And they’re off, again Bangor track officials promoting family fun

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A cool breeze drifts gently across the infield and a freshly groomed track. The grandstand, packed with people of all ages, is buzzing with laughter and anticipation, children slurping ice cream cones and munching on popcorn.

The starting car accelerates as it approaches the starting line. The hooves of powerful horses pound the turf, almost in unison, their noses straining toward the gate.

The drivers, decked out in distinctive colors, clutch the reins purposefully. The starter flicks the switch, shouts “GO,” and the gates open as the car speeds away. “And they’re off!” barks the public address announcer as the field charges into the first turn.

The fans who aren’t already standing rise to their feet, almost as one. The race is on.

Fred Nichols hopes that scenario repeats itself often this summer as he and Bangor Historic Track Inc. try to showcase the sport of harness racing at Bangor Raceway. Bangor’s 34-date extended meet opened Friday night.

Only seven months ago, the Bangor City Council had voted to stop funding harness racing at the city-owned track that is part of the historic Bass Park complex. Nichols, the raceway manager, and his investor group refused to allow the 145-year harness racing tradition to die without a fight.

“I don’t think it’s been promoted enough,” said Nichols of the track’s lackluster attendance and betting handles in recent years. “Racetracks around the country, they’re all moaning about declining attendance and declining handle, competition from state lotteries and casinos.”

The problem, as Nichols sees it, centers around who the target audience should be when trying to sell the public on the sport.

“When they complain about that, they’re focusing in on the gambling dollar rather than the entertainment value,” Nichols said. “Promote the entertainment aspect of it, involve the customers in it like you do with the various promotions, and it takes on a different appeal to a broader sector.”

Maine Historic Track isn’t building its marketing strategy and the future of Bangor Raceway around the bettors. They want to bill the track as a place for good, clean, family entertainment.

“We’re certainly not pushing the gambling aspect of it,” Nichols said. “People who are exclusively interested in that will probably end up at the OTBs. What we’re selling is an outdoor family-type environment where people can come, see the colors and the excitement of it.”

The proposition will be costly for Nichols and the other investors. For this year alone, Bangor Historic Track has promised to pay the city $50,000 in rent and pay for all of the routine and structural maintenance.

The city’s only obligations are to share the costs of upgrading the grandstand, that is used for other functions, and handle other chores such as mowing the grass.

Nichols admitted it was not an easy sell.

“I had to pound pavement to get investors interested in it,” Nichols said. “The recent financial history (of the track) was dismal.”

Nichols estimated that Bangor Raceway will need to take in approximately $75,000 each racing date, including money generated at the track and through off-track betting, to break even.

While Bangor Historic Track isn’t likely to turn an immediate profit, Nichols thinks the timing is perfect for such a venture.

“We find ourselves in a year where the handle from wagering across the state is up significantly, driven by the OTBs,” Nichols said. “The industry is supporting itself. It’s going to be real tough this year, but ’95 looks outstanding, so it bodes very well for the continuation of racing in eastern Maine.”

Nichols said he and the other investors did not get involved with Bangor Raceway because they had delusions of making large sums of money.

“Most of these investors have all had horse experience,” Nichols said. “They got into it not for the investment perspective, but more as preservation. There are 150 people who make a living (here) off of this.”

Already, fresh paint is in evidence around the grandstand that has been pigeon-proofed to prevent bird droppings from soiling the seats and the spectators. The grandstand’s cracked concrete floor has been repaired, and new halogen lights have been installed.

Outside, more than 1,000 marigolds adorn the new winner’s circle that has been constructed next to the grandstand, and an improved picnic area is complete. Horse owners and drivers may kick back in a lounge near the paddock that will include a monitor to view the racing.

All of the facility’s electronic equipment has been upgraded, with a new tote system, audio-visual monitors and a satellite uplink that will beam Bangor Raceway races to Maine’s off-track betting parlors in Waterville, Lewiston, Presque Isle and, soon, Bangor and Millinocket.

Off-track betting is likely to be a boon to the track because of the money it should generate based on the performance of the other OTBs around the state.

“It’s significant because a fairly good percentage of the amount bet at the OTBs goes into a pool that’s administered by the (Maine State Harness Racing Commission) and is returned to the two commercial racetracks (in Bangor and Scarborough) in proportion to the amount wagered at the OTBs on the sending track’s races,” Nichols said.

The revenues from the OTBs are expected to increase in the next two or three years, which gives Nichols cause for optimism.

Nichols’ promotional efforts are already showing results. Almost 18 pages of advertisements have been sold in the raceway program, and banners and advertising signs adorn the inside of the grandstand.

There will be contests to win a new automobile, a trip to the Hambletonian, and others yet to be announced. Further, the track is sponsoring a series of historical races in hopes of drawing on the track’s rich tradition.

Nichols came into this situation following years as an owner of minor league baseball teams. He owned six Class A franchises, three of them simultaneously, in Ashville, N.C., Daytona Beach, Fla., Butte, Mont., Utica, N.Y., Anderson, S.C., and Gastonia, N.C.

He is familiar with the kind of promotional campaign that will be necessary to draw interest to Bangor Raceway. Nichols said parallels can be drawn between baseball and harness racing.

“You’re seeing an outdoor family environment that’s colorful and exciting,” he said. “The difference is with a baseball operation you’re selling sort of an illusion, that it’s important to win. It really isn’t. Here, with a racetrack, it is important financially.”

Nichols and his group appear to have the overwhelming support of local horsemen, who begin the 1994 season with a new outlook.

“It’s more relaxed for the horsemen,” said owner Elizabeth Moores of Bangor. “We’re confident in (assistant raceway manager) Warren Strout and Fred. They’re here for the love of the sport. They’re interested in the sport.”

With ownership willing to put much-needed capital into refurbishing the track and aggressively promoting the sport, there is renewed confidence.

“You don’t have to worry from week to week whether you’re going to be here or whether you’ve got to ship somewhere else,” said owner and trainer John Tripp of Bangor. “What these people are doing is they’re attracting new people to the sport. These people deserve the biggest pat on the back they can get.”