Is there any doubt, win or lose, that MG will scratch the itch and eventually return?
This is a national trend⊠the NY times just did an investigation of racetracks and breakdowns/fatalities, finding that in 3,800 starts where horses had been illegally drugged, 3,600 broke down or died. That is a staggering correlation, and yet nothing is being done. Incredibly tragic and immoral. How far will people go to make money?
[QUOTE=mhb;6257968]
This is a national trend⊠the NY times just did an investigation of racetracks and breakdowns/fatalities, finding that in 3,800 starts where horses had been illegally drugged, 3,600 broke down or died. That is a staggering correlation, and yet nothing is being done. Incredibly tragic and immoral. How far will people go to make money?[/QUOTE]
Those stats are complete and total BS. How was it determined that the horses were given illegal drugs? I donât know the stats but would be willing to bet there werenât 3600 bad tests in the entire industry let alone 3600 bad tests in the break downs. The problem is bad enough without spouting nonsense.
[QUOTE=mhb;6257968]
This is a national trend⊠the NY times just did an investigation of racetracks and breakdowns/fatalities, finding that in 3,800 starts where horses had been illegally drugged, 3,600 broke down or died. That is a staggering correlation, and yet nothing is being done. Incredibly tragic and immoral. How far will people go to make money?[/QUOTE]
If you really care about the subject then you would be better off doing some research,rather than reading one or two articles and pontificating on this forum.
There is plenty of room for well informed discussion and/or debate on the subject.
It seems to me 
that the NYT is your only source in respect to the issue of racing medication and breakdowns/fatalities.
If you really care, care enough to educate yourself about the issue. Your opinion will make a greater impact if you are in possession of the facts of the matter at hand.
[QUOTE=suffolk2002;6236951]
Now that Equibase is publishing owner stats, I looked up a certain Mr. Edward Longo. Here is his complete history:
Year Starts Firsts Seconds Thirds Earnings
2012 2 1 0 0 $10,200
2011 49 12 9 7 $111,462
2010 91 14 8 11 $319,820
2009 4 1 0 0 $22,800
HmmmâŠseems his rise is completely in time with the fall of another well-known individual. InterestingâŠ[/QUOTE]
Lol Nice job:winkgrin:
Is a few others that are worth a look too:
Lucky Stables LLC, trainer Jeff Fletcher of WV etc. This stuff can really get fun.
BTW what ever happened to the big crackdown that was supposed to be coming from PA Racing Commission to deal with all this program training and hidden ownership???
Might that have been just an effort to get the FBI to go home and now is back to Business as Usual???
Also, anybody want to talk about the Pennsylvania HBPA?
Is there anything new with the HBPA? I myself am wondering what might come to light in Ole Mikey Gillâs lawsuit commencing Apr. 23.
[QUOTE=suffolk2002;6268881]
Is there anything new with the HBPA? I myself am wondering what might come to light in Ole Mikey Gillâs lawsuit commencing Apr. 23.[/QUOTE]Iâm betting they win their lawsuit handily. The fact that Adamo is still licensed in PA, races and is given stalls at Philly (but no o ther track In N America but Penn wonât take his entries really makes the commission look pretty bad. Is anybody out there following this? For those with nothing better to do and can make it downtown stuff like this is open to the public. Would be kinda nice for sake of this entertaining marathon thread if somebody out there could go in and keep watch
Itâs not exactly looking good on the first day for the Racing Commission against Teflon Gill:
http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/04/former_pennsylvania_horse_raci.html
Then thereâs also Gov. Corbett proposing to take $72 million from the Horseracing Fund for other uses.
Profidia, where did all the locals from this thread go? Iâve been following from Boston cause of Gillâs former connection here. And we donât want him back.
[QUOTE=suffolk2002;6275936]
Profidia, where did all the locals from this thread go? Iâve been following from Boston cause of Gillâs former connection here. And we donât want him back.[/QUOTE]
About 6 of them are being sued by Todd Mosteller so canât talk in face of litigation. Others have been bullied into silence by threats and the thuggery so common to business as usual at that track. The rest are just like the townsfolk in the movie âHigh Noonâ which has enabled that climate to thrive in that town for so many years. Its a real shame.
Being sued by Todd or being sued by the HBPA?
Bump for SaratogaTB, as they have posted some pertinent links to the Penn issues.
In the NY Times today
Any word or hints on the Gill hearing outcome?
[QUOTE=LOVE THE HORSES;6293484]
Any word or hints on the Gill hearing outcome?[/QUOTE]Word from Canada is that Mr Adamo has been given stalls at Ft Erie and he is confident that things went very well for them. Iâve not heard of any decision yet from the presiding judge but it should be coming soon
LMAO
Gill: 'What is more controversial than telling the truth?'by Paulick Report Staff | 05.04.2012 | 1:53pm
Michael Gill, the one-time Eclipse Award-winning owner who is no longer in the game, has distributed the following statement in the wake of his civil lawsuit against the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission and several of its employees.
An Insiderâs view into horse racing
By former owner Michael Gill
My dream was always to win the Kentucky Derby; instead this has been my living nightmare. I was in horse racing for 33 years and have been told that I have had more starts and won more races than any horse owner in history. Therefore, I think this qualifies me to speak about the business.
I went into racing knowing it was a business and I believed I could be a champion. I was able to accomplish my goals because I believed they were possible. I also quickly learned that it is possible for people to be totally corrupt.
I am no longer in horse racing, but I spent $51 million dollars from 1999 to 2009 on horses. I had a passion and a love for this industry. Iâm no longer in horse racing so I have no motive to share my story other than the truth.
Penn National Race Track in Grantville, Pennsylvania is, like other race tracks, a closed community. When you look at it, you see nothing but locals. When the largest stable in the country moves in, it is cause for concern. They do not like cutting up their share of the pie. I made $3.1 million dollars there in 2009. More money than any owner made at any one race track that year. This was more money than next the top 15 owners at Penn National combined. So why would they want me out?
I got into Penn National when John Krulock (agent for jockeys Thomas Clifton and Willie Otero) offered me 49 stalls if I rode his Jockeys first call. I said that I would, but that I would not use Clifton as I felt he was an inferior jockey. Krulock then gave me Willie Otero to ride all my horses and then hired Dana Whitney. It was not a coincidence that it is these three jockeys that led a boycott of riding my horses in 2009.
In fact in a federal trial held last week, Michael Dillon, former Acting Executive Secretary of the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission said under oath that he spoke with three jockeys about their concerns, one was Clifton and he just could not remember the other two. Even when the subject was about life and limb, he forgot. Out of the 100 jockeys I am going make a guess at the other two: Dana Whitney and Willie Otero. Iâm sure they were the jockeys, Krulockâs jockeys, which was the reason for Dillonâs sudden loss of memory.
There came a time in late 2009 that I fired Willie Otero. He was pulling horses to prevent them from winning. I then asked to have Dana Whitney ride on all the horses. Krulock said that he could not do that because Dana was riding first call for my biggest competitor, Stephanie Beattie.
So Krulock had the two top racing outfits in Penn National using his jockeys. When he could not give me Dana Whitney, I fired him as an agent and the jockeys he represents. Weeks later, Otero was suspended from racing for making no effort for a horse to win. This is the exact accusation I had made when I fired him. I knew at that moment that since Krulock got me the stalls at Penn National that he could take them away.
So how did I get kicked out of Penn National? I just had 2,247 horse races without a single bad test. Those that wanted me out would have given their eyeballs to have come up with a bad test to make it easy to get rid of me. Since that wasnât possible, Krulock turned to what he could controlâŠthe jockeys. So that is how they came at me.
You may remember reading Otero saying my horses were dangerous. What if I told you he has just given a sworn deposition, under oath, that they were never were dangerous? What jockey would know better if my horses were sound than the jockey that was riding them all? How could any other jockeys say anything if they didnât ride them? Also, what if Otero and Jockey Clinton Potts just said under oath that they did not give anyone express permission to use their names on the jockey petition?
Letâs move on to the National Horsemenâs Benevolence & Protective Association (HBPA). This is the same organization that I have paid more money into than any other person. They have never come to my defense because they are made up of horse owners and trainers that do not want me in the industry because I am cutting up their pie. The president of HBPA at Penn National at the time was Stephanie Beattie, my biggest competitor. She was accused of shock waving horses by her foreman/boyfriend and her grooms, but wrote a letter, representing horse ownership, to the Commissioner saying I was bad for racing.
Christopher McErlean is the Vice President of Gaming at Penn National. He has commented publicly about my horses breaking down. He must have forgotten about an email he sent on January 24, 2010, just before my ejection, stating that my trainers, Adamo and Delahoussaye had 3 and 4 breakdowns respectively for the year. They raced a total of 820 times during the year. There was actually one trainer with more total breakdowns with only about 600 starts. This trainer was Stephanie Beattie. âThe slippery slope is if the measurement or action taken is going to be on when this occurs, as it may also involve others who people feel are not an issue.â McErlean wrote this in his email, a copy of which I have in my possession.
Penn National knew that I had complained multiple times about the racing surface. I had raced over 1,400 starts in 2009 outside of Penn National and only had one breakdown. This was a horse that raced on the grass for the first time, slipped and clipped heals. Again, thatâs seven breakdowns at Penn National with 820 starts, and one out of 1,400 starts at other tracks.
Penn National continues to be scrutinized for their unsafe track conditions. In fact in 2008, just one year before, it had fourteen fatal breakdowns in two weeks. To put this in perspective, if you combined all of the race tracks across the country you might not have fourteen fatal breakdowns collectively during a two week period. Every year the track has had major issues with breakdowns. They still had major issues two months after I left. But they blamed me, not the track.
Penn National doesnât want you to pay attention to the horses; they want you in the casino. Want proof? Simply walk inside of the casino and then walk out back to the stables where the horses live. The barns are a disaster and the track is dangerous, but the casino is just wonderful! You tell me where Penn National is spending their money. At the time, horses stabled on the grounds did not get even a vet check before they raced. To my knowledge this was the only race track in the country where all horses didnât get checked by a veterinarian before each race.
Penn National canât say they are concerned about horses and jockeys when they donât even vet check horses on their own grounds. My understanding is that they do vet check now, why didnât they then? I offered to have the state vet at Penn National check all my horses on the grounds and at my farm, Penn National declined. Instead what I got was an anonymous phone call to the Large Animal Protection Society. They sent Gail Emerson to my farm. As reported in the Thoroughbred Times, âIt was a surprise visit, and I found nothing wrong in the facility,â said Gail Emerson, a former trainer. âIt was clean, and the horses were in good condition.â
All my horses were sold. The vast majority went back to Penn National. Those same complaining owners bought them, the same complaining trainers trained them and the same complaining jockeys rode them. There must have been some magical wand that was waived to make them all instantly sound. I guess miracles can happen.
The Commissionâs own investigators recognized the fact that the horses were back running at Penn National and what I was saying was actually true. They then said in last weekâs trial that they never accused me of having sore horses. By now it was a moot point. In fact Delahoussaye still trained and he had his other owners buy my horses that wound up back in the same stalls that they were in when I owned them a day before. It is also ironic that I was still able to race at Philadelphia Park, but not at Penn National, even though both are governed by the same Pennsylvania commission. Sore at Penn, sound at Philly?
Not convinced yet? If you think Penn National cares about jockeys and horses, why are they racing at 12:00 midnight in the middle of January instead of 12:00 noon? Do you think it is colder at midnight than at noon?
Do you think it is more likely to have a frozen track in the middle of January? Isnât it possible it is about making money? Otherwise they would be racing during the day. They want you in the Casino at night.
Now I am going to get really insidious. Penn National has me thrown out; they knew they did not have a reason so they gave it to the Commission. They believed that the Commission had immunities that they could hide behind. They had the State of Pennsylvania do their dirty work and we learned in last weekâs trial that Commissionâs lawyers warned them that I could sue the Commission. So the taxpayer would take the hit. That is not what I want.
At the trial, I listened to three Commissioners (Hamm, Hannum, and Sweeney) and the Executive Secretary Dillon. I watched them go up on the witness stand, one after another saying that I had done nothing wrong. In fact they did not even investigate before or after ejecting me or Adamo, not one of them. Dillon also declared our innocence. On three occasions Dillon happily informed the court that Penn National gave him a letter telling him what a good job he was doing. He seemed to be very proud of that letter. Then it became very clear. Penn National operates under a license, as I do. They could possibly lose that license if they were operating a dangerous track. Only the Commission could take their license away. I noticed how one Commissioner after another on the stand appeared more hesitant, guarded and confused than the one before.
So, if you had a couple of Commissioners that you could manipulate, I would say it was a hell of an insurance policy and defense Attorney Augusto was the puppet master who protects the tracks and dials in the Commissioners. I noticed how they looked frequently at him for approval during trial.
You would be interested to know how little these Commissioners know about horse racing. It seems they rely heavily on reading The Blood-Horse magazine. I am not kidding, read the transcripts. No offense to The Blood-Horse magazine, but it is not ALL that these commissioners should know.
The Commission and Dillon listed three separate complaints: 1) Penn National, 2) Jockeys and 3) the HBPA. They had nothing else. I have now just introduced you to all the players.
I came into horse racing hiring the little guy and giving them an opportunity to prove themselves. Sometimes the thing that separates the haves and the have-nots is opportunity. Look back at all my years in racing and tell me this isnât the truth. I bought horses from the big guys 90% of the time, not the little guys. I claimed horses from people that were cheating and winning races unfairly to defraud the betting public. I claimed horses for $20,000 and won for $40,000. I wasnât doing anything special. They were cheating. Do you think the trainers would tell the owners that they lost their $40,000 claiming horse for $20,000 because they were cashing a bet offshore or would they say that Gill made it a $40,000 horse because he was cheating? What do you think?
I really tried to make a difference. I was trying to create a path to operating a successful business in the horse racing industry that I loved so that other owners could do the same. I made it possible for the trainer to make money and the owners to make money, rather than have the trainer survive by cheating the owner. Typically, trainers survive by finding a new owner before the old owner goes broke.
It was my intent to have stayed in Horse Racing the rest of my life, what better job to have than one that you love. It is journalism, like the recent New York Times article and a former ESPN interview, that have made it difficult to stay in business and impossible for me to come back by painting me as âThe Most Hated Man in Racingâ where I might have been the most honest.
I will finish by telling you that in the purest sense I am a competitor, I find no victory in cheating. I have spent my career defending myself from the corrupt, with their fear of you hearing me. I would not be bought and I would not be intimidated, that is a dangerous combination in horse racing.
I spent $51 million dollars in horse racing, why would I need to cheat? If someone had a better horse in the race, I would buy it. For all those concerned, you have taken your best shot at me and I am still standing. Every time I see my name it is followed by the word, controversial. Tell me this, what is more controversial than telling the truth?
WellâŠ
Excellent post Suffolk.
Although the man is a reprobate beneath contempt, most of what he says about Penn is true. One must wonder why he stopped short of mentioning the part about paying for stalls and such:confused:
BTW I hear Mr Adamo just claimed a horse at Woodbine. Not a bad recovery for a guy who just a few days ago was whining that they all ruined his life etc etc ad nauseum:rolleyes:
Iâll comment more on Gillâs remarks later;)
No Media Allowed, WHAT!!!
From the overnight sheet:
âUnder no conditions shall anyone on the backside, sign in any person(s) affiliated in any way with a MEDIA ORGANIZATION. Any violation will result in loss of stabling privileges.â:eek:
Ok, letâs see if I got this right. New York Times writes an article critical of Aqueductâs winter time body count of horses. New York politicians demand and get an immediate investigation. In a matter of days they come up with a solution to the problem. Itâs immediately implemented.
Penn National has same problem going on for years with little or no concern about it. NY Times article makes them look bad. Instead of following New Yorks wise lead they instead choose to ban all media from the track.
Never a dull moment folks. Business as Usual alive and well.:yes:
[QUOTE=Profidia;6295804]
From the overnight sheet:
âUnder no conditions shall anyone on the backside, sign in any person(s) affiliated in any way with a MEDIA ORGANIZATION. Any violation will result in loss of stabling privileges.â:eek:
Ok, letâs see if I got this right. New York Times writes an article critical of Aqueductâs winter time body count of horses. New York politicians demand and get an immediate investigation. In a matter of days they come up with a solution to the problem. Itâs immediately implemented.
Penn National has same problem going on for years with little or no concern about it. NY Times article makes them look bad. Instead of following New Yorks wise lead they instead choose to ban all media from the track.
Never a dull moment folks. Business as Usual alive and well.:yes:[/QUOTE]
Lifesabreeze- Please get Penn Nat fixed ASAP.
[QUOTE=Profidia;6295419]
WellâŠ
Excellent post Suffolk.
Although the man is a reprobate beneath contempt, most of what he says about Penn is true. One must wonder why he stopped short of mentioning the part about paying for stalls and such:confused:
BTW I hear Mr Adamo just claimed a horse at Woodbine. Not a bad recovery for a guy who just a few days ago was whining that they all ruined his life etc etc ad nauseum:rolleyes:
Iâll comment more on Gillâs remarks later;)[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Profidia;6295804]From the overnight sheet:
âUnder no conditions shall anyone on the backside, sign in any person(s) affiliated in any way with a MEDIA ORGANIZATION. Any violation will result in loss of stabling privileges.â:eek:
Ok, letâs see if I got this right. New York Times writes an article critical of Aqueductâs winter time body count of horses. New York politicians demand and get an immediate investigation. In a matter of days they come up with a solution to the problem. Itâs immediately implemented.
Penn National has same problem going on for years with little or no concern about it. NY Times article makes them look bad. Instead of following New Yorks wise lead they instead choose to ban all media from the track.
Never a dull moment folks. Business as Usual alive and well.:yes:[/QUOTE]
I am a bit proud to be a NYer right now,although we have a long way to go yet.
I wish I had influence at Penn. Bigger fish than myself are having a tough time getting anything done there. I feed info to those fighting but there is not much else I can do at Penn.
I used to always pray that I wouldnât get âcastâ at Penn when I raced or rode there. Lots of good people there but they are being pushed about by a few. I wish I could discuss more details, sorry.
