From CHRB
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Sept. 19, 2024) — The California Horse Racing Board conducted a meeting on Thursday, September 19, 2024, at Cal Expo. Chairman Gregory Ferraro chaired the meeting, joined by Vice Chair Oscar Gonzales and Commissioners Dennis Alfieri,, John Carvelli, Damascus Castellanos, Brenda Washington Davis and Thomas Hudnut.
Due to a power outage at Cal Expo, the CHRB was unable to stream the audio of the proceedings to the public. Technicians recorded the audio using battery power and later provided the audio file to the CHRB. The audio of this entire Board meeting is available on the CHRB Website (www.chrb.ca.gov) under the Webcast link, accessed through the Media Room tab. In brief:
- The Board conditionally approved the license application for Golden State Racing Association (GSR) to conduct a thoroughbred meet in Pleasanton that will operate from October 19 through December 15 with 26 programs on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
The GSR license application was incomplete as it lacked the Advance Deposit Wagering agreement and more critically the mandatory horsemen’s agreement with the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC). Despite months of negotiations and a previous agreement, GSR and the TOC were not able to agree on purse levels for the meet. The commissioners considered putting this matter over for a hearing by the full Board in early October. This prompted the two parties to leave the room for further negotiations, and when they returned towards the end of the meeting they said they had an agreement in principle. The Board then approved the license application on condition that a signed horsemen’s agreement will be provided to the CHRB by the close of business on Monday, September 23, otherwise a hearing will be scheduled to further consider the matter.
- The Board allocated 2025 racing dates for thoroughbred racing in Southern California, quarter-horse racing at Los Alamitos, and harness racing at Cal Expo, as well as thoroughbred racing in Northern California for only the first half of 2025 plus three weeks to Santa Rosa. Date allocations typically include dark-day simulcasting designations for revenue purposes, but disagreements over a simulcasting week in Southern California led the Board to hold off from allocating three simulcasting weeks. The actual dates that any meet will run are determined when the licensing application for any meet is considered during the course of the year.
As allocated, Santa Anita’s winter meet will begin as usual on December 26 and run through June 17, followed by the Los Angeles County Fair meet at Los Alamitos (June 18 through July 8), then the Del Mar summer meet (July 16 through September 9), daytime thoroughbred racing at Los Alamitos (September 10 through September 23), back to Santa Anita for its fall meet (September 24 through October 28), the Del Mar fall meet (October 29 through December 2), then another thoroughbred meet at Los Alamitos (December 3 through December 16).
The Board allocated 69 days of thoroughbred racing to GSR in Pleasanton through June 8 and three weeks to the Sonoma County Fair (July 30 through August 19). The Board put off allocating later 2025 dates to Northern California while northern interests and the TOC develop a full fair schedule. The GSR dates were allocated with the understanding that approval of the license application when it is considered at the December 19 Board meeting will include a discussion of how the 2024 meet has progressed.
The Board allocated quarter-horse dates to Los Alamitos (December 25, 2024, through December 23, 2025), and harness dates to Cal Expo through May 9 and a second meet from November 15 through December 23.
- The Board approved the license application for the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club to host a race meet in Del Mar that will feature the Breeders’ Cup Championship races on November 1 and November 2. The meet will open the day before the Breeders’ Cup on Thursday, October 31, and run through Sunday, December 1.
The Breeders’ Cup will offer five races on Friday, November 1, with purses totaling $7 million, then on Saturday, November 2, nine Breeders’ Cup races will offer $23 million in purses, headlined by the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Aside from the opening Thursday, Del Mar will race Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays for the balance of the meet.
- In his report to the Board, Executive Director Scott Chaney said California is in the process of creating a weekly simulcast segment patterned after the successful one in New York wherein California stewards will discuss some of their more difficult decisions. Chaney also took the opportunity to “announce that today is Chief Counsel Rob Brodnik’s last day with the CHRB, and that Staff Counsel Amanda Brown has been hired to succeed him in that position. We are currently accepting applications for the staff counsel position vacated by Amanda. Rob has worked for the CHRB for the past six years and now has a new, exciting professional opportunity. We wish him well in his new position.”
- The Board authorized Keeneland Championship Sales to conduct a sale in the Del Mar paddock on October 30 of race horse and breeding stock themed around the Breeders’ Cup. Details are available at https://championship.keeneland.com/#details
- The Board authorized WatchandWager.com to distribute $5,500 in race day charity proceeds (supplemented by WatchandWager) to five beneficiaries.
- The Board authorized Santa Anita to alter the distributions of its Three-by-Three wager for its fall meet.