Could it be possible that American Pharoah is actually getting better? That was the prevailing belief after the recently stamped Triple Crown winner cruised to a 2-1/4-lengths triumph Sunday in the Haskell Invitational, winning the 1 1/8-mile race in a brisk 1:47.95 despite galloping home under wraps. “It was pretty easy,” said jockey Victor Espinoza, who… Read the rest of this entry »
OCEANPORT — It was one long happy celebration at Monmouth Park for the great American Pharoah’s latest victory. At least, that is, until Gov. Chris Christie stepped into the Winner’s Circle to present the trophy. And then, the record crowd of 60,983 booed. Long. Loud. Sustained. Maybe he should have hung around Bill Murray. The cheering… Read the rest of this entry »
OCEANPORT – Officials are projecting that Triple Crown-winner American Pharoah’s appearance in Sunday’s $1.75 million William Hill Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park could draw second largest crowd ever to see a sporting event in New Jersey behind only the Super Bowl. This has NJ Transit adding additional trains, building temporary platforms and taking other steps to… Read the rest of this entry »
The official announcement that American Pharoah was coming to Monmouth Park for the William Hill Haskell Invitation came on July 2, but Bob Kulina says his announcement came just before Thanksgiving last year. Long before American Pharoah etched his misspelled name into thoroughbred racing lore, the president of Monmouth Park’s operating company received word that an… Read the rest of this entry »
OCEANPORT — As he walks through Monmouth Park on his way to the announcer’s booth, Frank Mirahmadi can’t help noticing the familiar light blue and yellow silks. It’s the same colors and pattern made famous by American Pharoah, the freshly minted Triple Crown winner. But this jockey statue at Monmouth Park is in recognition of Paynter,… Read the rest of this entry »
A federal judge on Friday issued a temporary restraining order that will prevent Monmouth Park Racetrack in New Jersey from offering wagering on National Football League games this weekend, dealing a blow — at least temporarily — to the Christie administration, which has sought to legalize sports gambling to help prop up the state’s failing racetracks… Read the rest of this entry »
New Jersey Governor Christie on Friday signed a revised sports betting bill, and Monmouth Park officials almost simultaneously said they would offer betting on National Football League games at the horse track on Oct. 26. “The Governor’s signature on S2460 earlier today is a wire-to-wire winner for horse racing, the gaming industry and the people of… Read the rest of this entry »
NEWS from the STANDARDBRED BREEDERS & OWNERS ASSOCIATION OF NEW JERSEY
MANALAPAN, NJ November 30, 2012 — The loss of New Jersey stallions to slots-enriched programs in other states is now a reality.
Perretti Farms in Cream Ridge, NJ has announced that it has moved two of the harness racing industrys premier stallions to Pennsylvania for the 2013 breeding season.
Muscles Yankee and Rocknroll Hanover will be relocated from Perrettis 1,000 acres of prime farmland in Upper Freehold Township across the state line to Newtown, PA to take advantage of the casino-enriched purses in Pennsylvania, especially the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes program.
The New Jersey Sire Stakes program, which for three decades was the model for other states and provinces, is now one of the weakest because of the paucity of purse money.
New Jersey is no longer competitive, putting more than 170,000 acres of equine farmland in jeopardy, said Standardbred Breeders & Owners Association President Tom Luchento. Without a healthy breeding program, the stallions and broodmares will move have moved — to adjoining states where they are flushed with the cash from casinos and racinos [racetracks with casino-style wagering].
Not only is the preservation of farmland at stake, but also more than 10,000 jobs currently filled by tax-paying residents who are ill-equipped to change careers and will end up on welfare rolls, Luchento added.
Trenton continues to focus on ways to improve Atlantic City and other businesses which provide fewer jobs, while the horseracing industry gets pushed aside, Luchento said. They have tried to Band-Aid the problem with a few short term solutions. Meanwhile, the wound continues to grow, and the decision by Perretti Farms is a pure product of that injury.
Chairman Ramos, and members of the Assembly Regulatory Oversight and Gaming Committee, thank you for inviting me to speak before you today on this
important topic. I am Oceanport Councilman Joseph Irace.
When the State of New Jersey voted to allow casino gambling in Atlantic City in 1976, it marked the dawn of an era wherein, for close to a decade and a half, New Jersey had a de facto monopoly on casino gambling on the East Coast. That era ended in 1992 with the advent of Foxwoods Resort Casino. In the years since then, we have seen a steady encroachment upon Atlantic City’s position as the premier East Coast destination for casino type gambling. New York, Connecticut, Delaware, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Maryland now offer substantial gaming options to the general public. Indeed, as of April of 2012, Pennsylvania’s gaming industry was second only to that of Las Vegas. Quite clearly, the landscape has changed immeasurably since 1976 and New Jersey’s stranglehold on the East Coast gaming industry is no more. This isn’t an Atlantic City gaming industry problem, it is a New Jersey business development and retention problem.
Similarly, three decades ago, the State of New Jersey was a pre-eminent player in the horseracing industry. The Meadowlands, Freehold Raceway, Monmouth Park, Atlantic City Race Course and Garden State Park — the latter three called the “Golden Triangle” of New Jersey racing — all offered top notch, stakes level horse racing at quality venues. As we are all aware, the New Jersey horseracing industry has suffered setbacks over the past few decades and the root of these setbacks can be traced to the same source as that which has negatively impacted on Atlantic City. New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia have all committed to the Racino business model and this has placed the State of New Jersey’s horseracing industry at a decided disadvantage. Again, this isn’t a horseracing industry problem, it is a New Jersey business development and retention problem.
For far too long now, New Jersey’s gaming industry and New Jersey’s horse racing industry circled each other warily as opponents. It is high time that they stop viewing each other as competitors and start viewing themselves as comrades at arms with a singular purpose: melding both industries in such a fashion that New Jersey once again becomes the East Coast’s premier gaming AND horse racing destination. Based on the revenues generated by Racinos in the surrounding states and across the nation, the question of whether or not these two industries can co-exist, and indeed THRIVE, is no longer arguable. Quite simply, if New Jersey’s gaming and horse-racing industries fail to embrace this new business model, both will perish and the State of New Jersey will be lesser for it.
Our elected officials and both industries need to stop thinking parochially and start thinking globally. The infrastructure, manpower and talent are already in place. We just need the desire and commitment to get this done, and get it done sooner rather than later. The State of New Jersey has waited long enough to get its act together. The states that have already embraced the Racino business model have demonstrated that what is good for the horseracing industry is good for the gaming industry and vice versa. More importantly, what’s good for those industries is also good for all of New Jersey.
I implore our legislators to make every effort to convince these two parties that it is imperative that they stop competing with each other and start complementing each other in order to re-capture the hearts, minds and loyalty of their consumers. If the gaming and horse racing industries fail to adapt to the new paradigm, neither will survive. And that won’t be a gaming or horse racing problem — that will be a tragedy for the State of New Jersey.
Oceanport Councilman Joe Irace sat down with William Richards, Director of New Media at The Hall Institute for Public Policy as part of the institute’s Hometown Solutions series.
William and Joe discuss Monmouth Park racetrack, Fort Monmouth, the challenges Oceanport has faced in recent years with uncertainty for both institutions, and what looks like a promising comeback for Monmouth Park.
