Lansing has heard from many of you in recent weeks about how our industry must be allowed to evolve if we are to survive here in Michigan. On Thursday, they had a chance to see, first hand, an example of one of the emerging technologies about which we've been talking. There was a meeting held in the state capital yesterday to demonstrate Instant Racing for key legislators and officials in the Snyder administration. Brett Boyd attended the demonstration and said that it was a very informative and constructive meeting.
As you may know, casino interests have been circulating somewhat misleading information about Instant Racing and it has caused confusion among some legislators. Those involved in yesterday's meeting were able to see first hand that Instant Racing is NOT a slot machine, but simply a faster paced way to place pari-mutuel wagers on the outcome of horse races, something that has been happening at Michigan race tracks for more than 70 years.
Live horse racing is a very labor intensive activity and, as anyone who has visited the backstretch at the track knows, safely putting on the live show requires time between races. Instant Racing is a faster paced alternative to our live product, but still contributes to our purse pools and supports the horsemen. Much like television relies on rebroadcasting their programming (re-runs) to remain viable, Instant Racing provides our industry a way to leverage our live product as an additional revenue stream. It's still pari-mutuel wagering on the outcome of horse racing, but it's an example of how we must be allowed to evolve our industry if we are to survive here in Michigan.
The Instant Racing equipment used in yesterday's meeting will be available to interested legislators for several days. If your legislator is confused about Instant Racing or would simply like to see how it works first hand please phone the MHHA (517-349-2920) for details on where they can see a demonstration.
Click here to see a video demonstration of Instant Racing from Oaklawn Race Track
