saratoga NOW

Archive for the ‘At the track’ Category

THE ISSUE:  Naming a new CEO from inside a scandal-ridden regime is too much for regulators.

THE STAKES:  Can NYRA’s board assure us that it is on an honest and sustainable course? Or is it time for a change?

What do you think? Has NYRA run out of chances? Is it time for another organization to operate Saratoga Race Course, Belmont Park and Aqueduct? Has horse racing ever faced so many obstacles? How much does Saratoga need horse racing at this moment in its history? No doubt, it’s an integral part of the culture. Most of all, do you expect any of this to affect your summer at the track? Today’s editorial.

Also, breakfast on the backstretch.

The inaugural Steeplechase Festival at Saratoga is set for Sept. 15 and will benefit both local and equine charities.

Since the original announcement in March, more details have emerged:

The event will present five races, four of them NSA sanctioned over jumps and carrying purses totaling $100,000. The feature race will be the $50,000 Saratoga Steeplechase Cup.  Post time is 1 p.m. Marshall Cassidy will serve as master of ceremonies.

Other activities will include a variety of equine exhibitions and entertainment headlined by the Double Dan Horsmanship. There will also be starting gate demonstrations and retired thoroughbreds on hand for adoption.

The 9 Furlong Fun Walk on the historic Saratoga Race Course main track will begin at 9 a.m. An antique carriage parade will drive through town and arrive at the track around 11:30 a.m.  There are plans for a large barbecue and other food concessions, music venues, vendor village and more.

Among the organizations who have already reserved infield hospitality tents for their guests are: Capital OTB, Fasig-Tipton, Gideon Putnam Resort, New York Thoroughbred Breeders, New York Thoroughbred Breeding & Development Fund, Sackatoga Stables, Saratoga Convention & Tourism, and the Saratoga County Chamber.

General admission tickets will be $20 in advance and $25 day of the event. Discounted group sales are also available. Tickets can be purchased online and at locations around Saratoga County by the end of June. Tailgating spots at the clubhouse turn are now available for $150 which includes four tickets and clubhouses boxes for $250 which includes four tickets.

Gates open at 8 a.m. and parking is free. A free giveaway is planned for all paid admissions.

The event includes one-of-a-kind sponsorships and hospitality/entertainment opportunities (details here).For the first time in more than 30 years,  the famed infield will be accessible  for sponsor entertainment and hospitality purposes.

For further event information including sponsorship/entertainment and volunteer opportunities,  contact Barry Potoker at 366-0946 or bpotoker@nycap.rr.com or Bob Giordano at 527-1496 or giordanorj@aol.com. For information about reserving a booth at the Vendor Village, contact Greg Cuda at 587-0723 or gcuda@saratogabridges.org.

The Saratoga 150 Committee will announce its programming to celebrate the founding of thoroughbred racing in Saratoga Springs at 11 a.m. Thursday at the Horse Haven Track on the Oklahoma side of Saratoga Race Course.

Charles V. Wait, president and CEO of the Adirondack Trust Company,
and two longtime Saratogians, John Hendrickson and Joseph Dalton, will announce a five-month set of events to pay tribute to the oldest sporting venue in the U.S., which got its start at Horse Haven in 1863.
Among the expected announcements are the launching of a Friends Group, a new interactive website, forums for collecting old photos, videos and memorabilia, plans for a May 2013 kickoff, the announcement of honorary chairs, founding members and more.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, whose office oversees charitable organizations, has sued the board of the Saratoga Springs-based Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation on Thursday, in attempts to get them removed. He alleged the insolvent fund has fallen down on its care of 1,100 elderly horses. Read here.

4:55 p.m. Thursday: Here is the foundation’s statement, sent by email:

“The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (TRF) vehemently denies all the baseless allegations included in the Attorney General’s complaint, which is replete with false statements, rash generalizations, distorted representations and facts manipulated and taken out of context. The TRF will pursue every legal avenue to defend itself against these false claims and present evidence to disprove every allegation stated in the complaint. Most importantly, TRF horses stabled at facilities throughout the U.S. are well fed and properly cared for in appropriate settings and remain in excellent health. It is our firm belief that the timing of this action by the Attorney General is a misguided attempt to link our charity with recent media reports spotlighting mistreatment of racetrack thoroughbreds, which we condemn and deplore. Since the Attorney General announced his investigation in March 2011, the TRF has been in continuous dialogue with members of his staff who have seriously misallocated scarce government resources by repeatedly ignoring irrefutable evidence that the allegations are demonstrably untrue. Today’s action is nothing less than an unwarranted attack on a long standing and respected non-profit organization overseeing the well-being of more than 1,000 retired racehorses that may otherwise face slaughter.”

Well, the allegations are (somewhat) shocking: top NYRA officials knew they were taking more than their share from bettors, but continued to do it anyway. Now, the racing outfit is in tumult less than three months ahead of the 2012 Saratoga meet.

Do you think this will affect the Saratoga meet? Racing veterans and Saratoga observers will tell you that the Spa track is a monster, an attraction that conquers all. Let’s face it, this isn’t the first investigation of NYRA ahead of or during a Saratoga meet. Still, how does NYRA plan its biggest meet without its two of its main players?

Quote of the day: “The bettors, the fans and the public deserve better, and we did what we had to do and we are sorry to put the sport in this situation,” said Trustee John Hendrickson, a member of the Executive Committee.

Nice to see there is still some integrity.

The Saratoga Economic Opportunity Commission is collecting donations for backstretch workers who have begun arriving at the Saratoga Race Course dorms. There is an urgent need for blankets, pillows, comforters, etc. EOC is collecting donations at 40 New St. The vestibule will be open 24/7 to take items.

Come Thursday, the 144th  Saratoga racing season won’t seem too far off as the historic Oklahoma Training Track opens for spring training.

The Thoroughbreds will practice for the upcoming meet from 6 to 11 a.m.

The 2012 season at Saratoga Race Course begins on Friday, July 20 and will consist of 40 racing days before concluding on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 3.

Saratoga Shakespeare Company is casting a contemporary “Twelfth Night,“ directed by William Finlay.

The company is celebrating its 12th summer season of free outdoor theater in Congress Park this July 17-29.

Auditions are scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 21 at the Saratoga Springs Public Library, Susman Room, 49 Henry St, Saratoga Springs. All roles are open for male and female performers of all ages, and types; multicultural casting for all roles. Actors should prepare one or two Shakespearean monologues and bring their pictures and resumes to the auditions.

For an audition appointment, contact Sara Friedman by e-mail at saratogashakespeare@gmail.com or call 347-875-0621 and leave your name and call-back number.

For further information, and to donate online, visit www.saratogashakespeare.com or Saratoga Shakespeare’s Facebook page.

The New York State Racing and Wagering Board, in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture and Markets, has cleared Saratoga Harness for re-opening after a recent outbreak of strangles.

The racing season will resume on Wednesday, April 11. 

Upon reopening of the backstretch on Monday, all horses racing at Saratoga Harness Track will be required to provide verification of health. A current health certificate, a PCR test resulting negative for strangles taken after March 1, 2012, or proof of vaccination for strangles since Jan. 1, 2012 will be accepted forms of documentation.

Pending approval, the current racing calendar will be supplemented by adding race cards every Thursday night from May 17 until Sept. 6 to make up for the 10 canceled racing dates. Post time will remain at 7:05 p.m. for each of these additional race cards.

A Saratoga Springs man will serve six months in jail for stealing $27,111 over several years from a souvenir stand at the former St. Clement’s Horse Show.

Charles “Dewey” Walling, the horse show’s former committee chairman, also received five years probation and paid back the money he admitted to taking in Saratoga County Court Tuesday, prosecutors said. Walling, 56, had pleaded guilty to the felony of fourth-degree grand larceny on Jan. 3.

Walling supervised the souvenir stand at the annual horse show in Saratoga Springs for more than a decade. Volunteers questioned why the stand had lost money for at least five years. Police determined Walling had created numerous false receipts and false names for reimbursements from the event, which supports charitable causes, county District Attorney James A. Murphy III said.

“It just wasn’t making sense that the souvenir stand was losing money, and it turned out Charles Walling was the reason,” Murphy said. Walling is banned from having financial involvement with not-for-profits, Murphy said.

The case involved hours of gathering old records from souvenir distributors in Pennsylvania and New York, Murphy said. He credited accountant Dan Kumlander, a volunteer at the horse show, and Saratoga Springs Police Investigator Jack Barney, for the work.

Father Paul J. Borowski of St. Clements Church spoke at the sentencing. “We are grateful that this matter has been resolved in a just and equitable way,” he said.

The 53rd annual horse show this year will be called the 2012 Saratoga Spring Horse Show. St. Clement’s Church passed the event to a new organization named the Capital Fund of Saratoga County, Inc. The fund was established to provide financial support to not-for-profit organizations in the county. Its president is Tom Fueston.