Ollie Sherman Wrote:
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> Now, it is imperative they get rid of their
> antiquated steward system, that represents them,
> that particular racetrack, and that particular
> state. The current stewards, at least at NYRA are
> political appointee do-nothings, that ONLY
> represent the aforementioned interests, where
> there is extremely little transparency, and
> absolutely no consistency. The public and the
> bettor, who support the sport is never
> represented. It is ONLY a rumor.

Ms. Richiebee this summer contributed to the decor of Living Room Downs by adding
a placard which says: "If I agree with you, both of us will be wrong."

Any commentary you make regarding the stewards must be taken with a boulder sized
grain of salt, because we all know that your ill will towards stewards anywhere
in the US is driven by your own personal experience with a NY steward who
dismissed without sympathy or consideration your complaint that you had been
separated from some of your cash by a certain partnership.

How do we know about your personal experience? Let us say that we didn't read
about it over by Paulick or in [i]The Blood Horse[/i]. Many of us read it over on
the Vitozin Board under your repetitive and almost never amusing "We need
stewards for the stewards" rants. We heard it at the NYRA open house meeting in
May 2013, where you were one of the many with a personal agenda who co-opted what
could have been a valuable forum. Now we are hearing it on the TG board.

Personally, and excuse my French, I find it [i]tres[/i] tedious. The thread you
imposed your rant upon really has nothing to do with the stewards, who enforce
the laws made by others. The only way you can make this story interesting (to me
at least) is to name the partnership in question and the amount they fleeced you
for. I mean if it was Karokorum, NYRA's version of the Baltimore Colts, and the
amount was [i]de minimis[/i], who cares?

[Speaking of Karakorum, Bad Luck Benny the Exercise Rider informs that former
Karakorum trainer (and Moschera assistant) Jeff Odintz currently is operating a
freight elevator in a Manhattan high rise, bringing to mind the famous
"Honeymooners" line about being nice to the people you meet on the way up...].

The stewards come under the most scrutiny on this board when they make a
questionable decision or non decision on a foul by a rider or whether a tardy
gate horse is to be declared a non starter. No handicapper can analyze a race in
advance knowing whether or not the stewards will eventually be involved in the
outcome of a race. In most cases horseplayers would find, if they have been
at it long enough and keep records of this sort of thing, that the DQs and put-
ups probably even out at the end of the day; the exception of course is where a
DQ (or non- DQ) has deprived a horseplayer of a life altering score.

I would not be surprised that the powers that be over at Ragozin have limited
either the frequency or the content of your posts; I know that certain posters
over there were exasperated by your compulsive linking. Now you have found a
venue where the host believes in free speech; I have often said that when you
embrace free speech, you must be prepared for the value of that speech to be
about what you paid for it.


> It is time to end the charade. Time for a
> revolution --- no support for a sport that doesn't
> want to represent the public and the bettor
> responsibly with better transparency and total
> consistency, and meted out by those who have a
> thorough understanding of the sport, not the
> political do-nothing slugs.

Ken, I mean Ollie, if we all stop supporting the sport for any reason, JB's
bottom line will suffer, though I doubt he would hold you personally responsible.
At one point or another you were a licensee and you must realize that the
stewards, rightfully or wrongfully, exercise almost unfettered power over their
kingdom. They can throw you or me or the people selling Ragozin in the grandstand
off the grounds without much of what we have come to know as due process of law.

Give the steward thing a break. If you are going to be a one trick pony, the
trick better be pretty specf--kingtacular.