A Proactive Racing Commission

About two years ago there was a horseman/track fight at Georgian Downs. This lasted some time, and in the end nothing really changed - other than customers leaving racing. Most of us were critical at that time (owners, bettors and others) that the commission did not intervene earlier to get things done. Fast forward two years and things have changed, a whole lot for the better, in my opinion.

In a letter today from ORC Chair Rod Seiling, he implored the horseman group and the racetracks in Sudbury and Sarnia to get their deals done. In addition, the commission has intervened to make sure that happens.

Therefore, under the Commission’s mandate to act in the public interest, I have asked ORC Executive Director John Blakney to work with the parties of the respective disputes to immediately find a way to reopen the markets so that horse racing’s customers can continue to watch and wager, and the industry can continue to earn revenues that flow back to the entire horse racing industry......

I am dismayed and disappointed that the respective parties are so short sighted that they opted to penalize the most important component of their joint business, the customer......

Are racing’s customers in such great supply that it can afford the luxury of turning off the signal? Today, customers have many options on where to spend their “disposable” dollars. They don’t need horse racing, horse racing needs them!

The above took them only 72 hours, or less. That is proactive, that is customer-centric and that is a fine job.