Alex Waldrop Straight Up : Hollywood Park

NHC Super Qualifiers Add Spice to Rich Holiday Weekend Racing

Blood-Horse Staff — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 19:29:00 GMT

As horseplayers around the country watch and wager on some great racing this holiday weekend, we at the NTRA will be paying particularly close attention to the activities at two member tracks located on opposite coasts.

Saturday, Monmouth Park will host the first NHC Super Qualifier, offering an unprecedented 10 seats to the 2012 DRF/NTRA National Handicapping Championship (NHC), presented by Treasure Island Las Vegas and Sovereign Stable.

Sunday, players will converge at Hollywood Park for a two-day contest awarding another 10 spots to the NHC. Word has it that the field in the Hollywood tournament may even include a few diehards from the Monmouth competition. Now that’s what I call commitment.

We anticipate there will be as many as 8-10 Super Qualifiers over the last half of the year. They are part of a multifaceted plan that we hope will eventually lead to expanded participation in handicapping tournament play.

The payoff for 20 lucky players this weekend will be a free roll in the record $2 million NHC in Las Vegas, where the winner will walk away with $1 million, also a record.

While this weekend's tourneys at Monmouth and Hollywood involve an initial investment of several hundred dollars, there are plenty of opportunities for players to compete in qualifying tournaments with a variety of entry fee structures.

In just the next few weeks alone, free tournaments will be held online and a host of live, “bricks and mortar” tournaments will be held at a variety of price points. Our valued partner and title sponsor, Daily Racing Form, offers free monthly tourneys through DRFBets.com, and one of our presenting sponsors, Sovereign Stable, will host a free, online qualifier in early August. Even Standardbred tracks Northville Downs in Michigan and Pompano Park in Florida have signed on to host NHC qualifiers. Click here for the current NHC tourney schedule.

An added bonus to tourney play has been the formation of a NHC Tour offering extra prize money and additional qualifying spots in the NHC. Even though it's July, it's not at all too late to join the Tour, as only a player's top five scores count toward his or her Tour point standings. The Tour has created an avid community of tournament players and is yet another way the NHC has evolved over the last dozen years. And there is more change on the way. We'll save that for another blog, though.

The inaugural NHC in 2000 offered a total purse of $200,000 and a winner's prize of $100,000. There aren't many facets of our game—or any other—that have realized the growth rate of the NHC over the last decade. None of this growth would have been possible without the support of Daily Racing Form, tracks and pari-mutuel operators throughout the U.S. and Canada and, most importantly, customers and fans whose wagering fuels every component of our game, including the NHC.

Having attended the NHC, I can tell you from firsthand experience that NHC qualifiers come from all walks of life. Virtually every segment of our fan base is represented, which is why the NHC is such a terriffic event. The finalists do have two common traits, however. They each will have earned his or her way to Vegas. You see, unlike the World Series of Poker, where anyone can participate by paying a $10,000 entry fee, all finalists at the NHC must qualify. So all finalists have proven their handicapping mettle before the NHC final even begins. Lastly, virtually to a person, they love horse racing and are passionate about our game. If you feel the same way, join the Tour, try tournament play, and get in on the fun.

Good luck at the races.

A Day of Fun and Remembrance

Blood-Horse Staff — Fri, 27 May 2011 14:14:00 GMT

Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer for many people. Swimming pools open and people break out the sunscreen. It also represents the unofficial start of Thoroughbred racing’s second season, with all but one of the 3-year-old Classic races behind us and a slew of terrific races for all ages on the horizon and leading to the Breeders’ Cup this fall. Big races this Memorial Day include a pair of Grade I events, the Met Mile from Belmont and the Gamely Stakes out at Hollywood Park.

This is a day to relax and enjoy a great early summer holiday--hopefully at a racetrack near you. But no matter where you may be this Memorial Day, I hope you will take time to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Honoring service men and women who died in battle – and the loved ones they left behind - is what this day is really about. As the son of a living WWII veteran, I take this duty seriously. I hope that tracks and patrons will do the same.

Sometime this weekend, I hope you will take a few minutes to place a flag or a flower on a veteran’s grave. Or let a living vet know that you appreciate his or her service. The act of remembrance is the least we can do for those who have given so much on our behalf.

Where will you be this Memorial Day? Who will you be remembering? Let me hear from you.

Turf and Surf

cdawahare@bloodhorse.com — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:08:00 GMT

By Alex Waldrop, President and CEO of the NTRA

First, I want to thank everyone who responded to my last blog entitled "Strategic Thinking." The overwhelming response I received from so many of you speaks volumes about the passion and enthusiasm of racing's fans. Rest assured that I personally have read every single comment at least once, and we are incorporating many of your ideas into our discussions with the NTRA Board.

In the midst of preparations for our strategic planning session next week, I have traveled to Del Mar to lead another Alliance accreditation inspection as I did at Hollywood Park several weeks ago. Del Mar is a special place where horse racing is central to almost everything that happens in the community, especially during the meet. It is exciting to be here.

We spent time today talking to trainers, outriders, the track surface specialist and others about Del Mar's commitment to safety and integrity.

Inevitably, almost every discussion included the topic of synthetic vs. dirt racing surfaces. Let me be clear. The Alliance Code of Conduct is neutral on the topic of surface material. The Alliance supports a safer racing environment regardless of the composition of the track. At this stage, our focus is on making sure that tracks and horsemen participate in national safety initiatives like the injury reporting data base and the racetrack surface study. (In both instances, Del Mar was an early participant.) .

Del Mar is also participating in an exciting study which will link data from the injury reporting data base, the surface study and other pertinent data to help learn more about the causes and conditions that lead to career-ending and/or catastrophic injury. Research and science will lead us to the safest racing surfaces.

The goal of the Alliance is to get tracks and horsemen to work cooperatively to identify solutions that will minimize human and equine injuries. The Alliance is not about an unrealistic goal of eliminating injuries altogether. Accidents-even high profile ones like that which occurred to Mi Rey and Rafael Bejarano on opening day at Del Mar-will never completely go away. But we can take steps to make sure that they are as rare as possible.

Alliance progress to date is encouraging to say the least - Monmouth was accredited earlier this week - but much work remains. And as you read periodic accounts of the latest track being accredited, keep one very important fact in mind: The Alliance code is extremely strict and demanding. Much in the way a law student would not bother taking the bar exam until he felt he was properly prepared, so it is with racetracks and our accreditation process. Those that have availed themselves of our inspections have reviewed the code and determined that they are worthy of being carefully reviewed. Many proudly relish this scrutiny, which comes from a team of independent veterinarians and regulators in addition to NTRA staff. I'm not surprised that most applicants have received full accreditation. What I really hope is that by the end of next year, all U.S. tracks will be confident enough in their facilities and procedures to similarly submit themselves, their racetracks and their reputations to this same level of scrutiny.

Do me another favor. Make it a point to know those tracks that have been accredited and let them know you appreciate their efforts by attending their facilities and/or betting on their races. Money talks. The more you support the industry leaders who are accredited by the Alliance, the sooner more positive changes will occur in this industry. What industry-related factors have caused you to choose one track over another in the past? Safety? Takeout? Full fields? Let me know.