A chat with Tim Finley (Part Two)

I’m back with Tim Finley for Part Two of our conversation of his being an outspoken critic of the lack of transparency in harness racing regarding unfortunate occurrences on our racetracks.

JB: Welcome back, Tim. So glad to have you back for round two…so let’s begin…

TF: John, I appreciate the opportunity. As I said before, I get a lot of lashing for being so outspoken on this issue and I’ll give you one example of differences between, even, you and me. When we began our first go-around, I noticed that, right off the bat, you are much more diplomatic than I am. You mentioned the transparency issue regarding “unfortunate occurrences on our racetracks.” I guess I take a bolder stance by saying, outright, “accidents and deaths on our tracks.”

If we are at a gathering and someone has mustard on their tie, my wife, Loveda, will whisper to them and suggest they take a look in a restroom mirror while I will tell the person straight up, “You’ve got mustard on your tie!” I respect your diplomacy and I hope you will respect my boldness when it comes to criticism of the governing bodies of our sport in North America. These are my opinions, not yours, as I look at this from a business analyst’s point of view. Diplomacy in business is not always productive.

JB: There has been much criticism regarding the USTA recently. Where do you stand on that issue?

TF: I stand with Jeff Guard…hold feet to the fire!

JB: Well, the USTA puts up a list of fines and suspensions every week and I consider that transparency.

TF: Well, that is true, but we are going way beyond that with serious accidents and deaths on the racetracks and the secrecy that envelops those incidents. For decades, I looked to the USTA for leadership and had tremendous respect for them and their achievements. The problems arose when casinos took over. These problems are so deep-rooted and it’s extremely difficult to get to those deep roots.

The USTA is the most logical to lead us through difficult times but, in my eyes, they have been unreliable and have lacked the insight to see the dark side of becoming involved with casinos. I don’t think they have taken the lines here. The lack of transparency starts at the top—the USTA. Just like there are press conferences from the President’s staff continually with some sort of transparency coming from there and spilling over to Congress, we see very little in that arena from the USTA.

Someone’s feet should be held to the fire. Sometimes I wonder if they are being “paid off” by the casinos to let standardbred racing fail so they are sitting back collecting their salaries while it lasts. Nobody can be that incompetent. I know that you may be reluctant to print my opinion, but something is amiss.

JB: I am never reluctant to print another person’s opinion. That’s the idea of an interview—to cover all points of view. You are entitled to your opinion just like everyone else in a free speech society. If this was China or Russia, it might be a different story. But we’re still the U.S.A. and I, personally am very thankful of that.

TF: I understand completely.

JB: Tim, I do see stories every day on the U.S.T.A. site and, of course, a world roundup on Harnesslink…

TF: Sorry to interrupt. That’s true but I think articles regarding the State of the Industry are collectively misleading. Yes, purses might be up a bit year-to-year—and that’s great—but handle decreased and the cost of running a racetrack is not cheap. The higher-ups in the publicly held casinos are watching their bottom line on a minute-by-minute basis with analysts looking over their shoulders, as well. There are zoom meetings and conference calls with public interaction, something I don’t see here for our sport.

JB: Well, yes, running a racetrack is costly and many need legislative help and some help from casino revenue, as well.

TF: And that’s a huge problem because what happened in Florida can happen anywhere. There are not many racetracks that can survive on their handle only these days and contracts mean nothing to the casinos if they have even a bit of political influence. Look how many racetracks have been shuttered over the past three decades. At this rate, there will be only a handful left in years ahead as economic pressure from shareholders, recessions and legislators robbing Peter to pay Paul come into play. Today might seem OK…What about tomorrows?

JB: There is a proposal to build a racetrack as part of an entertainment center in Pahrump, Nevada. Do you think this is a viable idea to, possibly, rekindle a western circuit?

TF: Absolutely NOT! I believe it would be a waste of money. I compare this to Amazon opening a chain of bookstores. We live in a digital world now and it’s much more cost effective to take the show to the people’s homes. Same scenario for our tracks. You can create revenue from simulcasting without the cost of building a racetrack, especially if it’s not a racino.

JB: So, is there ANY solution to the problem?

TF: Asset utilization is imperative to the success of any business. Many casinos operate 24/7/365. Compare that to a racetrack that operates 30% of the time. And that’s assuming they race all year around. Pompano raced around 100 days in their last season, so that’s, roughly, 27% of the year. Of those 100 days, racing comprised, maybe, four hours of that—about 16% of the day.

Put those two together and you’ve got a venue that produces revenue in about 4 1/2% of the time in a a year. So, the percentages of that land being put to profitability—if that’s even possible—is not worth it if the land can be developed to earn the company millions of dollars. Racing is on welfare these days and the casino owners, especially facing debt from expansion, have to put that land to profitable use.

JB: Is there a solution?

TF: Racetracks are in a tug-of-war these days with each other. We don’t need more racetracks—we need more efficiency. Maybe a merger or two of racetracks and request the States allow us to compete by using assets more effectively. This is good business and common sense. We don’t need our leaders saying it can’t be done. If it continues to be a tug-of-war, nothing will get done. We must all hold hands and walk forward.

JB: How about an example of tracks merging.

TF: Well, for example, if The Meadowlands merged with a couple of other tracks and raced 10 hours a day, six days a week, an interesting program designed to recruit new fans could be developed. It could be broadcast nationally with a television station exclusively for harness racing. Advertising could bring in substantial revenue. This is just one idea that needs refinement, of course. We’re just so splintered now. It’s pathetic and license holders need to work together and get out of this tug-of-war mentality.

JB: What’s your opinion of HISA?

TF: Tough question! In theory, I think it’s great, but it will take time to implement. A lot of issues have to be ironed out. I see the biggest problem is controlling the PEDs. I agree that there are some great people in our sport but there are some that strive to keep one step ahead of the authorities to gain an edge. Back in 1838, the city of Boston established the first police force. Today, we have police all over the place. But people still cheat and drug use—both medicinal and recreational—has been a problem since the the country’s inception. The war on drugs is constant. Laws can be legislated…one’s morals cannot be legislated.

JB: What about whipping?

TF: Admittedly, I wasn’t a great trainer or driver. But I did take pride in what I did. I trained my horses to respond to me. That said, I trained my horses to respond at the head of the stretch…and the whip just wasn’t in that training regimen. I remember Gene Sears years ago who had a whip and waved it over the horse’s ears to make him respond. I thought that was effective. Of course, it’s not my opinion that counts here—it’s public perception that counts. The younger set doesn’t seem to like the whip. Many of the old-time gamblers disagree…but they are not the future of our sport.

JB: What are your thoughts on PETA and animal rights groups.

TF: I am an animal rights guy—an animal fanatic. I do swat flies but, sometimes, I catch a spider crawling on my wall and will put in on a piece of paper and take it outside. In fact, I live on a canal in Florida and many wild animals depend on me for their meals.

JB: Yes, but what about our equine athletes?

TF: Most people think of animal rights activists as radical nuts. I don’t think so. There are some that go to extremes and others with a commonsense approach. Our horses are athletes! And not all animal rights groups are against horse racing. That’s where transparency comes in. If we avoid on-track euthanizations and can avoid on-track injury, I think we’ll be OK.

JB: With that thought in mind, what can be done to lessen accidents, lameness or something even worse?

TF: There’s just not enough room to expound on my solutions. I do have them listed on my website—which, by the way, is not-for-profit, we take no contributions and have no advertising.  I have put a lot of solutions together and they’re at www.harnessracingaction.com There’s also extensive information on Lasix, which many people think they understand but, in reality, do not.

JB: Tim, I’d like to get your thoughts as to some on-track things that have transpired since you and I became enamored with our sport. How about the passing lane. Yes, or no?

TF: Most probably the most exciting part of a race is when horses turn for home and the stretch drive is on. If you have a horse right behind the leader and can’t get out and other horses are raging with speed…well, personally, I love the passing lane. It allows for more strategy and fairness to a driver behind a horse that may be tiring. I think it creates more excitement and, I think, makes a race safer.

JB: On the other side of the coin, some drivers just know where and when to move and don’t get caught in situations like that. I think that separates the men from the boys and makes some drivers great and some not-so-great. If you have the horse that is in the garden spot locked up and I have the one on the outside challenging, I’m feeling pretty happy that you’re locked up when I’ve got my two bucks on the one outside challenging. If it’s an eight or nine horse field, you’ve got eight or nine different emotions there. The one’s who cash tickets are happy campers. The others are not! It depends on the circumstance!! What about creating more fairness with outside post positions?

TF: Well, outside posts have more traffic to negotiate from start to finish and have to travel a further distance than one mile to win (JB’s note: As much as 60 to 80 feet more) to win or be on the board. The statistics prove horses starting on the outside posts win less often. I could not honestly recruit new owners and tell them that he had no chance to win because he drew poorly. Under the current system, we have a current system we have a field of horses that is strung out as much as 100 feet in length. That doesn’t look like a race to those outside the sport. It’s boring and looks like a boat race.

JB: Well, post positions have been a part of racing from day one and the larger tracks with longer stretches seem to handle it well. Yonkers has just instituted the slant gate to make a difference to those horses in the six, seven or eight post. And there’s always the option of having those on a half mile track to have posts seven and eight start from the second tier. Delaware, Ohio’s stretch is probably the shortest under 400 feet, I believe. And let’s not forget the Kentucky Derby winner last year winning from post 20! It’s all part of racing, I think. The racing today is pretty much go-go-go and a driver’s expertise can get the job done from anywhere if they have the “horsepower!”

JB: Let me do a quick follow-up. Do you have any thoughts on aftercare for our equine athletes that reach retirement age?

TF: This is a problem with no affordable, pleasant or agreeable solution at this time. Horse aftercare care and maintenance is expensive, and few want to pay the price. Many criticize the Amish for using them to pull buggies but, in my eyes, that paints a broad brush on a sect of people with about 200 communities scattered throughout the U.S. I have many Amish friends and they take great care of their horses—just like we take care of our automobiles.

I realize that slaughter is still part of the equation here and I don’t like the idea of it, but I don’t see a viable solution with the cost involved in today’s world. I asked one Amishman why they send them to slaughter, and they do it to utilize what is left. If they bury them, they become worm food. If they send them to slaughter, they, at least, have a final contribution to someone somewhere. Personally, I do not like the idea of slaughter, but that is their choice. Those who do the most complaining are the ones who contribute the least.

JB: Final question…How long until the subsidies for racing end?

TF: One word answer…soon!

JB: Thanks, Tim, for your very valuable insight.

To read part one of the article, click here.

by John Berry, for Harnesslink