Letter To The Editor: The Heart Of Horse Racing

[Wandering Eyes]

I have been reading the opinions of many respected people who have invested greatly in the racing industry and have been involved in it for decades. Many of their observations about the state of the sport and the organizations that are supposed to lead it are correct. I would like to share what I have discovered over the past few years.

I have been involved in breeding and racing Thoroughbreds for more than 40 years, and I care deeply about the future of this industry. Like many others, I have watched the steady decline in horse racing and have long believed that our sport desperately needs a coordinated national marketing effort.

With that goal in mind, I founded The Heart of Horse Racing, a 501(c)(3) national marketing campaign built around storytelling and authentic voices from within our sport. Through professionally produced videos and interviews with trainers, jockeys, owners, outriders, analysts, and others who dedicate their lives to the horse, we aim to show the public what makes this sport so special and to introduce a new generation of fans to racing.

The campaign includes a comprehensive marketing strategy and an investor deck outlining how we can reach new audiences and grow the fan base of horse racing.

Over the past two years, I have personally presented this initiative to several of the industry's leading organizations. I presented the plan to the board of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, where I serve as a board member. While there was interest, no funding commitment was made.

I also presented the proposal to New York Racing Association, where I serve on the board. Again, no funding commitment was made.

I spoke with representatives of Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, who expressed support but did not commit financial resources. I had a lengthy meeting during the Saratoga meet with Everett Dobson of The Jockey Club and shared the investor deck and marketing strategy.

He asked that I arrange a meeting with the firm working on the project, which I did, but nothing further has occurred.

The Breeders' Cup organization never returned my calls.

Meanwhile, a number of industry participants have stepped forward to support the initiative, including Fasig-Tipton, The Green Group, the Finger Lakes HBPA, the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, members of the jockey colony, and several private individuals.

My purpose in sharing this is not to criticize any one organization, but to highlight a much larger issue. The organizations that represent and lead our sport are funded by the very people who work within the industry–owners, breeders, trainers. Yet too often they operate independently rather than collaboratively, and meaningful opportunities to promote and grow the sport are missed.

Horse racing is facing intense competition for the entertainment dollar from sports betting, prediction markets, and other emerging forms of gaming. At the same time, internal divisions and fragmented leadership continue to weaken our ability to present a unified message to the public.

If we truly want to preserve this historic sport, we must begin working together and investing in initiatives that expand the fan base and tell the story of racing to the world. The Heart of Horse Racing campaign was created to do exactly that. The time has come for our industry's leadership to move beyond discussion and begin supporting solutions that will grow and sustain horse racing for future generations.

Click here if you would like to learn more or make a donation.

Tina Marie Bond is the President of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.

The post Letter To The Editor: The Heart Of Horse Racing appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

View the full article