Calvin Borel Backs Kentucky Push for Race Track Slot Gambling
Newly nationally famous jockey Calvin Borel said in a letter released today that he supports the movement to add slot machines to the gambling available at Kentucky horse tracks. Borel, the winning rider in both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes this year, said video lottery terminals may be the only hope to save the state's racing industry.
The Kentucky Equine Education Project made the letter public to rally support for Governor Steve Beshear's attempt to get legislators to approve track slot gaming at a special session this month.
"If it doesn't pass soon, then we will fall way behind, and those hard-working people all over Kentucky who take care of the horses will have to relocate to other states," Borel states of Beshear's proposal.
“I see signs every day out there that our industry is in trouble,” Borel says.
Organizers said Borel refused to accept pay for his work.
Racing insiders say the industry employs 100,000 workers in Kentucky and brings an economic impact of over $4 billion.
Some opponents say, though, that racing is simply a taste whose time has passed. They note the shift of emphasis at Churchill Downs, Incorporated, at which online operations are becoming more important than live racing.
