Illinois
Harness Horsemen’s Association
www.harnessillinois.com Toll Free Info
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The following IHHA members have
been nominated to run for the board of directors: Robert Altepeter, Alan Beals, Joe Besco,
The candidates were asked to answer six questions and to provide a brief statement of candidacy. Below are their answers and statements. Please take time to review these before your cast your ballot for five directors. Under separate cover, you will be receiving your official ballot with voting instructions.
1) WHAT QUALIFICATIONS, INTERESTS, BACKGROUND AND SKILLS WILL YOU BRING TO THE IHHA BOARD THAT WILL HELP YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE AS A DIRECTOR?
ALTEPETER –I’m a working horseman whose living depends on the success of live horse racing and I have fought legislatively to keep it that way.
BEALS - I have the perspective of a small stable owner (5 horses). My computer skills have been applied to some of the systems used in the IHHA office. An eye for detail and a facility with numbers have been put to good use in drafting the contracts with the tracks and monitoring the accuracy of the money going into the purse account.
BESCO - As a life long owner, trainer and seeing the sport degrade
to the point it has, forced me to get involved. As a two term Alderman in
Yorkville I have a vision of how politics work and how to get things done.
ENGEL - I have been a Director of the IHHA since November, 2002. I have a degree in accounting and operate my own accounting practice on a full time basis. Several years ago, I was on the Owners’ Advisory Committee. The committee’s purpose was to advise the IHHA on business and financial decisions. I am confident that with this background, combined with my current experience as President on the IHHA Board, I can help the Board to make the proper decisions to ensure our success in the future.
HUNT - I have owned and
raced harness horses, primarily in
For over 20 years I have also been actively involved in the breeding end
of the business. Cottonwood Farm has
been among the leading breeders in
I have a BS in Business Administration, and was an accountant in both
public and private practice for 17 years before I sold my business interests to
concentrate full time on running the farm.
My education and experience has provided me with a solid business
background, and I have developed budgets, prepared financial statement,
performed audits, negotiated labor contracts, etc, - all skills that could be
useful in serving the IHHA.
I have previously served on the IHHA Board of Directors. I have chaired several committees and
participated on many others, and was elected as First Vice President and
Secretary during my prior terms on the board. I am currently a member of the
Strategic Planning Council and the Illinois Horsemen’s Council.
HUNTER - Our family owns and operates South
of the Tracks Racing, a twenty acre training facility located 180 miles SW of
Chicago. We employ a full-time trainer
and our focus has been purchasing and developing yearlings for the Illinois
Stakes Program. As a former School
Superintendent, I offer 30 years of experience working with boards on budget,
insurance, and negotiations/bargaining issues.
I have lived in
McCaffrey –After earning a
business degree from The University of St. Thomas in 1990, I have dedicated my
entire professional life to training horses and have a huge interest in the
sports success. In short, it’s my
life. I’ve had a one horse stable and
I’ve had a forty horse stable and I know the pitfalls and concerns of
both. The IHHA is very important. I’ve been a Director for nine years now and I
take the job very, very seriously. I
place a huge emphasis on listening and try to be very approachable. I want to know what people have to say and
think. I try to be well-informed on a
wide array of issues facing
PRICE – I understand the entire business.
SCHADT - I have been involved in many facets of the standardbred industry since 1988.
WILLIS –running a public training stable for over 30 years. I have extensive knowledge into training, owning and grooming horses. I have been in the harness racing business my whole life. My husband, Nelson Willis and I have been
2) WHAT CHANGES TO OUR PRODUCT AND/OR MARKETING EFFORTS DO YOU PROPOSE WILL
INCREASE OUR FAN BASE?
ALTEPETER –The IHHA has to take charge if the track owners won’t advertise harness racing we should.
BEALS - All of us who participate in this sport should constantly
be encouraging others to attend and/or participate. Track run promotions can be encouraged and
supported. The tracks should use
professional consultants to evaluate the effectiveness of these promotions and
determine which are to be repeated.
BESCO -
First:
Shared marketing could benefit our purse structure and benefit the
tracks as well.
Second: Purse recapture
has to be eliminated, as no other state in the country has had this type of
legislation.
Third:
We need to push the Illinois Racing Board to fund better testing, and put
together a fair and equitable policy for violators.
ENGEL - I believe that currently, we have a great product. I think that to promote our product and
attract new fans, we need to get back the press coverage of our sport that we
once had. Our product is not being properly promoted the way that it used to be
and the tracks need to implement the measures to market our product
effectively. Our drivers are
“Superstars” and need to be properly promoted as such. In addition, wherever we race, we must have a
television show recapping the day’s races.
Furthermore, statistics seem to show that concerts and various “give-aways” help to bring new fans to the racetracks. Why can’t the race tracks provide FREE
programs and admissions to the fans at certain times? What about FREE
parking? Why not FREE seating for the
fans on the less busy days? The
increased attendance would result in increased betting dollars which would more
than compensate for offering the type of incentives mentioned above. Also, I
would love to see the “million dollar bonus” return for 2 year olds.
HUNT - While I agree that we need to increase our fan base, I think our first priority should be to take care of our existing customers. Personally, I really enjoy events like Super Night and the Night of Champions, but we need to develop marketing strategies that make all those other nights attractive to our regular patrons too. Customer service is critical, from the parking lot attendants to the ticket tellers to the food vendors and all the way through to management. Each of our customers deserves to be treated as if they are the most important person at the track. The preferred player reward cards are a good step toward competing with the account wagering services, and more work needs to be done along those lines. Still we need to provide an atmosphere at the tracks that allows our fans to enjoy their time at the races. Clean, well lit facilities with good food at reasonable prices is the standard at the casinos. If we are to compete favorably, we need to at least match their level of customer service.
I also
feel that we simply race too many days per year in the
HUNTER - The tracks should care as much as the horsemen about the
desires and needs of our Customer- the
Betting Public! 1) Better odds and payouts can be
achieved by having nine horse fields at
McCAFFREY
- Fan bases need to be catered to
because they‘re so fragile. Whatever can
be done to make fans happy and comfortable should be. One thing that the IHHA can do is to relay to
racetracks ideas on how to please fans.
Ideas like: having the best smoke filtering system in the country for
grandstands and OTBs, having friendly and
knowledgeable tellers, having good food at good prices, having quality horses
and having honest racing. We must never
forget that it’s all about the fans!
Racetracks, to their credit, have done a very good job updating their
grandstands. They need to continue to
keep them in good shape while also trying harder to get rid of all the
cigarette smoke that bothers so many fans.
In regards to marketing, I think that a lot of things that racetrack
management is doing are very positive.
They are creating and interpreting vast mailing lists (fan base) and
gradually concocting ways to keep people coming to the track.
PRICE – Larger purses now for more consistent racing.
SCHADT - Our product needs to be presented in an exciting format. Improving the camera angles and creating a sense of participation for the fan is necessary.
WILLIS – We need to increase advertising locally. Many townspeople of Crete and
3) HOW CAN THE ILLINOIS
HARNESS RACING INDUSTRY IMPROVE OUR CLOUT WITH THE LEGISLATURE IN SPRINGFIELD
ALTEPETER –Elect
me for director. No IHHA director,
candidate or lobbyist has more clout than I do in
BEALS - The
impact of the IHHA in
BESCO -The
ENGEL - In my opinion, I do not think that it is
necessary to improve our “clout” in
HUNT - The politically correct response is probably something along the lines of improved grass roots participation and personal contact with your local representatives, and I believe there is an element of truth in that sort of strategy. Get to know your State Senator and Representative. Give them a call and, if possible, schedule a meeting with them at their office. Personal contact gives them a chance to put a face with a name the next time you call.
After spending quite a bit of time in
The IRB has scheduled hearings for July to document the history, current
situation, and the prospects for the future of racing in
HUNTER -
The Harness Horse Industry is a major Agri/Business
As owners, breeders, trainers & drivers, we must present a single agenda to the legislators through our association lobbyist and personally. Effective influence means all parties must be in agreement on proposed legislation-including the track owners & thoroughbred industry. Side agreements on recapture are not acceptable. The horsemen lose. Witness the 3% cut from the boats with the tracks getting the money and we at their mercy as to the payout on past recapture owed! Token increases in purse amounts will not grow the industry or support our livelihood.
I will continue the fight to have
the recapture law repealed! This law has harmed us personally and removed any incentive the tracks would
have to market and grow the industry.
McCAFFREY – Quite honestly, positive legislation is the only way that
PRICE – Lobby with harness horsemen.
SCHADT - Continue the grass roots efforts. Entertain politicians regularly, let them experience the day to day operations of our industry.
WILLIS – We need strong lobbyist to keep us constantly in touch with the legislature. The legislature must be reminded of our views and needs on a regular basis. Our lobbyist’s need to keep us informed of every change that may effect our industry. It would be beneficial to our industry if a few of the legislature were to become owners. They would be more interested in our efforts then.
4) WHAT SHOULD WE DO TO IMPROVE THE IMAGE OF THE SPORT?
ALTEPETER –Get rid of the double standards set by the Illinois Racing Board, they are inconsistent in their rulings.
BEALS - The biggest image problem is the widespread belief that harness racing is crooked. In general, I believe that penalties for drug and other violations should be increased. This does, however, need to be done carefully so that honest trainers are not punished excessively for truly inadvertent or accidental violations.
BESCO - Open paddocks like Sportsman’s had, People trust what they
can see .This also goes back to fair and equal punishment for violators.
ENGEL - There are several issues, which if resolved, would help to improve our product. I would like to see better communication between the judges and the fans. On a night to night basis, there is little consistency in the judges’ decisions and the fans are entitled to reasonable explanations for decisions made. Also, the pylons on the track need to be corrected to avoid controversial inside hub rail decisions. The fans get upset and sincerely believe that they are being cheated. They need to be better informed and feel convinced that the judges are trying to be fair and impartial. Also, we must implement pre-race testing to foster integrity and confidence.
HUNT - I believe our top priority should be
integrity. In order for us to grow our
sport we need to instill confidence – both in fans and prospective owners –
that
Harness racing at its best is a thrilling and entertaining sport. It is also sometimes very difficult for even the experienced race fan to see and understand what happens during a race. I believe we would greatly improve our public image if drivers were available for a short interview immediately following a race...and not limit the interviews to just the winning driver. Having a 30 second analysis from the paddock could do many things. Fans would get to see the driver up close and personal. The driver could explain how the race shaped up, how the horse raced, etc. While there are time constraints to consider to maintain the racing schedule, it would be easy enough to have two or three 30 second spots between races.
HUNTER - The Illinois Racing Board (IRB) must ‘get off the dime” on
epogen
testing, tolerance of paper trainers and other integrity issues. The IHHA
adopted and sent a unanimously passed resolution to the IRB this past
April requesting rules adoption for EPO testing similar to
McCAFFREY - This question is the easiest of all to answer. ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE!!!! The wave of negativity that has crashed down
on the game is harmful.
PRICE – Demand a good test now for EPO and other hidden pre-races.
SCHADT - Overhaul the standards for the fines and penalties. Conduct live interviews between races with trainers, drivers and owners.
WILLIS – A solid effort to clean up the integrity issues is needed. Positive drug tests must be addressed promptly. Rules must apply to everyone equally.
5) WHO DO YOU FEEL IS YOUR CONSTITUENCY AND HOW WOULD YOU REPRESENT
THEIR NEEDS?
ALTEPETER –The horse owners, trainers, drivers and grooms. The breeders have their own association, the
I.S.O.B.A and the S.A.of IL., and they should quit
trying to take over the IHHA.
BEALS - I believe
that everyone in the harness racing industry is my “constituency”. This includes owners, drivers, trainers,
grooms and, sometimes overlooked, breeders and fans. I am on the backstretch most mornings and in
the paddock/grandstands many evenings, where I hear the concerns of many
different horsemen. I believe that
almost every issue should be viewed primarily on how it will affect the purse
account income in the long run.
BESCO - I would hope all horsemen and
women would feel that I speak for them, as I am in the same situation. I would
represent them by speaking for their needs and welfare.
ENGEL - As a business man, I realize that a horse owner must make sufficient money to remain active in the sport. Having personally experienced both good and bad periods, and being both an owner and breeder for over 20 years, I feel that I can certainly relate to most people in the industry. As a member of the IHHA, I realize that it is certainly important to do what is best for the industry, but must also be sensitive to how the small guys may be affected before making a decision. With this in mind, I believe that I have insight as to what direction our industry must follow.
HUNT - The IHHA is set up to represent all horsemen, and
I feel that anyone who is elected to the IHHA Board of Directors needs to serve
with that mindset. The directors are
elected to serve horsemen as a group, and to provide leadership and direction
for the harness racing industry in
Each IHHA director is elected by the membership as a whole with no
distinction between drivers, trainers, owners, or breeders. While I believe that the IHHA Board could
better serve the industry if representatives were elected categorically, that
is currently not the way the IHHA is organized.
For any candidate to declare that he, or she, is campaigning to
represent any one special interest group would seem to be in conflict with the
structure of the IHHA and its Board of Directors.
Therefore, if I am elected to the board my constituents are
everyone involved in
HUNTER - I grew up attending harness races @ Aurora Downs,
McCAFFREY
- My constituency is all groups in
PRICE – All horsemen who want better purses and a level playing field.
SCHADT - My constituency would be anyone involved in the standardbred industry ranging from breeding, owning, racing
and training.
WILLIS – Trainers and owners.
I would love to see purses increase as well as the quality of horses in
6) WHAT OTHER IDEAS DO YOU HAVE TO IMPROVE THE ILLLINOIS HARNESS RACING
INDUSTRY?
ALTEPETER –Too many to put in writing, if you see me ask me and I will tell you if you have all day to listen.
BEALS - My positive ideas are included above. I do believe, however, that we are on the verge of major problems with the subsidized health insurance program. Benefits have been shrinking and costs have been growing rapidly. Everything possible must be done to assure that all horsemen get the high quality health insurance that they deserve at the most reasonable rates possible.
BESCO - I have many but one stands out
above the rest, I would like to see a limit on the amount of condition claimers
on a card. When this was permitted it cheapened our horses up for smaller
purses. If a study was done most would be shocked to see that these races are
competitive with the horses in a straight condition race that races for quite a
larger purse, plus the condition sheets seem to neglect the non winner’s
classes.
ENGEL - As a current IHHA Board Director, I am aware of the need for our industry to make many critical decisions in the near future. In addition to the usual questions regarding recapture, slot machines and purse structure, there are other numerous issues that need to be explored. Breeding restrictions must be softened, as well as increasing ICF bonuses for winning horses. In addition, I think that the return of the million dollar bonus for 2 year olds would certainly be a boost for our industry. In order to eliminate illegal off shore betting, account wagering must be legalized by our State. This would certainly help our purse account. These questions, as well as other equally important decisions, must be addressed before we can see an increase in our purse account.
HUNT - I believe that one of our biggest problems is the relationship between horsemen and track ownership. I believe that racing could recover faster if the two sides worked together more consistently. It may be unrealistic to think that either party will fully trust the other, but if we were somehow to return to a true partnership relationship – where both parties shared equally in the success of the overall operations – the resulting cooperative efforts could go a long way towards reclaiming and recruiting customers. As partners we should be looking to make the overall operation successful, but not at the expense of each other.
Earlier
I mentioned that I feel we race too much in Chicagoland. I also feel that
HUNTER - Fair Revenue Distribution. The horsemen are harmed by the current distribution from Out of State wagers. This should be challenged and corrected.
Utilize the OTB Licenses.
Maywood & Balmoral have four
(4) OTB licenses not utilized! Four
(4) locations X $10 mil. average handle times 18.5% (Track and Horsemen
Percentage) equals $7.4 million that
should be going to the purse account.
Breakage Investment. There are
provisions (Section 26.1) in the 1995 Amendment for the track to invest
in the tracks and marketing of
Learn from the casinos and “Mimic the
Casino Experience”.
McCAFFREY - One night at
PRICE – None we need bigger purses and a level playing field.
SCHADT - We must give people a reason to invest in the future of Illinois Racing.
WILLIS –
IHHA - Statement of Candidacy For Robert Altepeter
Horsemen can no longer keep giving everything away. In 1975 the Illinois Horse Racing Act was passed. The revenue from betting was divided evenly between the tracks and horsemen. But, then in 1986 the tracks got legislation passed to allow them to have O.T.B.’s and give the horsemen a smaller percentage of the money. In 1995 Governor Edgar’s Task Force on Horse Racing made numerous recommendations leading to the passage of the unlimited full card simulcasting bill. This bill gave the tracks another form of income other than live horse racing, which caused the loss of live horse racing day’s every year since. This bill also included the purse recapture clause that allows the tracks to take millions of dollars out of our purse account. When the horsemen lose live horse racing day’s purse recapture increases. We need directors who will work for the best interest of all horsemen and not just their own interest.
IHHA – Statement of
Candidacy for Alan J. Beals
I believe my background in the computer industry makes me particularly well suited to apply logical, long-term thinking to any issue which might come before the board. As a retiree, I have time available. I have already devoted much time over the last six years to purse account monitoring, contract related issues, and other IHHA activities. I would appreciate your vote and the opportunity to again serve the Harness Horsemen of Illinois
IHHA - Statement of Candidacy For Joseph Besco
As with
all horsemen I want to see this great sport thrive again. We cannot continue to
fall behind with each year passing as it has. In my 45 years on this earth I
have never seen or heard of the people who put on the show (the horsemen) get a
good contract. The time has come and it is truly now or never. If the current
directors are reelected it is a statement that the people are happy the way
things are! I can’t continue to pump money into racing my horses with the
industry in
IHHA Statement of Candidacy For
Presently, I am President of the
IHHA. The past year has been like no other period in the history of Illinois
Harness Racing. There were a tremendous
amount of decisions made by the Board that will hopefully be of great benefit
to us. However, there are still numerous
hurdles to cross in the near future that will definitely have a long term
impact on the whole industry for years to come.
During this past year, I believe that we accomplished many things. I
think the most significant was the elimination of recapture with the passing of
HB 1918. Hopefully, it will become a
reality. Also in
IHHA
- Statement of Candidacy For
Illinois Illinois
IHHA-Statement of Candidacy For Dr.
1.) Focus on our Customer, the
Betting Public
2.) Instill Integrity in our Industry
3.) Fight to Repeal Recapture
IHHA Statement of candidacy For David
McCaffrey
Harness racing is a
great, great sport! I think we sometimes
lose sight of that. There are many
problems in the game, but there is nothing so bad with harness racing that
can’t be fixed with what is so good about it.
Personally, the main issues I would like to focus on in the next three
years are:
Ÿ
Working
to get a gaming bill passed that dramatically increases purses while also
protecting live racing.
Ÿ
Re-opening
Ÿ
Developing
integrity guidelines that most people can be happy with.
Ÿ
Treating
the fans (customers) like kings.
This election is
big! I would very much appreciate your
vote.
IHHA Statement of Candidacy for Erv Miller
I have been
involved in Harness Racing in
Harness racing has
had some disappointments in
IHHA Statement of Candidacy for Duncan Price
I understand the
management and get along with them. We
must get bigger purses and more even playing field now. There is no other issue, horsemen deserve a
better deal than we have. Any questions
call me at 780-289-7780.
IHHA Statement of Candidacy for
Kay Willis
For the past 38 years, my husband
Nelson and I have made our living exclusively through harness racing; via