| # | Name | Comments | US State | Country |
|---|
| 51 | Saralyn Cohen, Esq. | MUCH more diversity is needed in these decisions - fans are not just all white men - keep that in mind! | NY | US |
| 52 | Vita Licari | The following is the letter I sent to the Thoroughbred Times and they asked if they could print it. Of course I said yes.............
I can't believe the Breeders Cup really thinks this is a good idea. They really think that the uproar over this change is because change isn't accepted within the industry? Who are they kidding? I thought we were in the 21st Century, don't we have a woman running for the Democratic PRESIDENTIAL nomination this year?
Good thing racing wasn't in charge of the political process, women wouldn't even have the right to vote. This is not a thought out move or idea and the reasoning is it's 19th century thinking. Last year a filly beat the eventual horse of the year after running with him and looking eyeball to eyeball with him the length of the stretch in a 1 1/2 mile race. Fillies and mares when given the chance, beat males at every turn, yet they are relegated to the lesser day of racing.
Who is going to be at their television to even watch these races???? Not me, I have to work for a living, not my friends, they have to work for a living, not most of America, they have to work for a living. So, the most important races of the year, the championship races for the fillies and mares is relegated to a none entity. Why even have them? If this is how little the Breeders Cup thinks of this division, why even have the races, any of them? Colts, fillies, mares, sprints etc just get rid of the whole concept. If Saturday isn't good enough for the fillies, why have any of the races? As far as I'm concerned the DISTAFF should have been run if not just before the Classic, then maybe the last race of the day, since it's inception. That race has been the most consistent competitive race every single year, yes even more exciting than the Classic.
I have had to work 2 times ( if not more ) harder than any of my male counterparts throughout my career, not to prove I was as good as the men, but it was the only way to get ahead as a female. Males on the other hand, had no problem moving up or getting raises. In fact even if they didn't have as many responsibilities as me, they made more money. It's the same with the fillies, their races never have the same purse structure as the colts. This is major oversight that needs to change, the purse structure needs to be equal. It costs just as much to raise a filly, train a filly, feed a filly etc as it does a colt, so why do they have to run for lesser purses?
For the same reason the Breeders Cup thinks it's a good idea to move all of the filly and mare races to a day when no one pays attention to racing because the Championship Day of racing is always on Saturday. And as usual, the fillies and mares are relegated to the lesser venue. Typical of racing, what a shame.
Thank you, | | |
| 53 | Joan Chakonas | You can rest assured that the Friday's card will be ignored by me in full unless this stupid demeaning ill conceived Barnum and Bailey gimmick obviously cooked up by amateur marketing types circles the drain. The words are Fillies and Mares, not Ladies; the races are Distaff--stop trying to reinvent an institution that your advisors clearly do not understand or care to understand. | NY | |
| 54 | Julie Smoak | | KY | US |
| 55 | Anonymous | | PA | US |
| 56 | Ingrid Baer | | | CA |
| 57 | Barry Irwin | good idea | KY | US |
| 58 | Danell Dvorak | | IL | US |
| 59 | Anonymous | This was a bonehead move. | WA | US |
| 60 | Celeste Caruso | Good work. | NY | US |
| 61 | Anonymous | | MA | US |
| 62 | Maureen Corley | | GA | US |
| 63 | Anonymous | Im coming from NC in on friday and was looking forward to seeing a loaded card of G1 races. Im very disapointed to see they've been spread out so thin and the fact that I'll miss one of the priemer races, the Distaff....not the ladies classic, but the Distaff! | NC | US |
| 64 | Anonymous | The handles would be huge if it was saturday and sunday. I know they woulg against the nfl but it would still draw higher ratings than friday. | | |
| 65 | David Ibison | | CA | US |
| 66 | Anonymous | | PA | US |
| 67 | Jennifer | I understand having so many races brings the need to split up into two racing days, but please, PLEASE leave the traditional BC races on Saturday! Separating the fillies from the boys is ridiculous, and gives the general public the impression that only the males are important enough to be highlighted on Saturday. If the races must be split into two days, please mix them up, don't segregate the sexes! And get rid of the ridiculous "Ladies Classic" name - they are HORSES, not women! "DISTAFF" is the historical name of the race, and should not be changed! | KY | US |
| 68 | Laura Lampin | Moving the fillies and mares racing to Friday makes them seem less important. Dumb move. | LA | US |
| 69 | Anonymous | The new name sounds like a tennis championship or golf touranament. Blech.
Please go back to the original name. | CA | US |
| 70 | Janine Starykowicz | | IN | US |
| 71 | Claire Smith | I like "Filly and Mare Classic" | WI | US |
| 72 | Celeste Gerber | | TX | |
| 73 | Jared Kennedy | | | CA |
| 74 | Kathleen Irwin | In this sport, the name "Distaff" has a centuries old tradition and elegance to it. It is a proud and powerful word that makes no apologies for itself. To change it to "The Ladies Classic" diminishes it to something that is a weaker version of the male's race. To run it on the Friday weakens it further. It is apparently no longer worthy to stand on the same card as the male's race. In fact none of the distaff races are apparently worthy of the weekend audience. I disagree wholeheatedly with the move. | KY | US |
| 75 | Debra Bonnet | I find it quite offensive that the "Distaff" was moved from Saturday and delegated to become a weekday race. This race is too important to not be on the marquee day of BC racing. On top of that to rename the race with the word "ladies". ??? Disgraceful. | FL | US |
| 76 | Jo Ann Scalf | This diminishes these races significantly and makes them second-tier in every way. | TN | US |
| 77 | Jennifer Roth | | PA | US |
| 78 | Michelle Bourg | | GA | US |
| 79 | C Ingrassia | Less is more. Take a lesson from the Dubai World Cup: they try to get the best of the best, regardless of gender, to run against each other. That's the way it should be. | NY | US |
| 80 | Sally Digges | | AZ | US |
| 81 | L. Murray | The new format stinks to high heaven! Put racing on both Saturday and Sunday when real fans can see it all, and get rid the offensive "Ladies" name. Call it "Fillies and Mares" for goodness sake! | CA | US |
| 82 | Carrie Hartley | It's just appalling to re-name a filly & mares race with an old-fashioned sexist term! | NY | US |
| 83 | Anonymous | | | |
| 84 | Laura Smith | | | |
| 85 | Amanda Smith | | PA | |
| 86 | Anonymous | | CA | US |
| 87 | Ralph Olsen | BREEDERS CUP.JUST ANOTHER MONEY MAKING ENTITY UNCONCERNED WITH ITS CUSTOMERS'.SANTA ANITA X 2? WHAT NO MULE CHAMPIONSHIP? ARE YOU SURE THE GOVT. ISN'T RUNNING THIS OPERATION? | AZ | US |
| 88 | Anonymous | Racing "leaders" are leading racing down the tube by tolerating drugs, horse abuse, dopers and an indigestion of lame and spent horse racing. Please, listen to the public in order to make better decisions, not misguided and desperate ones. | NV | US |
| 89 | Mark | change the name back and get rid of the female-only card on Friday - both were stupid ideas. The idiots who run our sport clearly have no clue how to promote racing. The friday card - and the great horses, trainers and owners involved - has been made a second class citizen. And the cross-promotional ideas only add insult, not legitimacy to the whole thing. | MD | US |
| 90 | Anonymous | seperate is not equal | UT | US |
| 91 | Anonymous | | AR | US |
| 92 | Anonymous | I will NOT wager or ATTEND the Friday B.C. card. | CA | US |
| 93 | eddie hoffman | I go further.
Scrap ladies day altogether.
it is demeaning to have all Filly?mare races on Friday.
Shame on them all | CA | US |
| 94 | reese | BC changes are ill conceived.
BC management is a greedy as Spitzer...their concern is to wine and dining with sponsers. | NY | US |
| 95 | Andrew Champagne | | NY | US |
| 96 | Anonymous | The name should not be changed-horseracing is all about tradition and by calling it the Ladies' Classic you are almost cheapening it. MOST importantly I feel the races should remain on the same day--is the superbowl on two days--no. The same racing conditions should be had by both sexes on Breeder's Cup day. Speading it out to 2 days will not attract more fans. Also please let's go back to tradition of rotation for the sites---it's only fair and European participation will likely be stronger in eastern venues. Serious race fans do not like these changes and there are the ones that matter. Adding a seperate day, changing the names of the races and marketing ploys will not increase interest in the Breeder's Cup. Pleasing those who are already interested is essential. | NY | US |
| 97 | Bob C | You guys have lost your way. John Gaines is spinning. | NY | US |
| 98 | Fred Arroyave | Preserve the tradition | CA | US |
| 99 | joseph r monaco | one great day is enough. it is bad enough that everybody skips the old traditional races, jockey gold cup, woodward, to run one time before the breeders cup. every track is changing the dates of the good races and it becomes confusing when the races are to be run. keep the tradition and lower the seat prices and have three pernament places to run, belmont, churchill and santa anita. | NJ | US |
| 100 | Laura Ferguson | | | |