Arlington, Hawthorne Mesh '16 Dates Schedules

Amid uncertainty about the future of Illinois racing, the state's two Chicago-area tracks July 31 submitted live racing dates requests for 2016 that fit together like puzzle pieces.

 

The catch is, the agreement between the beleaguered tracks would see Hawthorne Race Course turning to harness racing from May through mid-September, at the expense of the even more beleaguered Chicago-area harness incumbents. The Illinois Racing Board will have to make that call.

 

Industry insiders said management at Hawthorne and Arlington International Racecourse agreed to work together for short-term survival in the face of a bleak financial picture for 2016. The coordinated schedule represents an almost unprecedented level of cooperation between the frequent rivals.

 

Hawthorne asked the IRB for approval to run Thoroughbred racing Jan. 1 and 2, then Fridays and Saturdays from March 7 to March 31 and three days per week during April. The fall meet would be four days per week from Sept. 30 through Nov. 30 with some added dark days, and three days a week in December. Altogether, the track would host 65 live programs.

 

Hawthorne, which has run high-quality harness programs in the past, would return to that breed starting May 13 and race through Sept. 11 with 61 total programs. The track also asked for "dark host time" status from Jan. 1 through May 12 and from Sept. 12 through the end of the year, which would provide revenue from harness simulcasts during that period.

 

Harness racing currently is being conducted at Balmoral Park and Maywood Park by the Johnston family under bankruptcy protection. The tracks filed for bankruptcy as a result of a mammoth court judgment related to a shakedown scheme in which now-imprisoned former Gov. Rod Blagojevich targeted the tracks.

 

Balmoral, which is appealing the verdict and negotiating with the victorious side in the lawsuit, requested 87 programs for 2016; Maywood, 17.

 

Less clear is allocation of revenue during the early months of the year, when no live cards are scheduled and the Illinois Racing Board decides which track will be "dark host" and get simulcast revenue. That issue has provoked bitter dispute between Hawthorne and Arlington for the past several years.

 

Arlington's request is for "dark host time" from Jan. 3 through March 6, then live racing three days per week during May and June, four days during July and August, and three days during September for a total of 74 programs.

 

Arlington was awarded 77 live cards for this year; Hawthorne, 83.

 

Fairmount Park in downstate Collinsville asked for 150 programs, to be slotted throughout the year. It is a standard application; Fairmount offers far fewer live racing days.

 

All three Illinois tracks are struggling financially as alternative revenue streams have dried up and they are forced to rely on income from wagering to fund purses and operations. Legislation that would allow slot machines, and perhaps even full-scale casinos, at the tracks has stalled because of a bitter budget dispute between freshman Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrats who hold veto-proof majorities in both the House and Senate.

 

Arlington in late June cut overnight purses by 10% and trimmed some of its few remaining stakes purses after being denied permission to run fewer than eight races on some of its scheduled programs.

 

The IRB canceled its July 30 meeting for lack of agenda items. That meeting had been scheduled for Arlington's plush suites level. The next meeting is Aug. 25 and the dates hearing is Sept. 29.