“Horse-racing backers disappointed gambling bill wasn't called for vote” plus 2 more |
- Horse-racing backers disappointed gambling bill wasn't called for vote
- Horse racing: Ace tipster Lee gets a perfect ten
- HORSE RACING
| Horse-racing backers disappointed gambling bill wasn't called for vote Posted: 13 Jan 2011 04:10 PM PST COLLINSVILLE -- The much anticipated vote that never was has left a local group of horse trainers and owners frustrated, disappointed and wondering why nothing happened. Lawmakers and lobbyists from the state horse racing industry spent days leading up to the very end of the past session of the General Assembly working to pass a gambling expansion bill that included slot machines for Illinois' five horse tracks and new riverboat casinos elsewhere in the state. However, with a bill in hand, the bill's sponsor ended up not calling the bill for a vote. After lawmakers passed the bill calling a 66 percent jump in state income taxes, gambling bill sponsor Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, told House Speaker Michael Madigan that he was not calling the bill. Lanny Brooks, executive director of the Illinois Horseman's Benevolent and Protective Association in Collinsville, could not believe what he was hearing. He was one among a group of lobbyists who had spent several days at the state capitol in Springfield attending and committee meetings in support of the bill. "For the first time in history, we had every single track from Arlington to all other tracks and all of the leadership in the horseman's group and membership were all on the same page," Brooks said. "This has never happened before. We were a powerful force. There were over 30 of us in Springfield every single day." "It was a done deal," Brooks added. "Then Lou Lang walked up to the speaker and said don't call the bill. We didn't know it at the time. The speaker then said the session is over. Thank you for your hard work, and we'll see you in the next session." Then Brooks and others left the House floor and went directly to Lang's office, where Lang told them that Gov. Pat Quinn was going to veto the bill, anyway. However, Brooks said that he had recently talked with the governor in two separate occasions and was told that that if the bill reached Quinn's desk, it would be signed. Lang could not be reached for comment Thursday. Brian Zander, president of Fairmount Park in Collinsville, said he was also frustrated by Lang's inaction. He also said that he was confident that the state horse racing industry had thoroughly made its case to lawmakers and had plenty of support to pass the bill. "It's unfortunate that the bill wasn't called, and we never really had an opportunity to see what the outcome would have been," Zander said. "We thought people in the horse racing industry, not just race track owners, but horse owners and horse trainers and groomers, made a very lengthy, concerted, grassroots effort to try to educate members of the legislature and to show them the importance of the horse industry to the economy and the state. And the impression most of us had was we thought we had done a pretty good job." The debate over gambling expansion in Illinois has been waged for years. "If I had to guess, by the time the end of May rolls around, if no positive action in terms of the horse racing industry, then I find it hard to believe that the majority of horse owners will have any interest in sticking around to race at Fairmount Park. That is just my read of it right now. Supporters argue that Illinois tracks struggle to compete with riverboat casinos and other tracks in neighboring states for consumers' gambling dollars. They also believe that creating so-called "racinos" would legalize on-site gaming at Fairmount Park and other Illinois horse tracks could draw more much-needed revenue that would help increase daily purses to compete with other tracks in states like Iowa and Indiana, where on-site gaming is allowed. Illinois tracks claim that they have had trouble drawing horse owners and trainers because out-of-state tracks offer significantly larger prize winnings. Brooks said that with the new session of the General Assembly underway as of Wednesday afternoon, already gambling expansion bills have been introduced. "It's definitely not the end of it," Brooks said. "We fully expect to be back in Springfield. Zander said the vote that did not take place creates an uncertain future for Fairmount Park. It is the state smallest of the five horse racing venues and only one outside of the Greater Chicago area. Plus, the track continues to struggle for gambling dollars with the Casino Queen in East St. Louis and others right across the river. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Horse racing: Ace tipster Lee gets a perfect ten Posted: 13 Jan 2011 12:21 AM PST The Yorkshire Evening Post's horse racing tipster Lee Sobot has started 2011 with an absolute bang notching up a brilliant 10 winning naps in succession. The remarkable run began on Monday, January 3 when Tony McCoy brought the extremely well-backed Salpierre home to victory at Hereford at odds of 5-2. * Click here to watch the latest edition of our horse racing programme The Winning Post. And it was the champion jockey again responsible for producing the McCoy also did the business on the best-priced winning nap of the bunch – Synchronised – who obliged at odds of 5-1 in Saturday's Welsh National. The other winners from Salpierre onwards were Smokey George (evens), Stirling Bridge (4-9), Ericht (1-2), Luck Of The Draw (4-5), Synchronised (5-1), Don'tpaytheferryman (2-5), Rackham Lerouge (1-4), Powerful Presence (2-5) and most recently Local Hero (1-4). And, while many of the selections have been odds-on, backing them all to a £10 level stake would still have returned a tidy profit of £115.40. Charged with maintaining the run today is So Is She at Southwell (2.30pm), who will be a ludicrously-short price, but barring a major mishap should hopefully further extend the sequence. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Posted: 13 Jan 2011 03:12 AM PST Posted: January 13, 2011 | 12:00 a.m. TODAY AT SANTA ANITA PARK By Richard Eng Post Time 1 p.m. Race 1 - 6 1/2 Furlongs, Purse $31,000, Maiden claiming $50,000, Fillies and mares, 4-year-olds and up 4 Aprisa Luna - Taking the biggest class drop in racing from MSW to maiden claiming; Ron Ellis adding Lasix and blinkers on. 6 Marrymeonemoretime - Another dropping in class from MSW to maiden claiming; no one in the field has dirt experience. Long Shot - 5 Zohrah Race 2 - 6 1/2 furlongs (turf, rail at 8 feet), Purse $54,000, Maiden special weights, 4-year-olds and up 7 Ain - Interesting invader makes his SoCal debut for Carla Gaines and Rafael Bejarano; exits 3 harder stakes for this. 4 Blazing - Like the turn back in distance where he'll be rallying late; beaten chalk reunited with Brice Blanc. Long Shot - 6 Causeithertz Race 3 - 6 furlongs, Purse $26,000, Claiming $25,000, 4-year-olds and up 2 Spectacular Slew - Bob Baffert has won an incredible 13-of-28 starters this meet; of the 15 losers, 7 more ran second. 5 Three Pointer - Claimed by Carlos Gonzalez, but the big switch is to Alex Gonzalez; got a weak ride each of the last 2 starts. Long Shot - 1 Court Hero Race 4 - 5 1/2 furlongs, Purse $23,000, Maiden claiming $30,000, 4-year-olds and up 4 Fleet Continental - Taking the biggest class drop in racing from MSW to maiden claiming; his 2 starts are just plain faster. 7 Espirito Santo - Ran his debut versus much tougher foes at Saratoga; red-flag drop, especially if he has some ability. Long Shot - 3 Magic Beam Race 5 - 6 1/2 furlongs (turf, rail at 8 feet), Purse $54,000, Maiden special weights, Fillies, 3-year-olds 6 Ricketyracketyruss - Like the turn back in distance from a mile to this; seems to be improving with every start. 8 Working At Night - Jeff Mullins hasn't started many, but all are running well; like the move to an outside post. Long Shot - 12 Satin Bouquet Race 6 - 1 1/8th miles, Purse $16,000, Claiming $8,000, 4-year-olds and up 8 Skellytown - Logical chalk beat a similar group last time out; model of consistency in 2010, 11-of-16 in the money. 2 Super Harmony - Expect speedball tactics from P Val; simple tactics of nurse the lead and go as far as he can. Long Shot - 7 Troubletimesthree Race 7 - 6 1/2 furlongs (turf, rail at 8 feet), Purse $56,000, Optional claiming $80,000, 3-year-olds 6 Diamond Geezah - Interesting English invader debuts with Lasix; my question is how tight Mike Mitchell has him for this. 1 Metropolitan Man - Aggressive placement at Ascot after a ridiculous looking debut win; regroups here under Vladimir Cerin. Long Shot - 2 Wealthy Aviator Race 8 - 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $19,000, Maiden claiming $20,000, 4-year-olds and up 6 Pleasant Earth - Taking the biggest class drop in racing from MSW to maiden claiming; tries blinkers on today. 8 Coffee Gossip - Made a nice middle move, which should serve him well in here; Jeff Mullins babies improve with experience. Long Shot - 3 Forward Commitment Best Bet - 4 Fleet Continental (race 4) Santa Anita Park Sunday - Picks/Winners/Mutuels, 17/2/$8.50; Long Shots, 9/2/$16.20; Best Bet, 1/1/$2.10 Santa Anita Park Totals - 180/50/$316.70; Long Shots, 89/13/$143.20; Best Bets, 10/6/$21.70 SIMULCAST PICK OF THE DAY - 7 Keep Me Informed (5/2) in race 7 at Aqueduct. For scoring purposes, we'll make a hypothetical $2 win, place and show bet, $6 total. On Sunday, Performing ran second at Tampa Bay Downs paying $3.00 to place and $2.10 to show. Stats - 10/8/$59.00 This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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