Far from a relic, Hastings Racecourse can thrive with proper support

Article content

There have been horses racing since two people each owned a horse and decided to see which one was the fastest. That human need to know will continue until there are no more horses, or humans.

At Hastings Park, racing goes back 133 years, but the sport faces an uncertain future in its current location with — depending on who you’re asking — plenty of opinions on what it might become if the racetrack wasn’t there. 

It has been a frustrating few months for Hastings’ backstretch community, with talk of the track being replaced by a new soccer stadium, or the casino rights, which currently help fund racing, being sold off without the need for racing to continue.

But ask any of the bumper crowd in attendance to celebrate Canada Day — and let’s remember the contribution of the horse in the creation of our great nation — this week, and they might be amused to learn the sport was supposedly in peril in Vancouver.

“Hastings is not a relic, it’s a thriving, historic venue that generated over $21.5 million in wagers last season and supports hundreds of working-class jobs tied to racing, training, and backstretch operations,” David Milburn, president of the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association of B.C., explained this week. “Displacing it would dismantle an entire economic and cultural ecosystem that has existed for more than a century.”

The racing community feels its future is in danger of being decided by parties who either don’t understand what is at stake or simply don’t care that a sport and industry employing hundreds locally, and province-wide, is being left to wither on the vine.

A breeder, owner and trainer for many years, Milburn is adamant that the casino, which currently funds about 45 per cent of racing, is inextricably linked to the sport, and was organized that way intentionally at a time when the government-backed expansion of the gambling sector threatened to leave racing penniless.

“Hastings was never intended to be a standalone casino,” Milburn said. “It was meant to be a revenue stream that sustains an entire rural and urban industry. The City of Vancouver’s bylaw explicitly ties the operation of slots at Hastings to the presence of live horse racing, and the original provincial authorizations were granted on that same basis.”

Those ancillary jobs and industries Milburn talks about include veterinary care, blacksmiths, commercial horse breeding, hay, feed, horse transport, to name just a few, all of which would be in jeopardy should racing end.

Given the current shenanigans south of the border, Milburn also questions the logic of structuring a gaming industry that benefits foreign equity groups over the needs of British Columbians.

“That original decision has shifted economic value and decision-making power out of our province and across the border. Meanwhile, B.C.’s horse racing industry has been sidelined and neglected. We need to rethink our priorities. Supporting local industries like horse racing means investing in B.C. jobs, B.C. agriculture, and B.C. heritage — not exporting opportunity to Wall Street.”

Hastings Race Selections

First Race Saturday, 2:30 p.m.

Hastings Race 1 (2:30 p.m.): Last season’s leading juvenile Mount Doom tasted defeat for the first time recently and connections will be keen to see him bounce back to his best in the $50,000 Chris Loseth Stakes.

Hastings Race 6 (5 p.m.): After almost lowering a 30-year track record on her debut and following up with a consummate Stakes victory, scintillating speed freak Chi Chi Time looks to preserve her unbeaten record in the $50,000 Supernatural Stakes

Nigel Reid has written about international horse racing for 40 years. He is an owner at Hastings and sits on the board of the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association of B.C.

Check out our sports section for the latest news and analysis. Care for a wager? Head to our sports betting section for news and odds.