Gulfstream Card Canceled as Trainers Stage Boycott

Gulfstream Park held no races Friday as horse trainers boycotted the track to protest proposed legislation that would reduce purses and change stabling rules.

The group is protesting legislation that would force Calder to close its stables six months each year and shift 3.1% of inter-track wagering profits to dog tracks.

Gulfstream president Douglas Donn said he would try to make up for the lost day with races Monday or March 16, the day after the track’s scheduled closing date.

Calder Race Course will start its meet March 17, leaving an open date that might be used to recover the projected $170,000 in purses lost Friday.

Harry Benson, president of the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Assn., said that the boycott would not affect today’s $300,000 Gulfstream Handicap or Sunday’s $200,000 Bonnie Miss Handicap.