Letter from The President
First of all folks, I apologize for not being able to have more uplifting updates during
this pandemic shutdown. We're all looking for that light at the end of the tunnel these days. Our situation is no different than the rest of the horse racing world, uncertainty. The MHHA Board has resisted publicly making predictions as to when the industry will re-open, knowing getting it wrong could only cause more
angst. Most years we rely on the calendar and Mother Nature to determine each racing season's beginning. But this year we are depending on our government leaders and science to guide us, something none of us could've foreseen only a few months ago.
We want you all to know we understand your fears, your frustrations, and your concerns for the health and wellbeing of our horses and our families. Please know that each and every director of the MHHA and MSBOA is playing a role in best preparing this great industry to survive this tumultuous start to 2020. It will be the grit and determination of New England horsemen to weather this storm that will enable us to strive forward
into this season and the seasons to follow.
Below I have listed just some of the challenges and projects this board has been
dealing with over the past 6 weeks. We only wish we could answer the question we've all been asking ourselves on a daily basis but, unfortunately, NO, we do not know exactly when racing will
start. But there are signs that we will soon be able to announce when and how the 2020 season will proceed.
WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO:
(1) In March Aaron, Jason Vafiades and I met with Denise, Steve, Mike and Bill of The Downs to
share risk management planning ideas in order to get racing to the front of the line as the Governor's restrictions eventually loosen. Scarborough & the horsemen’s reps are working hand in hand with Henry Jennings to develop a well-documented plan that includes protocols to protect the health of all industry participants to present to the Dept. Of Ag and the Governor's office in order to expedite that
process. That plan may include briefly racing without or with limited fans present.
2. Jim Dunn and I have worked countless hours on the phone with Bangor horsemen, Hollywood Casino and the Bangor city counsel's office to try and prevent the Bangor barns from being closed on April lst. Thanks to
those efforts, and the generosity of an industry supporter, the barn & track have remained open throughout April. We were pleased to learn today that as of May lst, Bangor will be accepting applications for new tenants to move in preparation for their 2020 race meet.
3. In a joint effort the MHHA & HHANE (Plainridge horsemen’s representatives) have put together
a plan to help facilitate a grain drive to help ALL New England trainers feed
their horses during this shutdown. The funding for this huge undertaking came from the generosity shown by the Western New England Horsemen’s Association & our friends at the Poulin Grain Co. in Vermont. We're happy to say that over the next 4 weeks, $60,000 in grain certificates will be mailed out
proportionally to New England based trainers based on the numbers of horses they currently have in training. Be sure and thank Bill Ellis, Ralph Anderson, Dave Ingraham & Steve Lacasse of the
WNEHHA and your local sales reps. from Poulin Grain.
4. Leadership of MHHA & MSBOA, with the assistance of other industry partners, is attempting to get the signal from more Maine tracks sent out to more locations. We feel that
because of our geographical location, Maine's tracks may be up and running
before other parts of the country. The increase in both wagering and viewing of our product could be a great marketing device for Maine racing now, and in the future.
5. Rep. Don Marean and I have been working with Don Barberino & Gary Sagris of the Maine OTB's, Barry Norris of the MAAF, and Chris MacErlaine of Penn Gaming Inc. to get Maine' Advanced Deposit Wagering
platform up and running. Penn Gaming was awarded the sole ADW license, and is likely to be operational in May. Penn said they are "ready to go", and hope to get the green light from the
State soon. ATTENTION:ALL Maine bettors that bet over your computers & mobile devices will need to sign up to wager through Hollywood Bangor AS SOON as the service becomes available. Penn will be the only provider licensed to accept online wagers in the State of Maine and a percentage of ALL wagers through this
site will go to Maine purses, Maine fairs, Maine OTBs and the State of Maine's general fund. This bill's enactment is far overdue, but the benefits are HUUUGE!
6. Henry Jennings has been readily available to the MHHA office, MSBOA leadership, the Maine Fairs and our two commercial tracks. Everyone involved is continually working together to be prepared to salvage all we can from the unprecedented season ahead. We expect several changes will come before the Commission as the year progresses. Date changes, stakes scheduling changes, possible stakes payment deferrals, post-time alterations; whatever the need, all stakeholders in the industry are prepared to make sacrifices so that all can survive this difficult time.
7. Bethany Graffam (along with Debbie Patterson & Natalie Michaud) have met with Lisa Riportella and Gary Poulin of WSKW, and are exploring way of better utilizing the radio broadcast to promote our product,as
well as to better entertain and educate our radio audience. This program will run through all racing at the Maine fairs, as well as the Sires Stakes Finals.
8. The funding to run this association comes from the same revenue that funds our purses: primarily simulcast wagers, live handle and the Casino cascade. Since all forms of revenue have ceased, it goes without saying that our organization is in a budget crisis. Despite this, your directors are still doing their very best to
serve you. The Executive Director is still performing critical tasks for the association, and though her role is
mostly on a volunteer basis these days, she continues to assist our members in many ways.
On a daily basis our directors are fielding calls from countless horsemen. Most calls start
with "Well l heard..." you fill in the blank. Many of the concerns we are hearing are based
on rumors people have heard at their respective places of training. Please refrain from going down that rabbit hole. When information that has merit comes to us, trust that we will pass it on to our membership.
We're most likely about to journey through the most difficult season of our lifetimes together. That
is the key: TOGETHER. By nature we are a feisty and resilient bunch. Our industry
has struggled before, yet here we are, still in the fight. Hopefully sooner than later, WE will race
again. WE will help one another. And TOGETHER WE WILL PERSEVERE!
Be Safe
Mike Cushing
MHHA President