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Photo by Coady Photography Total pari-mutuel handle on the March 17 10-race Rebel Day card at Oaklawn was a record for March and a non-Arkansas Derby Day, eclipsing marks set from last year’s corresponding program, despite one fewer race. According to figures released Saturday night by the track, total handle was $10,771,984.46, with [...]
National HBPA Convention panel : Racing should follow human drug testing to address inadvertent transfer of substances to horses Ted Shults, a nationally recognized expert in forensic toxicology and law, says racing chemists and regulators face “self-inflicted injury” if their testing policies fail to recognize the existence of environmental contamination and inadvertent transfer of recreational [...]
National HBPA Convention panel: Aftercare not just ethical but smart marketing; 'We want to show that our industry cares for our horses' Taking care of retired racehorses not only is the ethical thing to do but is good marketing, a panel Thursday told the audience at the National HBPA Convention at the Astor Crowne Plaza [...]
Keynote speaker Clay Whitham (Photo by Denis Blake) Happening at warp speed: Horsemen should start preparing for sports betting now, panel tells National HBPA Convention 'It's vastly more complicated and risky than parimutuel horse racing... If you’re not well-advised, you could be left behind.' To appreciate how public opinion on sports betting has [...]
Purse records keep tumbling at the track with the richest purses in America between January and April. Starting with the March 17 Rebel Stakes card, Oaklawn will implement the second increase of the season, the 18th straight year the Hot Springs track has bumped purses at least once during a meet. Overnight purses will be [...]
The 2019 Arkansas HBPA Board of Directors election is coming up and nominations close April 7, 2018. If interested, please contact the Arkansas HBPA office before that date Ballots will go out in October.
Veteran jockey agent Scott Hare said in late February that for a while he thought he was representing riders at Emerald Downs, a joking reference to the track located near Seattle, noted for being one of the country’s rainiest cities. Hot Springs couldn’t be far behind in 2018. According to the National Weather Service in [...]
The richest purses in the Midwest just got richer. Effective Saturday, Feb. 17, Oaklawn is increasing all allowance and maiden special weight races by $3,000. Allowance races will range from $79,000 to as high as $83,000. Maiden special weight races will increase to $78,000 from $75,000. In addition, all claiming races and maiden claiming [...]
The Elite Program, Inc. and Purple Power Racing Services owner C. Reid McLellan, PhD announced a full schedule of classes for the end of winter and beginning of spring. Two Trainers’ Exam Prep Classes, a first-of -its-kind one-day horse behavior and handling clinic and the second annual Horsemen’s Workforce Development at Magdalena Farms in Lexington, [...]
While registration filled up quickly for the American Horse Council's First Quarter 2018 webinar on the Electronic Logging Device (ELD) and Commercial Drivers License (CDL) requirements, the AHC recorded the webinar in order to share with AHC members and horsemen. This is a multifactorial issue, with requirements for a CDL varying from state to state. [...]