Panel to study Jockeys' Guild ideas

The North American Pari-Mutuel Regulators Association, an umbrella group of racing commissions, has forwarded 12 recommendations made by the Jockeys' Guild to a model-rules committee for possible implementation, the association said Thursday.

The recommendations include specifications for equipment, rails, and starting gates at tracks, the association said. The model-rules committee, which also includes representatives from another umbrella group, the Association of Racing Commiss-ioners International, recommends rules for adoption by individual racing commissions.

NAPRA did not make any recommendation on a proposal by the guild for minimum-weight requirements for jockeys, the association said. The guild has recently been working to establish minimum-weight requirements in several states, including Kentucky and California, but regulators there have recommended that the guild push instead for a national rule.

The state of Colorado has adopted the minimum-weight requirement that was recommended by the guild for the 2005 racing season. NAPRA officials said they will monitor results in Colorado before considering a minimum-weight requirement nationally.