Celebrity announcers — while sometimes lame — merely entertainment
One of the corniest, but harmless, publicity stunts done at racetracks is to have a celebrity try to call a horse race. On Sunday, former UNLV quarterback and now ESPN sports personality Kenny Mayne gave it his best shot at Santa Anita Park.
The result was predictable. No one expected Mayne to replace Trevor Denman. His more egregious error was calling the wrong horse the winner of a tight photo finish. But Mayne had fun with the race, and it was featured on ESPN’s “SportsCenter.” And that is the crux of why these things are done.
What got me was horse racing purists were howling about Mayne on social media. As if the poor guy had just shot their dog. I know two things when I watch a horse race. First, I can see the race. So while a good announcer will enhance my enjoyment, the action is right in front of me. In reality, I shouldn’t need him.
And while Mayne called the wrong horse the winner, you would have to be a mope to throw away your ticket because of him. A cardinal rule in race and sports betting is don’t discard your ticket until the result is made official.
In the past couple of years, I’ve also seen race calls from Conan O’Brien and Kristine Leahy, a co-host with Colin Cowherd. The follow-up features by O’Brien and Leahy were entertaining and enlightening.
Calling a horse race is probably the most difficult job in sports broadcasting. You could feel the struggles of Mayne, O’Brien and Leahy in their preparation. For example, just try calling a horse race off the TV set. Even with only a six- or seven-horse field.
It is hard to first memorize the horse’s names and then link them to the corresponding jockey silks. As the race is being run, you must describe the action while keeping a steady rhythm building to hopefully an exciting finish.
After the race is official, you must forget everything as if you could apply a mental erasure to your brain. Then repeat the process for the next race. Do this up to 10 times a day. It is mentally exhausting as well as extremely difficult.
What Mayne did Sunday was strictly for entertainment purposes. For his critics, just turn down the sound for 75 seconds. Racing, like a lot of things in life, has many issues to overcome. But this is not one of them.
LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER AT TI — The final chance to qualify for the Daily Racing Form/National Thoroughbred Racing Association National Handicapping Championship will be Wednesday at TI. The entry fee is $500, four entries maximum. Players will make 13 plays, seven of them mandatory, at Gulfstream Park and Tampa Bay Downs.
The top five finishers will get a free berth to the NHC from Jan. 28 to 30 at TI. If more than 140 sign up, an additional seat will be awarded for every 20 more players. Players must be an NHC Tour member to be eligible for a free seat.
AMERICAN PHAROAH — The honors keep rolling in for Triple Crown champion American Pharoah. He was named 2015 Longines World’s Best Racehorse recently in London. Owner Ahmed Zayat, trainer Bob Baffert and jockey Victor Espinoza attended the ceremony.
— Richard Eng’s horse racing column is published Friday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He can be reached at rich_eng@hotmail.com. Follow him on Twitter: @richeng4propick.
