West Virginia...Where Red Bull is Cheaper than Sprite and $750K Purses are Commonplace

Mountaineer race track in Chester, West Virginia is not a celebrated stop on the thoroughbred racing circuit. Prior to 1998, it was rarely a stop at all. Times have changed thanks to a committed, long-term sponsorship.

Mountaineer's sponsor has worked hand-in-hand with the state legislature to increase purses and create competitive races, attracting some of the fastest, four-leggers in the nation to the foothills of Appalachia. Better still, it's been a consistent run: purses have steadily increased over the last two decades. 

It's the ideal partnership because the racetrack's sponsor doesn't even want the limelight.  Ironically, they don't even care that much about the races. A little paradoxical, yes, but that's what happens when your sponsor = slot machines. 

Welcome to racino racing. 

A racino is a property which houses a casino and a racetrack. The casino being the main source of revenue every single time. The racetrack smirking in the corner, having squeaked its way into the deal.  

In a nutshell, horsemen supported the introduction of casinos in places like West Virginia in exchange for a small % of the revenues to support purses for the racetrack. The more people gamble in the casino, the richer the races on the track. And just like that, the beer flows like wine.               

And Mountaineer is not just any racino. They are Lewis & Clark, a pioneer of the hybrid onsite gambling model. Quoting directly from Wikipedia: 

"Tracks like Delaware Park and West Virginia's Mountaineer Park, once considered places where local degenerates bet on broken-down nags in claiming races, are now among the wealthiest tracks around, with the best races."

I tend to think of Wikipedia as an objective source of information. My gut says racing fans in West Virginia and Delaware may not love the reference to "degenerates" and "broken-down nags." Regardless, Wikipedia is spot on in describing the current state of racing in those states. Saturday's card at Mountaineer boasts over $1.5M in purses, highlighted by the Grade II West Virginia Derby. By comparison, the most well known track in the country, Churchill Downs, doesn't have a single day of racing outside of the Derby and Oaks which offers $1.5M in purses. 

This is not your standard race card for degenerates.

I've been to Mountaineer once before. Kind of. By total chance I was across the street from Mountaineer 14 years ago for a bachelor party. A friend was getting married in a nebulous corner of the country where West Virginia and Ohio intersect. A moment from that weekend has stayed with me through the years. A moment that had nothing to do with Mountaineer, or even the bachelor party. 

After the wedding, which was the same weekend as the bachelor party, our group of collegiate friends went to a local bar where I ordered a Vodka & Red Bull.  The bartender retorted, "Red Bull? I think somebody dropped off some of that stuff last week. You want it in your drink?"

I assured him I did and plopped down $10 on the bar. He poured me a vodka red bull and then charged me $4.  I had been drinking vodka and sprite earlier in the night at the same bar....for $5.

Apparently I was the first person to ever order a vodka red bull at the bar and the fact it had been "dropped off" entitled me to a discount. 'Merica.

Tomorrow I'll take aim at a few races at Mountaineer and Saratoga, which hosts two Grade I's of their own. Hoping to write an entry before post-time with a few picks, leveraging those fond memories with friends in John Denver's Blue Ridge Mountains as inspiration. Good vibes can translate to winning wagers. So can $4 Vodka Red Bulls. 

Almost heaven, West Virginia. Take me home, country roads.