Farewell to Beulah Park
May 5, 2014 23:19:38 GMT -5
Post by Jon on May 5, 2014 23:19:38 GMT -5
DEATH IN THE AFTERNOON: BEULAH PARK, 1923-2014
by Steve Montemarano
PR
After 91 years of racing, Ohio’s first Thoroughbred track and state historic landmark closed for good on May 3, its life cut short by dwindling demand for its product. Plus, the Grove City track’s owner, Penn Gaming, pulled the switch because they didn’t want Beulah Park competing with their nearby Hollywood Casino.
In a cruel irony Beulah’s last race was just run prior to the sport’s premier event – the Kentucky Derby. The roar of the crowd at Churchill Downs, only 200 miles away, muffled Beulah Park’s last gasps.
Beulah’s name now rests in the racetrack graveyard along with Garden State Park, Hollywood Park, Bay Meadows, Aksarben, Bowie, Havre De Grace, and many others.
A walk around Beulah Park on Tuesday, April 29, revealed a gritty old track with traces of magnificence. Built in 1923 the resplendent black and white tile floors harkened an opulent grandstand era. Yet other areas were decrepit with peeling ceiling plaster and worn out red paint on exit signs. In the clubhouse small betting booths housed outdated tube monitors – a sign that time has passed-by the track once referred to as the Saratoga of the Midwest.
graceful cupola atop a building marks the track’s entrance. Yet its weather vane is painfully broken and tilted. The windows of the building are shuttered tight as if to protect it from reality. Inside there’s a large wall mural of three racing Thoroughbred’s hand painted by Fred Stone – its presence an astounding oasis. The museum quality image appears lonely and is located where one might expect to see graffiti.
Beulah’s outdoor paddock, in the presence of picturesque blooming trees, makes the mega-modern Gulfstream Park saddling area look second rate. The tote board has several burnt out bulbs sometimes making it difficult to read split times and the odds.
The life of Ohio’s matron racetrack was coming to an end but her personality remains effusive.
Jack York grew up on the track. A pony boy at Beulah Park since 1975, York said, “I don’t like the fact that it’s closing. I wish they’d keep it open.” With few employment options Mr. York is returning to his home in Vinton County to try and find work.
Beulah doesn’t have a turf course and its dirt surface was sealed tight because of rain. It has a rich, earthy tone and is conscientiously worked. Earlier, a 6-year-old maiden splashed across the finish line for his first victory. Buckeye Cruiser is a project that’s part of a fund raiser with proceeds going to cancer research. The gelding is owned by a group including television football analyst Kirk Herbstreit. The trainer, long time Beulah horseman Bobby Cline, sobbed in the winner’s circle; purse $2,600. “It’s been 4 years and a lot of set-backs,” said Cline who’s thick dark hair is roofed by a sweat stained Ohio State University ball cap.
Lisa Santa-Emma, DVM, hugged Cline as more tears pelted the cracked pavement. Santa-Emma left law school to rub horses and then became a veterinarian. At Beulah she’s devoted 17 years of service. “It’s been a good place for horses that didn’t have the ability. Beulah provided regular people with an income. It has a small town feel and everyone knew each other,” says Santa-Emma.
But before castigating the quality of athletes at Beulah note the winner of the first race on Saturday; a gelding named Strategic Decision. He’s an 8 year-old by Distorted Humor out of 1999 champion older female Beautiful Pleasure. Bred in Kentucky by John Oxley he now runs for a $4,000 claiming tag. Beulah is where many warriors eventually went.
The American flag in the infield had a somber wave. In the past 13 years, two apprentice jockeys died here from racing injuries. Josh Rasedovich (2005) a 16-year-old third generation horseman died instantly when his horse, a $3,500 claimer, broke down and he was thrown to the track. In 2001, jockey Arnold Ruiz also lost his life when trampled by trailing horses after his mount went down. More than 150 jockeys have been killed race riding since 1940 in the U.S.
In 1983 Beulah Park was sold and renamed Darby Downs. During that time two decades of racing records disappeared during a bizarre midnight raid by its owner. Resold again in 1986 the track again became known as Beulah Park. The new owner, Charles Ruma, would later own an infamous stakes-winning Ohio-bred gelding named Marble Cliff. But the Ohio State Racing Commission revoked the horse’s registration after determining he was foaled in Kentucky. It sounds like an administrative error except that Marble Cliff’s dam, Leza, was owned by Ruma and partners.
The contrasts at Beulah continue to stagger the mind. The track veterinarian is James Robertson who’s considered among the elite equine surgeons in the world. He quietly evaluates each horse prior to racing. It’s not something Robertson takes lightly, either. After watching the horses exit the paddock he hustles closely behind them to the track. “See that’s how they should go by – all jogging.” Robertson then hops in a car and drives to the starting gate. Observing the horses yet again he scratches one of them. “I sensed the jockey was uneasy and the horse was lame.” The ritual is completed with athletic precision several times each racing day.
Female jockey sensation Julie Krone notched a victory at Beulah when her mount Gallant Step won a Best of Ohio Sprint in 1991. Mainstay jockey Perry Ouzts must be bionic compiling over 46,000 starts. His toughness amplified when a car crashed into the motorcycle he was riding at 65 mph. Ouzts dusted off in time to ride a full card that afternoon.
With the help of Beulah Park horsemen, jockey Dean Sarvis, the grandson of legendary horseman John J. Tammaro (trainer of Deputy Minister), is getting his career back together after a lengthy suspension.
Din’s Dancer, a graded stakes caliber horse that ran in the 1988 Kentucky Derby set a course record at Beulah. Catlaunch a 40-time-winning Ohio-bred, amassed earnings of $1.1 million the hard way, having started 108 times.
Is racing in Ohio officially dead? A few miles away the harness track Scioto Downs is booming. It’s facelift almost complete as part of the new racino operated by Mountaineer Gaming. The casino houses 2,100 video lottery terminals that generate an average of $130 million each month. Purses have skyrocketed with year-end championship prize money eclipsing $1.6 million for eight races. This threshold is surpassed by very few high echelon tracks.
Each slot machine at Scioto Downs outperforms those at Hollywood Casino (operated by Beulah’s owner Penn Gaming); that’s probably due to horseracing and a lower “hold” on each VLT wager. There’s a free-flow of patrons between the casino and the harness track. Many say it hasn’t been this crowded in 30 years.
“Thank your Governor (John Kasich)” says Ohio State Racing Commission Chairman Robert Schmitz.
Racetracks across the country could take a lesson from Beulah’s innovation. They were the first track in Ohio to offer simulcast wagering (1983) and telephone betting (1993). Its novel 25 cent pick 6 wager was a success. Even the simulcast hosts, the Beulah Twins, sparked interest. The jovial buxom bombshells handicapped the races and became a marketing boon.
Thomas Heinl, in charge of Beulah’s pari-mutuels from 1975-‘86 is recognized for being among the first to computerize the Totalizator equipment. This revolutionized the way pari-mutuel tickets are sold today
While Beulah Park has been the recipient of jabs by the racing industry, it refused to be bullied. Proud Ohio horseman made a living with marginally athletic horses. And how can you knock them? The horses and their caretakers tried their best.
Now a major concern is what will happen to the horses? Said one trainer “most of them can’t compete anywhere else. The trainers don’t have trucks or trailers. There’s no place to go.” According to horsemen Penn Gaming is only giving four days to evacuate the backstretch.
The last program at Beulah ended with a $50,000 stakes race won by a long shot. It’s Iestimated that 5,000 people attended Beulah’s final day. They pushed a meager $90,000 through the betting windows. It wasn’t about wagering, though, but about respectfully saying goodbye.
Ohio’s oldest racetrack and State historic landmark is gone. A symbol of horse racing’s decline and a reminder that nothing is forever.
by Steve Montemarano
PR
After 91 years of racing, Ohio’s first Thoroughbred track and state historic landmark closed for good on May 3, its life cut short by dwindling demand for its product. Plus, the Grove City track’s owner, Penn Gaming, pulled the switch because they didn’t want Beulah Park competing with their nearby Hollywood Casino.
In a cruel irony Beulah’s last race was just run prior to the sport’s premier event – the Kentucky Derby. The roar of the crowd at Churchill Downs, only 200 miles away, muffled Beulah Park’s last gasps.
Beulah’s name now rests in the racetrack graveyard along with Garden State Park, Hollywood Park, Bay Meadows, Aksarben, Bowie, Havre De Grace, and many others.
A walk around Beulah Park on Tuesday, April 29, revealed a gritty old track with traces of magnificence. Built in 1923 the resplendent black and white tile floors harkened an opulent grandstand era. Yet other areas were decrepit with peeling ceiling plaster and worn out red paint on exit signs. In the clubhouse small betting booths housed outdated tube monitors – a sign that time has passed-by the track once referred to as the Saratoga of the Midwest.
graceful cupola atop a building marks the track’s entrance. Yet its weather vane is painfully broken and tilted. The windows of the building are shuttered tight as if to protect it from reality. Inside there’s a large wall mural of three racing Thoroughbred’s hand painted by Fred Stone – its presence an astounding oasis. The museum quality image appears lonely and is located where one might expect to see graffiti.
Beulah’s outdoor paddock, in the presence of picturesque blooming trees, makes the mega-modern Gulfstream Park saddling area look second rate. The tote board has several burnt out bulbs sometimes making it difficult to read split times and the odds.
The life of Ohio’s matron racetrack was coming to an end but her personality remains effusive.
Jack York grew up on the track. A pony boy at Beulah Park since 1975, York said, “I don’t like the fact that it’s closing. I wish they’d keep it open.” With few employment options Mr. York is returning to his home in Vinton County to try and find work.
Beulah doesn’t have a turf course and its dirt surface was sealed tight because of rain. It has a rich, earthy tone and is conscientiously worked. Earlier, a 6-year-old maiden splashed across the finish line for his first victory. Buckeye Cruiser is a project that’s part of a fund raiser with proceeds going to cancer research. The gelding is owned by a group including television football analyst Kirk Herbstreit. The trainer, long time Beulah horseman Bobby Cline, sobbed in the winner’s circle; purse $2,600. “It’s been 4 years and a lot of set-backs,” said Cline who’s thick dark hair is roofed by a sweat stained Ohio State University ball cap.
Lisa Santa-Emma, DVM, hugged Cline as more tears pelted the cracked pavement. Santa-Emma left law school to rub horses and then became a veterinarian. At Beulah she’s devoted 17 years of service. “It’s been a good place for horses that didn’t have the ability. Beulah provided regular people with an income. It has a small town feel and everyone knew each other,” says Santa-Emma.
But before castigating the quality of athletes at Beulah note the winner of the first race on Saturday; a gelding named Strategic Decision. He’s an 8 year-old by Distorted Humor out of 1999 champion older female Beautiful Pleasure. Bred in Kentucky by John Oxley he now runs for a $4,000 claiming tag. Beulah is where many warriors eventually went.
The American flag in the infield had a somber wave. In the past 13 years, two apprentice jockeys died here from racing injuries. Josh Rasedovich (2005) a 16-year-old third generation horseman died instantly when his horse, a $3,500 claimer, broke down and he was thrown to the track. In 2001, jockey Arnold Ruiz also lost his life when trampled by trailing horses after his mount went down. More than 150 jockeys have been killed race riding since 1940 in the U.S.
In 1983 Beulah Park was sold and renamed Darby Downs. During that time two decades of racing records disappeared during a bizarre midnight raid by its owner. Resold again in 1986 the track again became known as Beulah Park. The new owner, Charles Ruma, would later own an infamous stakes-winning Ohio-bred gelding named Marble Cliff. But the Ohio State Racing Commission revoked the horse’s registration after determining he was foaled in Kentucky. It sounds like an administrative error except that Marble Cliff’s dam, Leza, was owned by Ruma and partners.
The contrasts at Beulah continue to stagger the mind. The track veterinarian is James Robertson who’s considered among the elite equine surgeons in the world. He quietly evaluates each horse prior to racing. It’s not something Robertson takes lightly, either. After watching the horses exit the paddock he hustles closely behind them to the track. “See that’s how they should go by – all jogging.” Robertson then hops in a car and drives to the starting gate. Observing the horses yet again he scratches one of them. “I sensed the jockey was uneasy and the horse was lame.” The ritual is completed with athletic precision several times each racing day.
Female jockey sensation Julie Krone notched a victory at Beulah when her mount Gallant Step won a Best of Ohio Sprint in 1991. Mainstay jockey Perry Ouzts must be bionic compiling over 46,000 starts. His toughness amplified when a car crashed into the motorcycle he was riding at 65 mph. Ouzts dusted off in time to ride a full card that afternoon.
With the help of Beulah Park horsemen, jockey Dean Sarvis, the grandson of legendary horseman John J. Tammaro (trainer of Deputy Minister), is getting his career back together after a lengthy suspension.
Din’s Dancer, a graded stakes caliber horse that ran in the 1988 Kentucky Derby set a course record at Beulah. Catlaunch a 40-time-winning Ohio-bred, amassed earnings of $1.1 million the hard way, having started 108 times.
Is racing in Ohio officially dead? A few miles away the harness track Scioto Downs is booming. It’s facelift almost complete as part of the new racino operated by Mountaineer Gaming. The casino houses 2,100 video lottery terminals that generate an average of $130 million each month. Purses have skyrocketed with year-end championship prize money eclipsing $1.6 million for eight races. This threshold is surpassed by very few high echelon tracks.
Each slot machine at Scioto Downs outperforms those at Hollywood Casino (operated by Beulah’s owner Penn Gaming); that’s probably due to horseracing and a lower “hold” on each VLT wager. There’s a free-flow of patrons between the casino and the harness track. Many say it hasn’t been this crowded in 30 years.
“Thank your Governor (John Kasich)” says Ohio State Racing Commission Chairman Robert Schmitz.
Racetracks across the country could take a lesson from Beulah’s innovation. They were the first track in Ohio to offer simulcast wagering (1983) and telephone betting (1993). Its novel 25 cent pick 6 wager was a success. Even the simulcast hosts, the Beulah Twins, sparked interest. The jovial buxom bombshells handicapped the races and became a marketing boon.
Thomas Heinl, in charge of Beulah’s pari-mutuels from 1975-‘86 is recognized for being among the first to computerize the Totalizator equipment. This revolutionized the way pari-mutuel tickets are sold today
While Beulah Park has been the recipient of jabs by the racing industry, it refused to be bullied. Proud Ohio horseman made a living with marginally athletic horses. And how can you knock them? The horses and their caretakers tried their best.
Now a major concern is what will happen to the horses? Said one trainer “most of them can’t compete anywhere else. The trainers don’t have trucks or trailers. There’s no place to go.” According to horsemen Penn Gaming is only giving four days to evacuate the backstretch.
The last program at Beulah ended with a $50,000 stakes race won by a long shot. It’s Iestimated that 5,000 people attended Beulah’s final day. They pushed a meager $90,000 through the betting windows. It wasn’t about wagering, though, but about respectfully saying goodbye.
Ohio’s oldest racetrack and State historic landmark is gone. A symbol of horse racing’s decline and a reminder that nothing is forever.
