Hatfield and McCoy

Have you ever noticed how Todd Schrupp takes pot shots at Magna and HRTV whenever possible? Top on the list of complaints for many is that he won't mention a Magna track by name. For instance, he refers to Gulfstream Park as a major racetrack in south Florida. Today I enjoyed this exchange between Todd & Frank Lyons:

FL: Thunder Gulch....think he had a good day yesterday?
TS: Yeah, he had a great day with Circular Quay and then at a major racetrack and shopping center Balance won a Grade I race.
FL: Soon to be an arcade near you.
TS: Here's an idea. Lets not use this property for racing.
FL: Put a roller coaster in.*

Most of us that follow the game closely know that Magna is developing a part of Santa Anita's parking area. While I think the project could be beneficial if done right, there are legitimate reason's to object, and plenty of concerns racing fans should want addressed. I think a serious conversation would serve racing fans well, but since TVG, and Schrupp in particular, refuse to even mention the name of the track or cover any happenings at Magna tracks, an intelligent discussion about it can't take place on TVG.

This is certainly beating a dead horse, but it just gets so old. Can you imagine if ESPN refused to cover any sporting event that wasn't televised on their network? Ridiculous. But, that is TVG's model. This is one reason why I am so fond of HRTV. They don't ignore all the racing from the other team. In the past, HRTV would even show big races from TVG exclusive tracks once they went official. Perhaps the production values are lower, but at least they don't insult my intelligence.

What I would suggest is to not throw the baby out with the bathwater, though. Racing fans love the banter and appreciate the on air talent that speak honestly without a filter. But to bash "the other team" in a Fox News like manner adds no value for the viewer. It's not like Republicans vs. Democrats, or Mac vs. PC. We don't care about TVG vs. Magna, we just care about racing.

*I wonder if Frank has noticed how many people there are at Fairplex or the NorCal fairs where they have, gasp, roller coasters.

I Called It!

The big news that Magna is selling a 50% interest in HRTV to CDI came as no surprise to readers of TBA content.

I think a workable model would be for a consortium of race tracks, or even the NTRA, to own racing channels. That may be what we're seeing with HRTV. If Magna sells a 50% interest in HRTV to CDI, then shuts out TVG, maybe then another industry group can buy TVG at fire sale prices. The signal needs to be valued first. TVG is the cart, and it needs to go behind the horse. [Tote Board Brad commenting on Pulling Hair, 1st comment, 2/26/2007]

The industry is taking the logical steps to keep the money in the family, and I only expect it to continue. How long before Gemstar divests of TVG as it is boxed out of content? Gemstar's great advantage is it's relationship with Fox (who owns ~30% last I checked) and with cable and satellite providers. However, the profits end up in the wallets of fat cat media moguls instead of fat cat horse racing magnates. As we all know, media moguls then give that money to presidential candidates, whereas racing magnates blow it on more horses.

TVG Drama

TVG had their big meeting Tuesday that on air personalities and other TVG personnel had been publicizing for some time now. Ostensibly they are trying to improve their product and are discussing new ideas. Some have speculated that they will also be addressing how to deal with the loss of Churchill tracks. I heard Mike Joyce joke on The Quarters that when he goes on vacation later this week, he might just have to leave his TVG badge behind. Although Joyce was clearly cracking wise, since they will likely lose substantial revenue near term as a result of losing Churchill, they may very well need to trim staff.

Recently there have been some good discussions in the comment sections of some fellow horse racing blogs. See Left at the Gate and these two posts from Pulling Hair. It's also very refreshing to see Dan Illman comment discuss frankly, without a politician's filter, some of the problems with TVG, HRTV & general distribution issues in Racing.

If anyone has any insight into what when on in the TVG meeting and what the prognosis over there is, please pipe up in the comments section.

--Much of the DRF staff and other elite handicappers and press members are already in Las Vegas as they prepare for the 2007 Horseplayers Expo. I would love to be a fly on the wall when DRF folks are getting smashed in Vegas and burning up the tables after the race books close.

I think it's only a matter of time before you start seeing DRF slash fiction sprinkled around the innerweb.