Stockton Fair Quits Racing: Dates Go to Pleasanton

The San Joaquin County Fair (Stockton) has relinquished its September/October racing dates this year. The Alameda County Fairgrounds (Pleasanton) will end up with that block of six to eight programs (actual race dates to be determined), but only after nearly 100 minutes of contentious debate among industry stakeholders and commissioners at Thursday's monthly meeting of the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB).

Stockton officials were grilled by commission members on why they requested the race dates in the first place if they were aware that the autumn racing season, which does not coincide with the actual June county fair at the property, was likely to be a money-losing proposition, like it was in 2015.

Golden Gate Fields officials lobbied hard for the CHRB to put the dates reallocation vote off for another month so they could come up with a proposal for requesting the abandoned dates.

“There are all sorts of possibilities that haven't been considered.” said Scott Daruty, an executive for The Stronach Group who spoke on behalf of Golden Gate. “We think we all need to take a breath and try to sit down and come up with something that satisfies the whole industry, and not just the fair component of the industry.”

Nick Coukos, the Thoroughbred Owners of California president, said his group opposed the move to Pleasanton. He pointed out that awarding the dates to Golden Gate would be a better idea, because it would dovetail with that track's existing late summer schedule and provide horsemen with badly needed grass racing opportunities.

“We have to remember, during this September period, we're racing down south at Los Alamitos. There's no turf racing in California for that entire period,” Coukos said.

Christopher Korby, the California Authority of Racing Fairs (CARF) executive director, emphasized that Pleasanton had indeed undertaken a feasibility study for installing a turf course in the future, but said “there's not sufficient revenue generated from the small number off racing days…to justify the substantial investment in a turf course. So if we were able to look at scenarios in which racing days were expanded at Alameda Country Fair, the financial prospects for a turf course are enhanced accordingly.”

In the end, the put-off-the-vote arguments did not win over the commissioners. After ninety minutes of debate, the CHRB finally voted 4-1 (two members were absent) to approve the dates reallocation. Two commissioners who voted in favor made it clear that their affirmative votes came under duress.

“You have an obligation to try to get Golden Gate into the discussions about this, to work it out as best you can,” commissioner Jesse Choper said to Pleasanton and CARF officials. “You've already got the 'win' if you will. Nonetheless, for future relations, I think it would be a good idea.”

CHRB chairman Chuck Winner agreed: “Frankly, the way we went about this, was absolutely not acceptable for the future…We had to take a vote on the decision that none of us were really comfortable with because of the timing.”