Bruce Schreiner, Associated Press
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Churchill Downs cleared a key hurdle Wednesday in pursuit of September racing that would give the famed track a third live meet next year.
A panel of state racing regulators recommended that the Louisville track, home of the Kentucky Derby, pick up September racing dates that traditionally have gone to Turfway Park in northern Kentucky. Churchill is seeking permission for four three-day weekends of racing in September, in addition to its usual spring and fall meets.
The full Kentucky Horse Racing Commission is expected to vote on the entire 2013 live racing schedule statewide at its meeting Tuesday.
Churchill hopes to capitalize on the typical good weather in September in hopes of attracting throngs of horsemen and fans.
One goal is to emerge as a big player in the thoroughbred simulcast market in September, traditionally a “soft month” nationally, track President Kevin Flanery told reporters afterward. The track also plans at least two night racing cards in September, special events that draw big crowds at other times of the year.
It also hopes to draw in college students who are typically busy preparing for final exams or out of town during the spring and fall meets, he said.
“It gives us something new and innovative to do,” he said.
Meanwhile, struggling Turfway Park would have its live racing schedule cut nearly in half, from 81 days this year to 45 in 2013, as part of the full thoroughbred racing slate recommended by the racing commission’s Race Dates Committee.
The panel on Wednesday heard presentations from tracks competing for race dates. Turfway led off and voluntarily gave up its September meet to Churchill.
“With the betterment of Kentucky racing in mind, Turfway Park is willing to concede September to Churchill Downs,” said Chip Bach, Turfway’s director of operations.
Besides losing September racing, the suburban track in Florence would scale back its February schedule to just two racing days under the proposed schedule.
Turfway officials predicted the slimmed-down racing schedule will allow the track to raise its average daily purses to about $180,000 in hopes of attracting more quality horses. The beleaguered track’s purses averaged $97,000 per day during its meet last month.
Turfway’s daily purses have sagged in recent years, outpaced by tracks in other states that boost their purses with an infusion of casino gambling money. For years, Kentucky’s tracks have been united in pushing for a proposal to allow them to add slot machines, but their efforts have been stymied in the state General Assembly.
“We’re forced to think out of the box, elevating the competitiveness of our races in Kentucky,” Bach said.
He expressed concerns for the track’s employees, saying: “When you reduce race days, you reduce the hours of people that you need.” He also said the track would work with horsemen to ensure it has “a robust enough winter to keep horses around.”
The proposed 2013 schedule creates holes in Kentucky’s traditional year-round race slate, which also features racing at Keeneland in Lexington, Ellis Park at Henderson and Kentucky Downs at Franklin in southern Kentucky.
But the panel talked about promoting quality over quantity in setting race schedules.
Commission member Elizabeth Lavin noted that Kentucky has had gaps before in its racing schedule.
“I don’t think it’s going to be the end of the world,” she said. “We’ve already proven that more days is not always better. I think it’s worth a try.”
Under the plan, Turfway would host racing on Fridays through Sundays in January, along with racing on New Year’s Day, a Tuesday. In February, live racing would be limited to the first two days of the month. In March, racing would occur each Friday and Saturday along with one Thursday. Turfway also would have the option of hosting races each Sunday in the month. The track would continue its full December schedule.
The last time Churchill dabbled with September racing was in 1983 and 1984, when it offered a handful of racing dates in the month.
However, it would be the first stand-alone September racing meet at Churchill since the early years of its long history, said track spokesman John Asher. The most recent all-September meet was the 1890 fall meet that consisted of eight racing days, he said.
Flanery predicted that September racing at Churchill would help uplift the entire thoroughbred industry in Kentucky. He said it could help keep more horsemen in Kentucky who might otherwise pack up for other states.
“We believe that putting the Churchill brand on September will help keep some of those people here,” he said.
The track also would have the option of offering Thursday racing as well next September.
The competition for racing dates among some Kentucky tracks showed cracks in their unity in pushing for expanded gambling at their facilities.
“This has not been a pleasant experience,” Flanery said. “We all know that Kentucky right now is not playing on a level playing field with everyone else, and that’s why we’ve had to have these difficult conversations.”
