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Publicity woes beset Churchill Downs

Gregory A. Hall

@gregoryahall

A rash of publicity issues hit Churchill Downs around Kentucky Derby week
Churchill Downs says it is taking every complaint seriously
Declines have been seen in wagering and field sizes at the Louisville track
Churchill says branching out into casinos and online wagering has helped it weather racing declines

As California Chrome boosts thoroughbred racing's profile in his quest for the Triple Crown, Louisville-based Churchill Downs Inc. is working to maintain its own profile in the wake of a string of public relations nightmares.

Among them:

• Horse owner and NFL player Wes Welker was asked to return money to Churchill after his group at the Derby was overpaid because of mechanical problems and human error — though Kentucky racing rules say that type of mistake is the track's responsibility, not the bettor's.

• A 5-year-old mare died on the track after trainer Kenny Wirth said she was startled by the sudden blare of a starting gate emanating from the Central Avenue track's new speakers that accompany its giant new video board.

• On Memorial Day, scratches resulted in a two-horse race, drawing attention to the spring meet's problems with short fields.

"It seems like every week there's something else," said Marty Maline, the executive director of the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association.

For its part, Churchill says it is taking every complaint seriously. "We are always looking to improve," company spokeswoman Courtney Yopp Norris said in a statement responding to questions. But, she added, "the Kentucky Oaks, the Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs Race Track and (the company) have never been stronger."

Norris said surveys of Oaks and Derby attendees show "we rank in the top 2 percent of all brands worldwide and more than 2.5 times better than the average top 100 U.S. consumer brand."

At this year's Derby, the track recorded its second-highest attendance — 164,906 — and tied a record for wagering on the day at $186.6 million.

"Our goal is that every one of those fans has a great time," Norris said of Derby and Oaks attendees. "Unfortunately, that doesn't always happen. We apologize again to those who clearly did not have experiences this year that met their expectations or ours."

Casino interests defended

Still, critics are jumping on the recent incidents as evidence that Churchill Downs Inc. doesn't care about racing outside Derby week, aggressively cuts expenses and concentrates more on its casinos and online ventures.

In April it drew howls from bettors when it announced that it would increase the money not returned to them — called the "takeout" — as a way to avoid purse cuts.

The Horseplayers Association of North America promoted a players boycott of Churchill because of the takeout increase.

"Churchill treats horsemen and gamblers poorly, and is now seeing the consequences in the rest of their meet," Craig Bernick, the president of Glen Hill Farm, said in a series of posts on Twitter recently. "Their history is to ignore racing & let backside & grandstand suffer after getting slots," he tweeted. "The city of Louisville is fantastic and they deserve the Derby. Churchill Downs the company, not so much."

The publicity flaps aren't only at the flagship track.

For example, Churchill recently agreed to $900,000 in improvements at its Fair Grounds Race Course and Slots in New Orleans after the Louisiana legislature threatened to require the investment and the state's racing commission delayed extending Churchill's license there. Improvements include replacing a broken infield video board and upgrading the turf course that has had drainage problems.

In general, Churchill officials defend the company's approach with racing and say branching out into casinos and online wagering has helped the company weather racing industry declines.

"U.S. thoroughbred racing is in a pretty significant downturn," Norris said. "Over the last decade the U.S. thoroughbred foal crop dropped 37 percent, the number of races conducted fell 19 percent and wagering declined 28 percent and is now $4.3 billion less than 10 years ago. These are significant challenges, and any business in such a difficult environment had better pay attention to its bottom line."

Churchill is the only one of the three tracks to host a Triple Crown event that hasn't been dragged through a bankruptcy proceeding in the last decade.

And Churchill has said it invested where it can make a return, including putting more than $160 million into the Central Avenue track since 2001 — beginning with a $121 million renovation more than a decade ago.

At its flagship track, Churchill also has put in lights for night racing, added premium seating and other amenities at the start of the Derby race and installed a new sound system and mega video board.

Complaints and publicity issues

The new sound system was blamed for Never Tell Lynda's death on May 22. Wirth said the 5-year-old mare reacted to a sudden, loud sound of a starting gate springing open — including the sound of the bell — on Churchill Downs' new speakers while walking to the paddock. The mare reared, twisted and fell backward, apparently hitting her head on the ground. She was euthanized on the track.

Churchill issued a statement expressing sympathy to the connections of the horse, calling it "an extremely rare" accident and saying it was studying what happened.

Then on Memorial Day, scratches in a would-be field of six resulted in the two-horse race. The scratches were due to a variety of causes: a colic episode, temperature, lameness during a pre-race exam and an injury on a van shipping to the track.

The complaints seemed to hit a peak during Derby week and just after.

Fox Hill Farm's Rick Porter took to his website during Derby Week to complain about getting tickets at Churchill, where he planned to run a horse in an Oaks Day stakes race, and paralyzed former jockey Ron Turcotte, who rode Secretariat, saying that he previously had trouble getting into Churchill and getting handicapped parking.

Two Derby owners publicly complained about their treatment.

California Chrome co-owner Coburn comments said Martin, his partner in California Chrome, skipped the Preakness because of how Martin was treated. Martin's mother, who was in a wheelchair, had her view of the race blocked at the rail.

Martin said Tuesday that he skipped the Preakness because of his wedding anniversary, and he said he has talked to Churchill about his concerns.

Complaints by the owners of Wildcat Red included trouble getting hotel rooms and that they had to walk to the taxi compound at Fourth and Central when a driver they hired did not show after the race.

Norris said the company has heard the criticisms and "we'll do better."

But not all of the comments from Derby owners have been negative.

In response to the criticisms, West Point Thoroughbreds president Terry Finley, head of the syndicate that owns runner-up Commanding Curve, said Churchill's staffers "have been incredibly helpful to us. I do know that people who think they are going to get stuff for free run into trouble," but Churchill officials try to help with purchases of additional seating.

Drop seen in wagering

Worse than the publicity issues are declines seen in wagering and field sizes at the Central Avenue track.

Wagering on the track's races was down down 9.25 percent through Sunday, according to PlayersBoycott.org.

Because of the takeout increase, the gross revenues are still up about 3 percent over last year, assuming a third of the total wagered is on win-place-show and two thirds are bet on multi-race or multi-horse exotics. But, with the bulk of the money wagered at the spring meet coming in the first week, that revenue gain is dwindling and could end up a loss by the time the meet ends June 29.

And with 5 percent fewer races, field sizes were down 6.8 percent to 7.25 runners per race as of Sunday, compared to last year's 7.78 per race for the full meet.

Maline — whose group of owners and trainers benefits from the portion of the takeout increase that goes to purses — said he believes the shorter fields are the biggest reason behind the betting drop.

The Horseplayers Association of North America has taken some credit for the drop through its boycott.

But Doug Reed, head of the University of Arizona's Race Track Industry Program, said the field sizes are "a national problem." While a reduced foal crop may be a factor, he said horses aren't being run as much each year as they used to be and that is a major factor in reducing handle.

"Churchill's not at fault for causing the field size," he said.

As for Churchill's cost-conscious approach to business, Reed said that since he teaches business classes about the industry, "I'd be hard-pressed to say that's not a good thing."

And Maline said he's not worried about Churchill's commitment to racing. He noted that the track volunteered to add days with its September meet, starting last year.

Norris said the company is "steadfastly" committed to conducting racing "for years to come."

"Churchill Downs has a proud history and heritage, and has conducted racing for 140 consecutive years," she said. "There have been many challenges and changes over those years, and surely there will be more in the future."

Reporter Gregory A. Hall can be reached at (502) 582-4087. Follow him on Twitter at @gregoryahall.

Churchill publicity issues

• Churchill drew howls in April when it announced that it would increase the money not returned to bettors — called the "takeout" — to avoid further purse cuts. That prompted the Horseplayers Association of North America to promote a boycott of Churchill.

• California Chrome co-owner Steve Coburn complained that partner Perry Martin skipped the Preakness Stakes because of how his entourage was treated at Churchill's Kentucky Derby — although Martin's mother, who was in a wheelchair, was carried across the turf course from the Derby winner's circle and a Detroit Free Press story quoted her and another family member, who expressed no problems. Martin said Tuesday that wasn't the reason, it was his wedding anniversary.

• The owners of Derby participant Wildcat Red complained that they had trouble getting hotel rooms and that they had to walk to the taxi compound at Fourth and Central when a driver they hired did not show after the race.

• Fox Hill Farm's Rick Porter took to his website during Derby Week to complain about getting tickets at Churchill, where he planned to run a horse in an Oaks Day stakes race.

• Paralyzed former jockey Ron Turcotte, who rode Triple Crown winner Secretariat, said he had trouble previously getting into Churchill and getting handicapped parking.

• Horse owner and NFL player Wes Welker was asked to return money to Churchill after his group at the Derby was overpaid because of mechanical problems and human error. Kentucky racing rules say that type of mistake is the track's responsibility, not the bettor's.

• Never Tell Lynda, a 5-year-old mare, died on the track after trainer Kenny Wirth said she was startled by the sudden blare of a starting gate emanating from the track's new sound system.

• On Memorial Day, scratches resulted in a two-horse race.