Efforts of horse-racing interests in Pennsylvania received bad news last week when Governor Tom Wolf denied their request to quickly resume live horse racing without spectators, before the remainder of the state’s economy restarts.
“Pennsylvania must proceed with returning to work cautiously,” Wolf wrote in response to a May 1 letter from Russell Redding, chairman of the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission, in which Redding asked for approval to resume racing at the state’s six tracks under special conditions to address Covid-19 concerns.
“As part of this reopening effort, we foresee horse racing reopening when counties enter the green phase, like other entertainment (casinos, theaters, etc.). I commend the commission’s efforts to implement mitigation efforts for those who are continuing to care for the horses at this time, and forethought in planning for how to address public health and safety as it relates to each phase of reopening.”
Horsemen where quick to criticize the governor’s decision lumping racetracks with venues like casinos and theaters. “He’s basically comparing apples and oranges when he’s comparing the racetrack to the casino,” said Brian Sanfratello, executive secretary of the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association, according to the PennBets.com news site.
Pete Peterson, president of the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Association, added, “If you look at the letter, it doesn’t seem he understands what the actual request has been… There’s lots of ways to address this without a full-scale reopening, which is what he seems to be referring to.”
