from the USTA Communications Department

Editor’s Note: The presidents of the Central Ontario Standardbred Association, the Ontario Harness Horse Association and the National Capital Region Harness Horse Association have issued a joint statement to the industry on Standardbred Canada’s proposed Racing Development and Sustainability Plan. Below is the letter.

During the month of August, members of the boards of COSA, OHHA and NCRHHA met separately with John Gallinger and Darryl Kaplan of Standardbred Canada to discuss the recently announced Racing Development and Sustainability Plan.

All of our organizations support the promotion of harness racing in Ontario. While the Standardbred Canada proposal has initiated a worthwhile debate, the withdrawal of significant amounts of money from the purse account for other uses is a dramatic change that requires a far more detailed and focused plan than has currently been presented.

To put things in perspective, the investment being discussed is not a one-time 5 percent levy on the purse accounts, but rather a multi-year commitment which would be at a minimum in the $35 to $45 million range. Approximately $15-20 million of that amount would be drawn from the WEG purse pool, with the balance to be taken from the purse pools of the other tracks across Ontario.

The magnitude of the funding being sought dictates that there be more than a simple request that horsepeople take a “leap of faith.” If the aim is to have the industry as a whole take a more business oriented approach to marketing, the initiative itself should start on that footing. Most importantly, there should be an analysis of the costs and the potential benefits that can be realized by engaging in the proposed marketing initiative.

The funding of a marketing initiative from the purse accounts is one of a number of ideas that could be explored, and possibly adopted, if there is a reasonable prospect of a greater overall return or benefit for the horsepeople. The current state of the Plan proposed by Standardbred Canada does not provide the detail to permit the necessary analysis.

In consideration of the above, we cannot offer our support for the Plan at this time.

Signed by COSA President Bill O’Donnell, OHHA President Don Amos and NCRHHA President Gordon McDonald.