CHRB, industry leaders fire back at activists' 'hateful comments'

The California Horse Racing Board and industry leaders on Wednesday lashed out at “animal rights activists” for using the board’s monthly meetings to push for the elimination of racing in the state.

After Scott Chaney was introduced as the CHRB’s new executive director during the session, held via teleconference, the medical director’s report from Dr. Rick Arthur included a fiery retort to “the half-dozen or so persons” calling for an end to racing in California.

“I would like to say there are 40 million people in California, but we hear from the same half a dozen or so persons saying the same thing in every meeting,” Arthur said. “Nearly a quarter of a million people attended races at Santa Anita through March, and that included a number of days when no fans were allowed to attend. Put that up against the same handful of anti-racing people we hear from at every meeting.

“This board regulates racing on behalf of 40 million citizens in this state. Racing will continue unless and until the majority of the 40 million people in California say otherwise,” Arthur concluded.

The comments followed an April 10 teleconference for California racing stakeholders addressing a temporary halt to racing at Santa Anita Park and Golden Gate Fields, where local health departments considered the business non-essential amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Stronach Group, which operates both tracks, was represented by Craig Fravel, who said he had reason to believe a “very small group of animal rights activists were heavily engaged in having input into various agencies that ultimately had some impact” in the shutdown.

At Wednesday's CHRB meeting, chairman Dr. Gregory Ferraro followed Arthur by adding protesters' concerns are being misplaced.

“Myself and the rest of the board was appointed by the governor to reform racing, not to eliminate it,” Ferraro said. “So those of you that are lobbying this board to cease racing in California are making your arguments in the wrong arena.”

Various industry leaders in California also used the public comment periods to push back against anti-racing protesters.

“On behalf of the Thoroughbred Owners of California and our 7,000 members, I’m speaking to support Dr. Arthur’s report that the dozen or so protesters that have disrupted the industry for 13 months must be checked by the California Horse Racing Board,” said Greg Avioli, president of Thoroughbred Owners of California. “Since February last year, the CHRB meetings have become untenable and unworkable because they have been dominated by inane, wrong and generally hateful comments by a small group of people.

"The TOC requests the chairman and the general counsel to carefully review every rule and regulation that would allow this organization to get back to doing business.”

Avioli said the TOC has checked CHRB transcripts for the past 16 meetings and found that less than 1% of public comments were directly tied to the agenda item under discussion as rules stipulate.

“Whether this means the CHRB must take extraordinary measures to limit any comment until after the meeting is up to the CHRB and counsel,” Avioli said. “But we cannot continue to allow a small group of people to disrupt a multi-billion dollar industry.”

Alan Balch, executive director of the California Thoroughbred Trainers, also used the public comment period to speak as “a concerned citizen,” a title often used by protesters speaking at CHRB meetings.

“I’m a concerned citizen about an exceptionally small number of extremists whose very repetitive and closed-minded diatribes to the CHRB and other agencies are filled with exaggeration, hostility, misinformation and invective, that continue to try to disrupt and even destroy the livelihoods of thousands of their fellow Californians,” Balch said. “These radicals also ignore the interests and would oppose the very freedom of hundreds of thousands of members of the general public to appreciate and support racing...We should and we do resent their attempts to impose their beliefs and negativity on the rest of us.”

As for the business at hand Wednesday:

• Also in his report, Dr. Arthur said he is optimistic racing could return at Santa Anita and Golden Gate Fields in the next few weeks. “While the COVID-19 virus will have the last word, I would hope we could be back operating by early May with the same strict procedures that tracks had already imposed before racing was suspended.”

• The board unanimously approved a six-day Thoroughbred meet at Los Alamitos Race Course from June 26 through July 5. Track officials said the meet would likely be run without spectators due to the coronavirus outbreak.

• Arthur said California is on track for a 25% percent reduction in equine fatalities this fiscal year, which would be the safest year since the CHRB began keeping reliable records in the early 1990s.

• The board unanimously approved an amendment that stipulates the racing veterinarian at a CHRB-licensed facility, which is employed by the racetrack or racing association, is under the direct supervision of the official veterinarian appointed by the CHRB. The change, which would follow a 45-day comment period, reflects the recommendation of a CHRB report into the spate of equine deaths at Santa Anita last winter that found the current set-up to be a potential conflict of interest.

• The board enacted a rule that requires trainers to make available the previous 30 days of veterinary treatment records to the official veterinarian. This is largely an effort to better track the medical records of horses entering from out of state.

• In the executive director’s report, the newly-appointed Chaney noted he had been on the job just six days as of Wednesday and the coronavirus situation has added an additional layer to the job. “I knew this would be challenging when I accepted the job and the past six weeks it has obviously become even more so,” said Chaney, who has been a long-time steward in the state. 

• Wagering on Thoroughbred racing in California was down 9.65% in March as compared to March 2019 with 11 fewer race programs. “Obviously this starts with the health department suspension of racing due to COVID-19,” Chaney said. “Unfortunately, the expectation is next month it’s going to get even worse in terms of handle.”

• The board tabled a decision on racing dates for the Alameda County Fair in Pleasanton. Currently scheduled to to operate a 15-day season from June 19 to July 12, fair officials have proposed pushing the meet back to mid-October due to the coronavirus outbreak. Officials for The Stronach Group are critical of the plan because Golden Gate Fields in northern California is also scheduled to run during that time period.