End of an era

But like Bay Meadows and Tanforan, Golden Gate Fields has seen its time come to an end. Reports say racing operations will be transferred to Southern California, which still boasts some of the best tracks in the nation: Santa Anita, De Mar and Los Alamitos.

But how much longer will they be around? Maybe it’s about time to let this sport, often called “The sport of kings,” die a quiet death, because over the last several years, that’s all we’ve heard about the sport, the number of horses that have died.

Reports say eight horses have already died at Golden Gate Fields this season and Santa Anita had a slew of horses put down from November 2018 to June 2019 — 30 in all. And then during the Triple Crown season, which consists of the three most famous races in the world — the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes — a number of horses were destroyed on the day of those events. According to a report by the Baltimore Sun, which would be the “home newspaper” of the Preakness Stakes, some 2,000 horses die every year racing. Can you imagine any other sports that would continue to exist with a death rate like that? And yet, this is acceptable in horse racing circles.

On top of the death of its “athletes,” horse racing is also notorious for its meager living conditions of those who actually care for the horses. “The backside” is the term used to describe those people who work in the background of horse racing, who often earn low salaries and actually live at the tracks or at track-owned dormitories.

In its heyday, horse racing was one of the most popular sports in the country. I’ve even done my fair share of horse racing stories — including one about trainer Art Sherman, who was training Triple Crown contender California Chrome in 2014.

And to be honest, I have no problems watching the sport. The Kentucky Derby is must-see-TV for me on the first Saturday of May. I’ve even won — and lost — money wagering on horse racing.

And I’m certainly not anti-horse racing. But, if it went away, I wouldn’t shed a tear because, at this point, the good does not outweigh the bad.

While GGF is the last full-time track in Northern California, there are still a handful of county fair sites that still offer racing during the summer — from Fresno to Ferndale. Can’t imagine GGF closing not having a significant impact on those events as well.

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The closing of Golden Gate Fields wasn’t the only big news to come out of the world of sports in Northern California. Those who follow high school sports closely are probably familiar with 49ers Cal-Hi Sports, a weekly television show that highlights high school sports in the greater Bay Area that will enter its 22nd year this upcoming high school season.

The show has been so popular and successful that the man who puts it all together, Robert Braunstein, started another similar show in Sacramento, 49ers Sac-Hi Sports, to cover the San Joaquin Section that runs through most of the Central Valley.

But after two seasons, it was announced Sunday that the show was being canceled because of a lack of sponsorship and advertising. Like all television shows, 49ers Cal-Hi and Sac-Hi Sports need advertising revenue to keep its shows on the air. I’ve talked with Braunstein over the years about the endeavor he started and he has admitted it’s tough every year to keep the show going.

While there is tremendous appetite for high school sports in the SJS section, it didn’t translate into ad dollars for the Sacramento version.

Which is a shame. A lot of people pay lip service about community and the need for community-based projects. But for a lot of companies, that’s exactly what it is: lip service. Cal-Hi and Sac-Hi Sports are the perfect community-based projects to get behind, but I guess the businesses in Sacramento and surrounding areas didn’t want to spend money to keep the show alive.

Nathan Mollat can be reached by email: nathan@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: 344-5200 ext. 117. To report scores or tips, email sports@smdailyjournal.com.