Random Musings for The Week That Was

Posted by noonante on May 12, 2013
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One person’s take on last week in the news:

Have Republicans finally found a real scandal?  No, not Benghazi.  Rather, it is reports that Internal Revenue Service employees targeted Tea Party organizations with heightened scrutiny, and that high level IRS employees were aware of it.  I have yet to see anything that would connect this to the White House, but I do not watch Sean Hannity or Glenn Beck.  The GOP never really found pay dirt with Solyndra or their encouragement of the birther movement.  Benghazi?  How can you have a scandal when you cannot really describe what it is?  Independent reports have already faulted the government’s role in the crisis, but changing the tone of emails does not make this comparable to Watergate.  Also, it is interesting how Republicans have to go back to the 70’s for a big scandal, conveniently ignoring Reagan’s Iran-Contra and the scandalous incompetence, lying and torturing of W’s Presidency.

At least one of this trifecta of losers is leaving the scene:  What can you say about a week in which Mark Sanford and Carl Paladino were elected to public office, and the Air Force officer appointed as the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Officer in February was fired for sexual battery in May?  Sanford, in addition to using public funds to conduct an extramarital affair, did his part for those of us who tell a spouse we are hiking the Appalachian Trail when  –  you know  –  we really are, complete with backpacks, dehydrated food and hiking boots.  It is a phrase, however, that truly resonates as an iconic American moment.  For those not familiar with Paladino, he was the Republican nominee in 2010 against Andrew Cuomo, and whose list of “indiscretions” included threatening to use a baseball bat against opponents in Albany.  Oh …  he was elected to the School Committee in Buffalo, so anti-violence initiatives may take a back seat, as well as command of the English language.  Here is a sentence from his web site:  “At our interview you expected me to apologize to you for having resent off-color e-mails that were all about time and place, who and what.”

When will the Federal government’s shortcomings in this disaster get more attention?  The Boston Marathon bombing once again highlighted inadequate communication among governmental agencies in sharing information about possible terrorist attacks.  What has been lost among the predictable sound bites, however, is that these deficiencies have been regularly identified since 2005, and known to legislators from both parties.  But what about the explosion in West, Texas that killed 14 people and, literally, devastated a significant portion of that town.  I suspect that the failure in this case will be an absence of government regulation which, we know, this Republican Party favors in every conceivable situation.

Are we there yet?  Levels of Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere have reached levels not seen since before man and woman walked the earth.  While hitting that number is in large part symbolic according to this account since we have already accomplished a fair amount of damage, there isn’t exactly a lot of good news about the legacy we are leaving for future generations.

New series looks at drugs and racing

Posted by noonante on May 10, 2013
Posted in: Horse Racing. Tagged: . Leave a comment

The Thoroughbred Daily News has started a six-part series on drugs and thoroughbred racing, appropriately titled A Painful Truth.  This is not Joe Drape and The New York Times but a respected industry publication.

This is not a new issue.  Part 1 (from the May 2 issue) looked at the history of drugs in racing, going back to the early 20th century  –  with an article from 1903 in, yes, The New York Times  –  and the sport’s first Triple Crown winner, Sir Barton.

The next installment (May 10) brought us to the present, including a discussion of New York’s Task Force on Racehorse Health and Safety.  Author Ryan Goldberg forcefully brings home a point that I think many race trackers would like to avoid  –  it’s not just illegal drugs that present a problem, but legal ones as well.

This is a series that I hope all in the industry, as well as fans of the sport, will read carefully, and not dismiss it as readily as many did with the Times‘ account.  In intend to go into this deeper in a later post.

When will Governor Cuomo congratulate Derby winners from New York?

Posted by noonante on May 9, 2013
Posted in: Horse Racing, Political/Social commentary, Politics. Tagged: , , , . 2 Comments

It has been five days since the Kentucky Derby and Governor Andrew Cuomo has issued 15 press releases, but none of them have recognized the New York connections of Derby winner Orb.  (Today’s first one highlights Luke Bryan headlining the New York State Fair.)  The colt is owned by Stuart S. Janney III and Ogden Phipps who also bred the son of Malibu Moon to Lady Liberty.  Janney is currently a member of the Reorganization Board of the New York Racing Association, and was also a member of the “old” Board along with Phipps.  Trainer Shug McGaughey is a son of Louisville, but when he returned to Belmont Park with his horse and roses, he said it was good to be home.

A year ago at this time, Cuomo was engaged in a campaign to discredit the integrity of the NYRA Board as part of his effort to take control of thoroughbred racing in New York.  He successfully rolled the NYRA Board into agreeing with his taking control, and then rushed legislation through the Legislature without any apparent debate  –  and just one dissenting vote in both chambers.  He never articulated a legitimate reason for privatizing one of New York’s signature industries, instead relying on a complicit media to talk about the “scandal-plagued” NYRA.  There was some talk about his father  –  whose gubernatorial tenure ended 19 years ago  –  having had a bad relationship with NYRA.  Then there was the “unnamed source” quoted by Fred Dicker back in July when he was still Cuomo’s authorized hagiographer, who said this would be the “last hurrah for the blue bloods who have controlled [NYRA] for so long.”

Orb’s victory was a popular one throughout the industry, in large part because McGaughey is viewed as an “old school” trainer who lets the horse determine the agenda, and is not one of those who starts thinking Derby as soon as they purchase another expensive yearling.  Indeed, his last Derby trip was in 1989 when he sent out favorite Easy Goer, who had the misfortune to run against a better horse in Sunday Silence.  Contrast that with a Todd Pletcher who sent out five horses in this year’s Derby, bringing his overall record to one win from 36 starts, and is now talking about running two fillies in the Belmont Stakes.  Pletcher learned from Wayne Lukas who had two Derby starters this year, and plans on three for the Preakness, but you could also throw Nick Zito or Bob Baffert into the mix, each of whom has won the Derby, but not before going through literally dozens of promising two-year olds who could not keep up with the “program.”  Of course, McGaughey could not do the right thing by the horse unless he had the support of owners such as Janney and Phipps.

What makes Cuomo’s uncharacteristic reticence even more surprising is his supposed concern for promoting the well-being of the horse.  That was another of the rationales tossed around last year when the attack on the “old” NYRA began.  The “new” NYRA Board should be commended for carrying through on the recommendations made by the Task Force on Racehorse Health and Safety that completed its work under the leadership of the “old” NYRA.  Central to its recommendations were changes in rules governing the administration of permissible medications.  It is ironic that another New York trainer with a Derby horse, Rudy Rodriguez, could not be licensed in Kentucky until he made a special appearance before the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.  Rodriguez had just completed a suspension in New York for one drug violation, is under investigation for another, and has been the subject of countless rumors regarding his reliance on pharmaceuticals.  While I try not to be place much stock in such suspicions, it is noteworthy that McGaughey is not one of those trainers about whom you hear such speculation.

This, then, would have been an opportunity for the Governor and his administration to focus on what is right about horse racing, with a particular focus on New York.  One fears, however, that his failure to say anything is simply representative of the petty vindictiveness that appears to be as much a hallmark of the Cuomo persona as his boundless ambition and ego.  Or perhaps, in the interest of fairness, maybe he was not aware that the Derby was run Saturday.

Marathon thoughts

Posted by noonante on April 28, 2013
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It’s been a difficult time to write with thoughts of the Marathon and the empty feeling that accompanied that tragedy consuming me.  There certainly has been no shortage of commentary in both the Boston and national media, with much of it understandably predictable, just as when someone dies or one close to you is diagnosed with a serious illness.  It is a time to be empathetic and comforting, not for putting things in perspective.  When you are ready for perspective, the best thing I’ve read so far is George Packer’s piece in The New Yorker.

I lived in various neighborhoods of Boston, starting with college, and worked in several other communities over the 44 years I was there.  I guess because I was not born there, spending my early formative years in the city, I always felt like somewhat of an outsider, even though I was married there and had two kids born there.  And, to be candid, while I have missed friends, I have not missed the city since moving away three years ago.

There are, however, two parts of Boston that will forever be part of me.  One is the Red Sox, although that attachment began when I lived in another part of the state, 90 miles away.  There have been, to put it mildly, numerous lean years and I’m not just talking about the 13-month period beginning in September 2011.

The other is the Marathon.  I first saw it while riding the Cleveland Circle line downtown on a long-ago Patriots Day.  Back then there were probably less than 300 runners, no crowds, and a bowl of beef stew at the finish.  It has, of course, evolved into a real holiday, celebrating both the onset of spring and the determination of 25,000 runners (and, let’s not forget, the Battles of Concord and Lexington).  The Red Sox always play on that day, beginning at 11:05 so those at Fenway can walk down to Kenmore Square and watch the race.

It was watching those odd ducks running down Beacon Street in the late 60’s that got me to start running.  While I ran other marathons, I could not meet the then-qualifying standard of 2:50, so I never ran Boston.  One of my few hard-core principles was that I would not be a “bandit” (as unofficial runners were called), and should instead go to the race and cheer on those who had worked hard to get there, including one of my brothers.  If I could not be there in person, I would watch the entire race on local TV.

While the celebratory aspect of the Marathon is what attracted two brothers to kill and maim as many people as they could, it is a terrorist act that could happen anywhere and at any time.  No event or venue is worse than another when innocent people are killed or maimed.  Bostonians are justifiably proud of the first responders and medical personnel who did so much in the aftermath (including one who was murdered and another injured seriously), just as those from New York City and Oklahoma City are.  Then, of course, there are the “ordinary” people who acted heroically, but are ordinary only in the sense that one could work with you or live next door to you.

It is fitting that part of the healing began in Fenway Park.  Neil Diamond, whose Sweet Caroline became, for some reason, the theme song for the Red Sox, flew in from LA and called the main switchboard to ask if he could sing it live.  As emotional as that was, it could not top the remarks of David Ortiz.  Ortiz, a black man from the Dominican Republic, who has become the face and soul of a team that was the last in the major leagues to integrate  –  several years after Jackie Robinson “failed” his tryout in Boston  –  summed it all up:  “This is our fucking city.”

Yes, Big Papi, it is.

Where is New York’s Gaming Commission?

Posted by noonante on April 8, 2013
Posted in: Horse Racing, Political/Social commentary, Politics. Tagged: , , , . 2 Comments

As part of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s effort to streamline state government and make it more efficient, the Legislature established the State Gaming Commission.  The separate state agencies that regulated gaming activities, including the Lottery and the Racing and Wagering Board, were brought under a seven-member Commission that would bolster New York’s role in an “increasingly competitive market place,” and ensure public confidence that the state’s gaming would be of the “highest integrity, credibility and quality.”  The law was passed more than a year ago.

The Gaming Commission was to begin operations on October 1, 2012, but the legislation under which New York State took control of the New York Racing Association delayed the effective date for four months.  The Racing and Wagering Board ceased operations on January 31 with its powers and responsibilities transferred to the new entity.  There is only one problem.  While the Commission has a shiny new web site, there is no commission.  The Governor controls five of the seven appointments with the Senate and Assembly getting one each.  Early news reports identified two individuals who were to be selected, but the web site identifies “TBD” for each of the seven members.  When we turn to the page for the Commission’s staff, it is blank.  We know there is an Acting Executive Director since he issued a press release this week, but that is all that is publicly known about an organization that was to bring Cuomo’s much-heralded, but rarely delivered, “transparency” to gambling activity regulated by the state.

Why is this important?  For starters, it is the only body that has the ability to regulate what goes on in horse racing.  The late Racing and Wagering Board closed out its tenure with changes governing the administration of drugs, as well as additional changes permitting the voiding of a claim if a horse was vanned from the track.  These amendments were the result of a Task Force’s report analyzing a number of fatal injuries sustained at last year’s Aqueduct winter meet.  It is not unusual that regulations have to be tweaked  –  indeed, the Racing and Wagering Board had to do it with some of these  –  but that ability is lost when there isn’t an entity with the authority to do it.

Second, the Governor’s failure to act further exacerbates the absence of any leadership in New York’s racing industry.  The President of the New York Racing Association has been fired, the Chair of the NYRA Board is still learning the business, and now a key oversight body doesn’t exist.  Thus, we have the silliness of “enhanced” security and drug testing for Saturday’s Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, a major prep race each year for the Kentucky Derby.  According to the Cuomo Administration’s view of horse racing, only three races of the thousands run in New York each year deserve this heightened scrutiny:  the Wood, Belmont Stakes and Travers.  This sends the message that illegal drugging is a significant problem with racing, but these three events are the only ones worthy of added protection.  While I am sure there must have been drug disqualifications in America’s Grade I races over the years, the only one that comes to mind is Dancer’s Image in the 1968 Kentucky Derby.  Even though Santa Anita implemented a similar protocol for the Santa Anita Derby, these special security precautions are clearly nothing more than publicity stunts.

The joint NYRA-Gaming Commission announcement, however, may also have served another interest.  A nascent controversy involving both track security and illegal drugging was reported by David Grening  in The Daily Racing Form.   Trainer Rudy Rodriguez was recently suspended by the stewards for two drug positives, a sanction he did not challenge.  Rodriguez, coincidentally the trainer of Vyjack, the Wood’s second betting choice and 3rd place finisher, has been one of the most successful trainers on the New York circuit, but has also been the subject of many rumors and whispers about his possible use of illegal medications.  The recent suspension was his second as a trainer, and the first since 2011.  But on March 10, another Rodriguez horse tested positive.

What made the latest positive remarkable is that Rodriguez’ attorney claimed, as Grening reports, that NYRA’s failure to respond to Rodriguez’ February request for a security camera in a second barn shared with another trainer may have allowed tampering with his horses.  That an unusually high level of banamine, a commonly used anti-inflammatory, appeared in the post-race test is, according to the attorney, strong evidence of tampering, indicating that Rodriguez may have been set up.  Two owners who have horses with Rodriguez have offered a $40,000 reward for information on the tampering accusation.  So, while the purported leadership of state officials responsible for what has been the country’s best racing flails around looking for the next meaningless press release, here is a real potential threat to the integrity of the sport.

If that isn’t a sufficient reason for the Governor to appoint the State Gaming Commission, we have the matter of bringing casinos to New York.  Cuomo identified this as one of his major priorities in the 2012 State of the State, and the Legislature voted in favor of amending the state’s Constitution to permit up to seven sites.  A second affirmative vote by the Legislature, as well as voter approval in a referendum, is necessary for the amendment to take effect.  While a subsequent approval by the Legislature would seem to be a mere formality, the Governor has decided to alter his original proposal.  He now wants the location of casino sites to be chosen by the Gaming Commission, a body on which he will controls five of the seven seats when he gets around to appointing them.  Although the often somnolent Legislature regularly acquiesces to the Governor’s whims, this time they think they should have a say in the siting process, and perhaps even allow the voters of a proposed locale to have a vote.  Cuomo has further muddied the waters by saying New York City should not have one, but Buffalo should.  He may be thinking that if he appoints the Commission, he will have prematurely played his hand, thereby weakening his leverage with the Legislature.

In short, we do not know what is behind the Governor’s failure to appoint any members of an important regulatory body for more than a year after it was established.  One fear is that he has simply lost interest.  Another is that he doesn’t care about racing or casinos except to the extent either can improve the state’s bottom line.  What we do know, however, is that there is not a good reason for his inaction.  Last week’s federal indictments of a state senator and assemblyman gave the Governor the opportunity to express his outrage at a political environment that allows corruption.  Perhaps he should consider the atmosphere he is fostering by failing to make the types of appointments that would help prevent the incompetence and corruption so vividly displayed last week.  Certainly, New York’s horse racing could use some leadership.

This Saturday’s Big Day of Racing

Posted by noonante on April 5, 2013
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Up this week are two more major prep races for the May 4 Kentucky Derby, Aqueduct’s Wood Memorial and the Santa Anita Derby.  Under the new Churchill Downs system for making the field, graded stakes earnings have been replaced by a point system.  The highest level races  –  at least according to CD  –  are awarded 100 points, which each of these races is worth.  The races will be broadcast on the NBC Sports Network with post times at 6:28 and 7:00.

The Aqueduct race features the undefeated Verrazano, who looks like a legitimate morning line favorite;  Normandy Invasion who is a nose away from being two-for-two on the main track;  and, Vyjack, the Gotham winner who is two-for-two on the main.  Each has run a Beyer speed figure that suggests he could take this race.

The California event looks much more competitive on paper, even with the scratch of the second morning-line favorite Hear the Ghost.  Flashback, Power Broker, Tiz a Minister, and Goldencents have each placed in a graded stakes on the Santa Anita strip, and Super Ninety Nine owns the field’s only triple digit Beyers including one at Santa Anita.

There continues to be discussion about the wisdom of the point system, although I am beginning to think it is little more than the arguments horse players love.  Shanghai Bobby, winner of two of last year’s main juvenile races, essentially ran himself out of the field with a disappointing 5th place in the Florida Derby, 10 lengths behind the winner.  Remarkably enough, he remained in the top 20 in points, although that is likely to change with four 100-point races yet to be run.  The reality, however, is that two-year old stars often do not make it in their sophomore year.  And, horses who do not run well in their final Derby prep do not end up with roses.

A more salient argument is that the system bars fillies who run only in restricted races from competing in the Derby, with Dreaming of Julia, a Gulfstream Park winner who ran two seconds faster than the Florida Derby winner, being prominently mentioned.  Of course the last filly to win on the first Saturday in May smoked the boys in the Santa Anita Derby.  Nonetheless, the ill-fated second-place finisher Eight Belles did not run previously against the boys, nor did Rachel Alexandra prior to her win in the Preakness.  There is, of course, a fairly simple solution to any possible injustices that could result from the point system.  Churchill could reserve one or two places in the starting gate for entrants they deem worthy.  The first 18 or 19 would then get in based on points.  No more controversy.

Saturday’s Big Day of Racing

Posted by noonante on March 29, 2013
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This Saturday is one of horse racing’s big days with Dubai’s World Cup Day and two major Kentucky Derby preps.  It is couch potato heaven for the racing/college basketball fan who can squeeze in two hoops games determining half of the Final Four.

The preps are the Florida Derby and the Louisiana Derby, which will be broadcast on the NBC Sports Network from 6:00 to 7:00.  The Gulfstream Park event has special significance for last year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner, Shanghai Bobby, because of the adoption by Churchill Downs of a new system for qualifying.  In recent years, purse earnings in graded stakes determined which 20 horses would run for the roses.  This year, Churchill has implemented a system in which races are assigned a point value.  Aqueduct’s Withers, run in early February, is only a 10-point race, while the Gotham a month later is worth 50, and the Wood Memorial is worth 100 points to the winner.  (The first four finishers receive points in a ratio of 10-4-2-1.)  Under the old system, Shanghai Bobby would have been a lock for the field with earnings of well over a million dollars from his wins in the Juvenile and Champagne, but this year those events are worth only 10 points each.  Instead of being atop the list of prospective entrants, he is only in 12th place with 24 points.  Since Churchill estimates it will take at least 40 points to qualify, Shanghai Bobby needs at least the 20 points from a third place finish in the Florida Derby to be reasonably comfortable of a spot in the starting gate on May 4.

I never thought the prior system had any drawbacks, even though almost every year had one or two disgruntled owners (and fans) upset about the exclusion of someone.  However, I cannot think of a single horse that was prevented from running who went on to be a racing star.  (The same can be said about at least 15 of the horses who did run in the Derby for any given year.)  But let’s imagine a scenario in which a Shanghai Bobby has a troubled trip and finishes in a four-horse blanket finish but loses the photo for third, and all four horses run triple-digit Beyers.  While he could still compete in another pre-Derby prep, it’s obviously not the plan envisioned by his trainer.  I think that result would result in Churchill again modifying its rules.

The Florida and Louisiana derbies are two of the seven 100-point races on this year’s schedule.  A third one will also be run on Saturday, but if you sleep late you could miss it.  The UAE Derby from Dubai’s Meydan race course is part of a magnificent program that presents the best racing in the world, beginning at 9:10 AM (sic).  It will be part of TVG’s coverage, and I hope it will also be on the New York’s OTB channels.  Although Dubai World Cup day is not only a spectacle  –  how often do you see a seating section in which the seats are thrones  –  but it brings together an international group of horses  –  something that does not even occur for the Breeders’ Cup  –  and is a true handicapping challenge.  The full Meydan card is annually one of my must-see racing events.  (Free PP’s are linked to at the equidaily.com site.)  Incidentally, the UAE Derby also presents another potential embarrassment for the new Churchill points system.  He’s Had Enough, only a head behind Shanghai Bobby in the Juvenile, has shown nothing this year stateside, but could vault to the head of the class with a win, or even earn a spot in the field with a second, since this is a 100-point event.  If he does qualify, he will likely join a list of Dubai runners who were “also rans” in Louisville.

What should also be a source of embarrassment for American racing is the fact that Dubai does not permit race-day medications such as Lasix.  While the Breeders’ Cup backed down from its position of not allowing the anti-bleeding medication in its races, Dubai never seems to lack for eager participants including, usually, a healthy contingent of Americans.  Among other runners from the US this year are Little Mike, Royal Delta and Animal Kingdom.

I hate to continue with a theme of embarrassments, but I would be amiss in not mentioning the latest entry by Frank Stronach in this category.  For some reason I have yet to understand, he sponsored a contest to determine “Ms. Racing Queen.”  A video of the award ceremony can be seen here.  (This link is also from equidaily.com.)  I have long considered Stronach one of the most detrimental forces in racing, but nothing I could say can match the eloquent takedown of this insipid contest than the one by Catherine Toner, published at Brooklyn Backstretch.com.

Is CNN now competing with The Onion?

Posted by noonante on March 22, 2013
Posted in: Political/Social commentary. Tagged: , , . Leave a comment

CNN’s new boss has been revamping the network in an effort to compete more effectively with FOX and MSNBC.  But as this clip from an Andrew Sullivan post indicates, their real competition may be The Onion.  I watched the piece from The Onion first, and then the one from CNN.  My jaw dropped at the coverage of the Steubenville rape trial by what used to be a serious cable news outlet.