Harness: Lazy Racing Secretaries?

Raise your hand if you think meetings are a waste of time. That certainly seems to be the common perception of the annual meeting of Racing Secretaries in Florida, where, if you believe social media, officials from tracks across North America come down to the Sunshine State to sip Mai Tais by the pool and take in the warm air.

Truth be told, for years I wondered what on earth was going on at these meetings when I would look at the upcoming stakes calendar and see conflicts between Grand Circuit races like the now defunct Art Rooney Memorial and Somebeachsomewhere or more apt in today's environment, the presence of the Kentucky Sires Stakes finals smack dab between races like the Doherty and Haughton Memorials at Harrah's Hoosier Park, the Little Brown Jug, Metro Pace and Mohawk Million. Who is making these decisions? Why isn't consideration being given to widening the calendar or working together better to ensure the most opportunities possible to the racing community?

Nick Salvi, the President of the American Harness Racing Secretaries for the past two years, was willing to pull back the curtain so people can be more informed. While cocktails and dinners may be on the evening agenda, everyone meets daily to discuss the calendar of stakes races. According to Salvi, most attendees, which includes not only racing secretaries but representatives from various staking services and other administrators, have the best interest of the sport in mind and are quite flexible.

"I really want people to have a chance to understand what we do," said Salvi. "Our job as stakes administrators that come down to the meeting is to provide the people who own the horses the opportunity to maximize whatever earning potential their horses have.

"I take it personally when stakes races conflict. We address it at the meeting but don't always get the cooperation we need to rectify the situation."

Salvi outlined that the process begins in November before the conference commences as each entity sends a schedule of their stakes races and dates to United States Trotting Association's Jessica Schroeder so she can compile a master list for everyone to review.

"Jessica does a spectacular job putting it all together," said Salvi.

Then everyone meets for the first time on a Thursday to go over each division (over 1,500 lines of stakes races) in order to bring any possible conflicts to light and make sure there are no changes or new events to consider. Following the meeting individuals may connect to discuss potential adjustments to dates and inform Schroeder so she can send out a new master list for the Friday meeting. That process continues into Saturday as the participants fine-tune the schedule for the following year.

While all stakes dates are still subject to change at this point, one example of cooperation involved an exact date and time conflict between the New York Sire Stakes finals (and MGM Yonkers International Trot) at Yonkers Raceway and the 3-year-old Pennsylvania Sire Stakes finals at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania on Saturday, September 7. Once the issue was uncovered a decision was made to move the PASS sophomore finals to September 9. A similar change occurred with the 2-year-old PASS finals as they moved from September 14 to September 5 to avoid a conflict with Metro Pace eliminations at Woodbine Mohawk Park.

The above shows how well the schedule can work when all parties work hand-in-hand to create the best possible layout. Unfortunately, that doesn't always transpire, and one of the main reasons is the explosion of the Sire Stakes programs from region to region due to casino-fueled purses.

"The whole landscape changed dramatically because Sire Stakes really matter now, even the legs," said Salvi. "We sometimes lose Grand Circuit horses to the Sire Stakes. A 3-year-old filly pacer might choose to race in a Sire Stakes at Chester [Harrah's Philadelphia] rather than in the Mistletoe Shalee because they go for almost as much money and they need points to make the final.

"Kentucky is basically another Grand Circuit because they have access to all the horses. It is not a regional program."

Indeed, Kentucky's recent entrance as a top-tier Sire Stakes option has severely crowded the schedule and made it even more difficult to neatly align races. The previously mentioned Sire Stakes finals are slated to remain just two days after the Haughton and Doherty, four days before the Little Brown Jug and six days prior to the Mohawk Million in 2024. One does have to wonder if starting the series just one week earlier would avoid the conflicts and increase participation in these Grand Circuit races, as well as the Kentucky Sires Stakes.

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According to Salvi, it is The Red Mile's decision as to when to schedule the Sire Stakes, and despite the suggestion by him and others with a vested interest to modify the dates, they are unwilling to budge. "I don't understand why they won't alleviate the conflict with races that are one-time-only opportunities in the stakes career of the horses," said Salvi, who did add that in 2023 he worked with Ken Jackson to avoid overlap with the Kentucky 4-year-old program and the Graduate Series which races at Woodbine Mohawk Park and The Meadowlands.

"Last year Kenny Jackson was very helpful and we were pleased they added races for 4-year-olds," said Salvi. "It really didn't hurt [the Graduate] too much."

That will change dramatically in 2024 as the Kentucky Sires Stakes for 4-year-olds has expanded to five preliminary legs and two finals. Four of the dates (May 27, June 4, 17 and 25) directly conflict with the Graduate Series on June 1 (Mohawk Park), June 14, 22 and July 6 (the Meadowlands). Some could argue that this creates more opportunity for a wider range of horses to earn money, but Salvi quickly pointed out that this division isn't best-suited for races being contested on top of each other.

"I'm not happy about the timing. There is some validity there, but there are not a lot of 4-year-olds at that level. For 2024 we lost two of the best pacers, Confederate and Cannibal, dual-eligibles, are out. Tactical Approach, also dual-eligible on the trotting side, is out. So the crème of the crop is gone. That is bad for us trying to run the Graduate Series. I don't know if that will give more people hope and make them want to pay into the Graduate Series without them or if the already bad numbers will be worse than last year," said Salvi.

While most stakes races are established and have a set spot on the calendar, many Sire Stakes, even ones that have been major players for years, are still searching for the right placement on the calendar. In a story from earlier this year, it was pointed out that the every leg of the New York Sire Stakes for 3-year-old colt and gelding pacers conflicted with a major Grand Circuit event. The early returns have just one leg in 2024 clear of a Grand Circuit event, so there is no relief for a good NY-bred who wants to moonlight with the best of his division.

The crowded calendar has caused some change. Just look at the number of tracks which abandoned their elimination/final formats in exchange for "top-money-winners." This allows for one less week of scheduling conflicts since elimination races typically occur seven days prior to the final.

Is more change feasible? What if races for older horses occur earlier in the year and then they take breaks as the 2- and 3-year-old seasons get underway? What if 3-year-old Grand Circuit stakes started earlier? Why do Sire Stakes need to wait until May or June to start? Granted they race much fewer starts, but Thoroughbred 3-year-olds basically start in February. Maybe those Sire Stakes in some states should start in April and finish by the beginning of June. Then the Grand Circuit could take over without too much competition.

While reimagining the entire system of stakes races is probably unrealistic, sometimes change is the only way to make true progress. So whether it is starting with a fresh idea or tracks being more flexible when it comes to stake placement, the sport needs to work together to put forward the best product for the people wagering as well as those competing. That's not too much to ask, is it?