Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.Fans at Horsemen's Park might have noticed a new addition to the simulcast facility — the installation of 32 Bank Shot machines.
Bank Shot, a video jackpot game that is located primarily in bars across the state, was ruled legal in December by the Nebraska Supreme Court. The Court rejected Attorney General Jon Bruning's argument that the Bank Shot games were illegal gambling devices and that they should be removed.
"As long as they've been ruled legal, we thought we'd give them a try," Horsemen's Park General Manager Greg Hosch said. "It's too early to say how well they'll do or if we'll keep them around."
On a recent day, fans at the simulcast facility preferred to take their chances on the ponies. Nobody was playing the machines that were installed last week, though Hosch said some fans have given them a try.
"It's a little different, but I think fans will get used to them," he said. "I heard somebody hit a jackpot for $1,800 the other day. That might get other people interested."
Nebraska law prohibits wagering on video games that are games of chance. Bank Shot, which was examined by a firm specializing in compliance testing, was determined to be mostly a game of skill and therefore legal in Nebraska.
Terry Wallace nets Arkansas honor
Former Ak-Sar-Ben track announcer Terry Wallace will be inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame on Friday in Little Rock, Ark.
Wallace was the longtime track announcer at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark. He took the job in December 1974 and called 20,191 consecutive races at Oaklawn — believed to be more than any other announcer at the same venue in American racing history — and had a perfect attendance record in 37 seasons.
The 67-year-old Wallace purposely ended his record streak of consecutive Oaklawn race calls in 2011. He yielded the microphone for one race to fellow announcer Frank Mirahmadi, who has since taken over for Wallace as the track's announcer.
Wallace — who was inducted into the Nebraska Racing Hall of Fame in 2007 — is best known locally for his race calls of the legendary Who Doctor Who at Ak-Sar-Ben. He still returns to Omaha in the summers to call races at Horsemen's Park.
Doocy is hired at Atokad Downs
Former Prairie Meadows racing secretary Dan Doocy has been hired as the racing manager at Horsemen's Atokad Downs in South Sioux City, Neb.
Doocy, who stepped down last fall at the Iowa racetrack located in Altoona, is the brother of retired jockey Tim Doocy.
The track's lone live racing day is Aug. 21. As per state statute, a Nebraska track must race at least one day to be eligible for simulcasting.
Prairie Meadows recently named Fred Hutton to replace Doocy as its racing secretary. He previously was director of racing and racing secretary at Remington Park in Oklahoma from 2000-10.
Commission to meet Feb. 16 in Lincoln
The next meeting of the Nebraska Racing Commission will take place at 1:30 p.m. Feb. 16 at the commission office, 5903 Walker Ave. in Lincoln.
The commission originally had planned to hold a teleconference this week to rule on an appeal by trainer David Anderson to have his suspension reduced from three years to two years. Anderson, a member of the Nebraska Racing Hall of Fame, received that suspension after two of his horses tested positive for illegal substances in 2009 at Horsemen's Park.
The teleconference was delayed and Anderson's appeal could be placed on the agenda of the next commission meeting.
— Mike Patterson
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