New track might embody future

Who would have thought the future of horse racing could be embodied in Erie, Pa.?

Presque Isle Downs racetrack and casino in Erie will begin its first season of racing Saturday. Purses for the 25-day meet will average $500,000 a day.

Those are Keeneland and Saratoga numbers that should petrify any racetrack company that does not have slot machines.

The signal will not be offered for wagering here in Las Vegas. At least for now. However, purses that large beg for attention from the betting public.

Presque Isle could be the new model for the future of racing. As much as us fans want to see live racing, in reality about 80 percent of horse betting is done away from the track.

I cannot imagine live attendance and handle being anything but mediocre in Erie. Regardless, the quality of the product, if Presque Isle’s operators can sustain big fields, could attract decent handle in the simulcast market.

The price of doing business at Presque Island is downsized by the area, plus the low cost of living. Compare that to such places as Bay Meadows, Hollywood Park and Aqueduct, where the property value is worth more than the racetrack itself and the cost of living is exorbitant.

As the sport evolves into a theater of racing, Presque Isle might become the best embodiment of that. Good product, cheap environment, rich slots.

MTR Gaming, which did a terrible job running Binion’s casino downtown, owns and operates Presque Isle. It’s a job that better suits the company.

I’m interested in its choice of synthetic racing surface, Tapeta.

Tapeta is owned by trainer Michael Dickinson, who is the father of the new wave of synthetic surfaces. He owns the patent for the wax-coated sand, so he is paid a royalty whenever a surface such as Cushion track or Polytrack is installed.

In 2008, Presque Isle is planning a 100-day meet with daily purses averaging about $300,000. But in the first year, trainers are treating this meet like a California gold rush with purses of $40,000 and up for maiden races, for example, showing the largesse of the slot machine-fueled condition book.

Richard Eng’s horse racing column is published Friday. He can be reached at rich_eng@hotmail.com.