Hayward, former DRF and NYRA exec, injured in bike-car collision

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Charlie Hayward, a former executive for Daily Racing Form and the New York Racing Association, suffered a fractured pelvis when he was hit by a car while riding a bicycle Saturday.

Hayward was struck by a car at the intersection of Nelson and Crescent avenues in Saratoga Springs, not far from the racetrack. Hayward, in an e-mail to DRF, explained that at first, he was taken to his Saratoga home by a local resident. After Hayward had difficulty walking, he was taken by ambulance to Saratoga Hospital, where X-rays revealed three non-displaced fractures of the pelvis.

Hayward was later transferred by ambulance to Albany Medical Center, the only Level 1 trauma center within 100 miles of Saratoga.

“Because the fractures were non-displaced, I will not need surgery, but I will have a long rehab to begin shortly,” Hayward wrote.

As of Wednesday, Hayward was still at Albany Medical Center, but he was hopeful of being transported to a rehabilitation center in a few days.

Hayward was the president of DRF from 1999 to 2004 before taking over as president and chief executive of NYRA in November 2004.

Hayward, along with NYRA’s chief counsel, Pat Kehoe, was fired from his NYRA post in 2012 after it was revealed that NYRA had been overcharging by 1 percent its takeout rate on pick six wagers for 15 months.

In January 2014, Hayward launched a new online racing publication called Thoroughbred Racing Commentary.