt the age of 8, he swept out the grandstands after races. He sold and night. If he doesn’t have your answer, you can bet he will gethorseshoes worn by Native Dancer. If people knew how many back to you within an hour with it. If he has to go out of town toshoes the grade schooler was hawking, they would have thought a horse sale, he keeps his phone with him. He put together theNative Dancer was a centipede. awards dinner, from the meal to the trophies, and sending out the invitations. He travels between tracks, goes to Illinois Racing He graduated from sweeping to gofer, to hot walker, then Board meetings, collects the information for the Illinois Racingassistant groom and groom. Dan was too big to be a jockey, so News that the ITBOF recently decided to help stay alive.he became a jockey’s agent, then a trainer and finally his perfect He works closely with President Dan Sullivan, both volun-fit—a Blood Stock agent. teering long hours behind the scenes to help the ITBOF. Sullivan was honored in 2013 and now it is Dan Arrigo’s turn. Traveling all over the country looking at horses for clients, I don’t remember exactly when I met Danny. It seems like IDan got to know just about everybody who was anybody in the have known him forever. He is a true friend, with an open hearthorse business and took to heart their information and advice. As who helps all kinds of folks from all walks of life, and you willa blood stock agent he bought hundreds of horses over the years, never hear him tell you about it. He is the kind of man you canspending countless hours studying and researching pedigrees. always count on. He’s the kind of person that when the chips areAlways the trusting soul, once a seller told him over the phone down you’d want him in your foxhole, digging in, protectingthat the horse he was interested in was really good looking, your back and getting the job done.sound and not a mark on her. The pedigree was great, so Dan So, on behalf of the ITBOF, we thank Dan for all his efforts,took the seller’s word and had the mare shipped to his client. his time, his dedication to the Breeders and Owners and to the horse industry he loves so much. He has always gone above and The day the racehorse arrived, Dan got a call from his client, beyond, no matter what the task and I personally treasure our“This mare is 100 percent sound, good looking and doesn’t have friendship.a mark on her; just like you said. Only one problem, she’s blind.” There was a pause then Dan’s response, “Guess you could sayI bought her sight unseen.” Horses are a way of life for Danny, along with caring for theless fortunate. He would give you the shirt off his back if youneeded it. Danny has been involved for years in HorsemenHelping Horsemen fundraising efforts and always finds time to ILLINOIS RACING NEWS / JULY 2016 / 11

Point of View by Ray Hallett There is no way to sugarcoat the fact that the racing industry in Illinois structure and a subsequent decline in the quality of racing, which results inis not doing well. That isn’t exactly new news. We have been crying about further declines of handle. The death spiral has been going on for 20 years.our situation for so long that some have come to regard it as a normal stateof affairs. It isn’t. Racing has prospered in this state in the past and it can But what about full card simulcasting, can it be that bad? Oh yes it can.again, but that is never going to happen until we can look realistically at The most popular betting site for Illinois betting action isn’t the races inhow bad the situation has become. Instead of the “things are bad” mantra, this state. In 2015 Gulfstream, Belmont, Santa Anita and Churchill togetherlet’s look at the actual numbers. siphoned $133.5 million in betting action out of Illinois. They only led the way. As the quality and number of Illinois races decline the trade balance The Illinois Racing Boards Annual Report makes for some enlightening has turned against our state. As late as 2008 there was a positive inflow ofreading. If you’d like to dig through the numbers for yourself, check online money into Illinois from bettors from around the country. That year saw aat http://www.illinois.gov/irb/Documents/AnnualReports/AR2015.pdf. positive handle of $247.5 million. That trend has now been completely re- versed. Last year Illinois saw a negative flow of $165.3 million. In short There is an old saying that numbers don’t lie. That is certainly the case more money is leaving the state than coming in. The rich are getting richerwith Illinois horse racing. For instance in 1980 the on track handle for bet- and the poor, us, are getting poorer.ting from all sources on Illinois races was $1,004,896,061. The number for2015 was $85,239,630. That isn’t a misprint. On track wagering on the The drop in handle and Recapture have caused purses to crash in Illi-local product has dropped from a little over a billion to only $85 million. nois. Thoroughbred purses peaked in 2000 at almost $66 million. 2002 wasNo wonder horse racing in this state is struggling. higher but that included the Breeders’ Cup at Arlington. In 2015 thorough- bred purses fell to slightly less than $28 million. Of course there are extenuating circumstances. In the intervening 35years we have added Intertrack wagering, OTBs, full card simulcasting, and Yes, the horsemen are hurting but they aren’t the only ones. In 1993 theadvance deposit wagering. So we should be doing fine, right? Not so quick. state government gained $47.5 million in revenue from horse racing. LastThe wagering from all sources in 2015 was $593,423,880 or only about 60 year that number fell to $6.8 million. An additional $5.8 million was dis-percent of what it was 35 years ago. If you throw in the impact of inflation tributed to city and county governments. In a state that is increasingly look-we are doing even worse. ing at yearly deficits that are running into the billions of dollars, that is chicken feed. To Springfield we no longer matter. But the problem doesn’t end there. By far the most profitable type ofbet for the track and horsemen is the on track bet on the local product. With Well at least the tracks are doing well, right? They have Recapture toany other bet the monetary pie is sliced more ways because there are more help them get by and then they have parking and concessions and admis-entities involved. This is not a new phenomena. We have known about it sion too. Wait! I’m not sure that is exactly true. Take a look at the averagefrom the beginning and that is the reason we have the much hated Recap- daily attendance for the Illinois tracks in 2015. Arlington (7,913),ture provision. Hawthorne Spring (1,514), Hawthorne Fall (1,087), Fairmount (2,288), Balmoral (1,255), and Maywood (550). With those numbers it is hard to I’m not going to go into all the details of how Recapture came about even justify the overhead connected to opening the gates each day. Thebut I’ll give a simplified version. Back in 1994 the horsemen in Illinois tracks aren’t getting rich off the few people that turn up on a regular basiswanted the General Assembly to pass a law that would permit full-card because there aren’t enough of them. They have been encouraged to betsimulcasting. The track owners were against it, some more so than others. elsewhere.The conversation must have sounded something like this: Not surprisingly the bad numbers even descend down to the farms. The Horsemen, “We would like to legalize full card simulcasting because it number of mares standing in Illinois have dropped from 1,422 to 285 in thewill increase handle and purses.” 20 years since 1995. Over the same span of time the foal crop has declined from 1,143 to 295 last year. Track Owners, “We are against full card simulcasting because our bean-counters tell us that any increase in handle won’t be enough to cover split- The numbers don’t lie. We are looking at an industry that is in crisis.ting the money with out of state tracks and everyone in Illinois will lose Not only is it gravely ill but also perhaps terminal.revenue.” Blame our troubles in Springfield is you wish. They did approve alter- Horsemen, “We don’t believe that will happen. We are on our way to nate forms of gambling that compete directly with horse racing. You canthe promised land.” blame Springfield for failing to respond when it became obvious that the state’s actions had placed racing in jeopardy. Track Owners, “Okay, we will go along with your wishes, against ourbetter judgment, but there is one condition.” If you wish you can blame our plight on the proliferation of casinos and video gambling terminals around the state. They have come at a terrible Horsemen, “What is that?” price and we would be undoubtedly better off today if they did not exist. Track Owners, “You must promise that, if you are wrong and we losemoney, you will make up the difference.” You could blame our condition on the fact that many states got the drop Horsemen, “That isn’t a problem. We know that full card simulcasting on us and gained a supplemental income source which we are yet to find.will bring in tons of new money. We agree.” The bean-counters were right and as a result recapture was born. Full You might look closer to home and point a finger at the racing leaderscard simulcasting, which sent millions of dollars bet by Illinois gamblers that have spend decades giving in to petty jealousies and greed instead ofinto the pockets of other states, marked the beginning of racing’s decline in working together to build on a foundation that was once strong.Illinois. In the first three years of full card simulcasting the live handle onIllinois races was cut in half. What good does it do to assign blame? I’ve reached the point where I That was just the beginning. Over time the losses have escalated and really don’t care to point the finger of blame at anyone. What does thatthey engendered anger as the horsemen were locked into a bad deal of their gain? Will it reverse the obviously downward slide?own making and the tracks found themselves frozen at a 1994 level. Be-tween 1995 and 2015 the horsemen have lost $262 million from the horse- I’m also tired of waiting for the politicians in Springfield to come rid-men’s purse account as a result of Recapture. ing to the rescue. It isn’t going to happen in the foreseeable future. That op- Recapture is a cancer that has been eating away at the guts of Illinois portunity has passed us by. Those politicians that represent our only hoperacing for 20 years and there is apparently no cure. In 2015 44.4 percent of for the future can’t even pass a workable yearly budget, something that al-all money wagered in Illinois was at OTBs. ADW accounted for 24.3 per- most every citizen of this state does on a regular basis.cent and Intertrack was responsible for 16.9 percent. The lucrative on tracklive handle only produced 14.4 percent of wagering. There is no way that Sorry to be so depressing this month but we have reached the mid-pointthe present structure of racing can support the handle that were generated in another year and nothing seems to be changing. Like many others I keepby the race tracks only two decades ago. The result is a declining purse wondering, how much longer can this go on?12 / ILLINOIS RACING NEWS / JULY 2016

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