SIC 7948 Racing, Including Track Operation

Encyclopedia of American Industries | 2005 | Copyright

SIC 7948
RACING, INCLUDING TRACK OPERATION

This classification covers promoters and participants in racing activities, including racetrack operators, operators of racing stables, jockeys, racehorse trainers, and race car owners and operators.

NAICS Code(s)

711212 (Race Tracks)

711219 (Other Spectator Sports)

Industry Snapshot

The thrill of competition and the overall excitement of racing drew millions of American spectators to the wide variety of events in the racing industry, including horse races, dog races (greyhound), automobile races, and motorcycle races. The industry generated close to $5 billion in revenue in 1995.

Thoroughbred horse racing alone attracted 60 million spectators to racetracks in 36 states. On a total of 8,000 racing dates, visitors bet more than $13 billion at the tracks and at off-site locations. In the late 1980s, however, the horse racing industry began to fall behind more publicized and simplistic forms of legalized gambling, particularly the state lotteries. Unprepared for the influx of competition, track operators scrambled to make their courses more inviting to spectators in order to attract new and younger customers.

Organization and Structure

Horse Racing. In the horse racing sector of the industry, most U.S. racetracks were privately owned, and racing operations were governed by state commissions where the tracks were located. Most tracks were operated for a profit, as were the horses, while the trainers and jockeys worked as independent contractors. Some U.S. tracks, such as the ones operated by the New York Racing Association, were non-profit organizations. By contrast, racetracks in some other countries were owned and operated by the national government.

All horse racing, except quarter horse racing, involved thoroughbreds, usually three-year-olds. A racehorse achieves peak ability at age five, but few races included horses older than four due to increases in purses, breeding fees, and sale prices. Owners of thoroughbreds tried to produce superior horses through complex mating strategies, with the most desirable horse being one that performed well during long races. But as Patrick Cunningham, a professor of animal genetics at Trinity College in Dublin, claimed in Fortune, "only 35 percent of the differences between horses is attributable to genetic factors; the other 65 percent reflects diet, training, and random health-affecting events around the barn."

Early horse races featured a simple system of wagering in which spectators tried to pick the winner. In modern horse racing, however, spectators placed their bets on the first three horses, and most of the purse money was provided by the stakes fees of the horse owners. This practice, called pari-mutuel betting,...

Read all of SIC 7948 Racing, Including Track Operation at HighBeam Business

Related newspaper, magazine, and trade journal articles from HighBeam Research

(Including press releases, facts, information, and biographies)

	The Lee Kuan Yew story as Singapore's history. (Review Article).(Book Review) Magazine article from: Journal of Southeast Asian Studies ; Lee Kuan Yew: The Beliefs Behind the Man...Bibliography, Index. Lee Kuan Yew: The Man and His Ideas...dominant member of this group, Lee Kuan Yew, had relinquished the prime...postulated between the Lee Kuan Yew autobiography and national...
	Inaugural Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize to Recognise Outstanding International Initiatives for City Excellence. News Wire article from: JCN Newswires ; ...announces the launch of the inaugural Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize at the opening...quality of life. We hope that the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize will serve as a...Professor Kishore MAHBUBANI, Dean, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National...
	ADB and Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy Sign Milestone Agreement. M2 Presswire ; ...Development Bank: ADB and Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy...University of Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy...Professor Mahbubani. 'The Lee Kuan Yew School views the ADB as...the region.' The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public ...
	Lee Kuan Yew: The Beliefs Behind the Man. Magazine article from: SOJOURN: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia ; ...positions. Alex Josey's much-revised Lee Kuan Yew: The Crucial Years, Han Fook Kwang...Feranandez, and Sumiko Tan's Lee Kuan Yew: The Man and His Ideas (1998...contrast, T.J.S. George's Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore (1973) and James...
	Great Singaporean Leader: Lee Kuan Yew to address key gathering at NBK Symposium on 18 Nov. Newspaper article from: Al Bawaba ; ...s Minister Mentor Mr. Lee Kuan Yew will be present in Kuwait...towards Asia', will have Lee Kuan Yew as a key note speaker...socio-economic aspect Lee has always stressed discipline...enterprise. Besides Lee Kuan Yew, a number of other speakers...
	Great Singaporean Leader: Lee Kuan Yew to address key gathering at NBK Symposium on 18 Nov.(National Bank of Kuwait SAK) News Wire article from: Middle East ; ...s Minister Mentor Mr. Lee Kuan Yew will be present in Kuwait...towards Asia', will have Lee Kuan Yew as a key note speaker...socio-economic aspect Lee has always stressed discipline...enterprise. Besides Lee Kuan Yew, a number of other speakers...
	Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2009 Nominations Showcase New Disciplines in Water Research and Applications. News Wire article from: ACN Newswire ; ...water policies, the nominations for Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2009 showcased not only...countries. The nominations for Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2009 covered a wide...culminates in the presentation of the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, a prestigious international...
	Singapore: ADB and Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy Sign Milestone Agreement. News Wire article from: TendersInfo ; ...University of Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy...and the Dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy...Professor Mahbubani. "The Lee Kuan Yew School views the ADB as...in the region. The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public ...
	Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2009: Environmental Engineer with Sustainable Solution Breakthrough Wins 2009 Prize. News Wire article from: JCN Newswires ; ...Netherlands has been awarded this year's Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize for his environmentally...treatment systems in the world. The Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize is an international...Tan Gee Paw, Chairman of the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize Nominating Committee...
	Asia's most influential political leader and Singapore's first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew to address Arab diaspora on leadership qualities at Abu Dh Newspaper article from: Al Bawaba ; ...architect of Singapore's present, Lee Kuan Yew, one of Asia's most influential...exclusive Emirates Palace. Mr. Lee Kuan Yew was Singapore's first-ever...Dhabi Executive Affairs Authority, Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's first-ever Prime...