Time to appreciate our own special event: the Maryland Million.

Horse racing executives seem to believe that their customers have extraordinary powers of extra sensory perception. They have adapted the Field of Dreams mantra of “If you build it, they will come” for their own use—in this particular case, “Because we race, they will come.” Somehow they forget the part about telling the public when and where, and if, incidentally, people are going see live horses on the track or merely simulcasts.

If you are a casual fan of the game, and not one who regularly reads the trade publications or related Web sites, you might scarcely know that there is live horse racing in your state. In Maryland, there are more ads on local television for Charles Town Racing and Slots than there are for Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course.

Horse racing is full of marketing geniuses, and we are all allowed to voice our opinions, but there is near unanimous agree­ment that the industry needs to do a better job in selling its product. It is obvious that word-of-mouth marketing is not working, and marketing by osmosis is still an untested, and dubious, concept. So what’s the answer? Do you have one? Let us know.

Money is the answer, most people will say, but even those tracks with big advertising budgets but no marquee events have no proven methods to attract fans. Others are certain that big events are the solution—but not if fans don’t know about them. To create a following, racing must appeal to a broad and varied audience: the hard-core gambler, the high roller, those who love the sport and those who thrive on its excitement. Not many sports are charged with attracting so many diverse constituents.

How do you find out which track is running, and on which days live racing is conducted?
Did your colleagues at work know that Laurel Park opened on September 7?
Do the guys at the gym plan to go the 20th anniversary of the Maryland Million on October 8 at Laurel Park?

A common complaint goes something like, “I miss the old days when racing was fun—an event, a special occasion.” Others say, “I want to go to the track to see horses. Where will I be able to do that?” At places where racing still feels special—Saratoga, Keeneland, Churchill Downs—the stands are packed with people who have come to watch and to bet and to say they’ve been there.

In Maryland, we have the Preakness and Maryland Million Day. The latter is a mere babe compared to the Preakness, but we have a vital event and a reason to celebrate.

Now is the time to use all of our powers of telepathy to get you and your friends and your family to come out for our own special occasion—to watch and to bet and to say you were there.