by Margaret Buranen, for the USTA Web Newsroom

Lexington, KY — The second and final day of the Kentucky International Equine Summit for equine industry leaders brought some interesting sessions on Advance Day Wagering, Stallions as Capital Assets, New Business Models for Racetracks, Racing Regulation, and the growing worldwide interest in both sport horse competition and western horse sports.

In the Racing Regulation session, Edward S. Bonnie, a member of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, said that “the state regulators have to have the courage to do the right thing. If they don’t the whole industry is going down.”

The venerable equine attorney said that the state regulatory structure for racing is flawed and that racing stewards have too many other duties to be hearing the evidence and deciding cases involving drugs and other violations. Bonnie advocated a National Racing Rule.

“We’re getting close to it. Ninety percent of the rules we have are generally uniform.”

Bonnie praised the United States Equestrian Foundation’s procedure for dealing with rules violations.

Attorneys Rick Goodell of the New York State Racing and Wagering Board and Alex Waldrop, President of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, also advocated reform by the industry, just as the healthcare and education industries use self-regulation.

“Fans want to see action and reform now,” Waldrop said.

Luncheon speaker Nick Nicholson, Keeneland Association President, agreed.

“We should have a set of national rules and they should be simple to understand.”

Nicholson mentioned two areas in which racing must succeed.

“We have to protect our athletes, the two-legged and the four-legged.”

His second “threshold issue is integrity. The integrity of our wagering system has to hold up,” he stated.

Affirming that “the industry we’re fortunate enough to be in is truly special,” Nicholson said, “During Derby Week let’s not forget to stop and smell the roses.”