As it is Preakness week, I've been trying to keep up with the works of the Kentucky Derby winner and also rans as well as the new shooters coming in and taking a chance at the 2nd leg of the Triple Crown. However, this year, a new breed of horse seems to be overshadowing all of these.
Kegasus. His name seems to strike fear in the hearts of the "traditions of the turf" sector of the horse racing media. He also seems to be striking excitement in the hearts of local 20 somethings planning on attending the Preakness infield party.
Ever since Kegasus has been introduced earlier this spring, I have struggled with what exactly my stance is on the beer gutted steed. My first reaction is an instinctual one as a young person in racing: rebellion.
Horse racing has a nasty habit of shutting down ideas before they even think about what the benefits of them may be. For example, last year's Preakness. The Maryland Jockey Club debuted the phrase "Get Your Preak On". I, personally, thought it was genius. Very catchy, simply a mantra, borderline racy (no pun intended), but far from raunchy. Immediately, it was attacked by the sector of horse racing that expects the pageantry and history of the sport to carry it to prominence once again. This is a really...cute...perspective, but far from realistic. Horse racing is not different from anything else. It all comes down to money and how to best make it.
Marketing is for, sadly, my generation. To be honest, I am sickened by my generation. They are a group of people with a diminishing attention span that finds binge drinking a necessity, drunken destruction a regular activity and boundaries non-existent. I have seen this sector eliminate awesome festivals and events through their lack of respect for....anything.
But there is something that must be noted about this generation: They spend a crapload of money just to drink. Any event organizer must be aware of this fact and acknowledge in the process of any marketing plan. As obnoxious as these people are, they are a great way to make easy money. Hell, the beer doesn't even have to be good, it just has to be alcoholic.
So when the Maryland Jockey Club trots out Kegasus, I don't see this as a knock against horse racing or stooping to a lower level, I simply see it as a damn easy way to make money off of a bunch of idiots. If the infield party is going to happen at Pimlico anyways, why not try to market it and make that much more money? Kegasus visits a local bar a few times leading up to the Preakness and more people end up in the infield. Each of these people spends more money and before you know it, Kegasus has paid for himself.
But I guess racing will continue to believe they are above making easy money. They will continue to cling to pageantry all the way to the grave. Call me crazy, but I find Kegasus a hell of a lot less offensive than snarky owners, trainers fighting every single drug ruling there is, jockeys needing breathalyzers, backside dorms falling apart left and right, and lame $5,000 claimers going for their 3rd win in 90 starts. Horse racing may be about pageantry and charm a few times a year, but let's not fool ourselves. We're not above much, so why pick on an idea that might actually benefit the sport?
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