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I have noticed that there are 2 or 3 "Expert" postersthat seem to be very knowledgable or at least say they are...all Midwest "Provincial" players...as they held the Chicago tracks in high esteemwhile the East Coast tracks are "poorly run" and should be closed.While one poster mentions the horses he or she owns. the long posting trio seem to have a superbperception of how "not to run a track" e.g. The Meadowlands...man y would say that this begs thequestion of why there is no racing left in Illinois?I myself used to love the old Balmoral ..and Sportsman's Park was excellent.One would think that if Midwest Racing was so wonderful where are Michigan and Illinoisin terms of the USTA list of Harness Tracks?Answer: there are none.Guess it must have been the Christian Track operators...or were they "Hebrew Track Management"that ruined the racing?I am thinking that Yonkers , Monticello, Saratoga,Batavia,Buffalo, and Tioga seem to be still there...as well as The Meadowlands thanks to Jeff Gural.while Balmoral, Maywood, Sportsman's and othersin Illinois have gone the way of the Dodo bird...Where were you?Many feel that the expert posters on here who donot agreewith Track Management..wheth er "Hebrew" or "Christian"..or "Athiest"...or any specific track... step up to the plate and buy these tracks out...Put up $60,000,000 to $75,000,000+ of their own cashand set forth to do a better job...as you are Track Management Experts.Needless to say, You will be working 10 hour daysand 60 hour+ weeks...so don't get comfortable.What's that?You are short on cash...and time?So maybe its time to sit back and let the real playersin the Industry run the show.If you have any serious comments with regard to improvingThe Meadowlands...giv e Jeff Gural a call..chances are he will actually return your call.It is real easy to complain and slander anonymouslyfrom a keyboard .
I have never been to any of those tracks in the mid-west but was saddened by their closings. The end of racing anywhere always affects many people negatively. Here in New England, we have seen more tracks close then we can count. I'm not sure why some posters have to inject "Hebrew" or "Christian" or any religion when talking about ownership of a track. It's just kind of stupid. That aside, the tracks still running in the northeast are a welcome sight to a fan like me. With all the hate and vitriolic comments made about Jeff Gural, I think i'm still glad he's in the business. He's an old guy now, so who knows what the future will bring. But I think harness racing will be a lot sadder if he sells his track to devolpers and gets out of the business.
Jeff leases the M1 from the state of NJhe claims he loses money every time he turns the lights on. his hopes of having a casino anytime soon are dead-it will not even make it to the ballot in Novemberhe has said this the last year for The Hambletonian at "his" trackthe title is about Chicago racing-but the thread is not
Gurals Casino...Maybe you can do a better job?We are waiting.Many think running a racetrack in NJ with the casinointerests is a walk in the park...These casino companies donot wish to share the windfallwith any racetracks...Gural is trying...which is 100% more than many.
I think there is little to talk about concerning Chicago racing. Like New England, in pretty bad shape. Nothing will bring them back. But do you think harness racing will be better served if the Meadowlands go the way of the "Dodo"?
