tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684463172854959042.post4850615588933784175..comments2024-02-27T17:43:37.207-05:00Comments on View From the Racetrack Grandstand: Simulcasting Says It All - Part 2That Blog Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15487597769210721585noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684463172854959042.post-4866377264092757072017-03-23T16:10:11.153-04:002017-03-23T16:10:11.153-04:00I've loved harness racing since the 70s. The ...I've loved harness racing since the 70s. The fact is that the current product is boring. Very much so. Watch races from the 70s and 80s and you'll see movement with 4 in and 4 out coming to the half. Now once the field establishes and order before the 1/4, it stays that way until at least 5/8 and many times until 3/4. There is no outside flow as the 2nd 1/4 is basically a breather. There is too much money for the cheaper prizes so folks don't mind finishing 3rd. Maybe changing the way the purses are allocated would help: 65-20-10-3-2??? Like I said, I am a big fan but the way the races are run these days is boring and frankly uneventful.Countnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4684463172854959042.post-21934534999252791162017-03-23T10:15:19.120-04:002017-03-23T10:15:19.120-04:00Harness racing's chance for "survival&quo...Harness racing's chance for "survival" hinges on contraction in the industry. Slots have provided opportunities for horses (and horsemen) of all levels to "make a living" (often a very good living), but it has also watered down the product enormously. Reality dictates that NOTHING is going to grow the market at this point (too much competition from alternative gambling forms that the public currently prefers), so the BEST answer is to preserve the current players, and hopefully give them reason to bet more, in the future. If a number of the smaller tracks would shut down, it might HURT some horsemen (in the short run), but if all those smaller handles are then redistributed among the surviving venues, those tracks would have a shot to survive (and with larger pools, players would be able to bet more money than they do right now). Contraction has saved many industries - harness racing would likely follow suit. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com