{"id":17809,"date":"2015-09-09T19:55:48","date_gmt":"2015-09-09T23:55:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saratoga.com\/saratogabusinessjournal\/2015\/09\/american-pharoahs-economic-impact-is-felt-prior-to-his-defeat-in-historic-travers-stakes.html"},"modified":"2015-09-09T19:55:48","modified_gmt":"2015-09-09T23:55:48","slug":"american-pharoahs-economic-impact-is-felt-prior-to-his-defeat-in-historic-travers-stakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saratoga.com\/saratogabusinessjournal\/2015\/09\/american-pharoahs-economic-impact-is-felt-prior-to-his-defeat-in-historic-travers-stakes\/","title":{"rendered":"American Pharoah’s Economic Impact Is Felt Prior To His Defeat In Historic Travers Stakes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\"american\n<\/div>\n
American Pharoah approaches the starting gate with jockey Victor Espinoza aboard at the recent Travers Stakes. He was upset by Keen Ice, part owned by local businessman Steven Bouchey.\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

BY R.J. DELUKE<\/p>\n

People flocked to Saratoga Springs on the last
\nweekend in August to see the star athlete. All
\nthe daily newspapers in the region heralded the
\narrival from California of American Pharoah, the
\nfirst Triple Crown winner since 1978.<\/p>\n

Bound to continue his renowned three-year-old
\nseason by winning the Travers Stakes Aug. 29 at
\nSaratoga Race Course, the horse drew tremendous
\ninterest in the region. Beyond the world of sports,
\nthe arrival of the horse who was undefeated in
\nsix 2015 starts had a big impact on the local
\neconomy–even though his winning streak was
\neventually ended late that Saturday afternoon by
\nlong shot Keen Ice, ridden by Javier Castellano.<\/p>\n

Prior to American Pharoah succumbing to
\nthe race tracks reputation as the “graveyard of
\nfavorites,” he made his mark.<\/p>\n

Racing fans from all over flocked to the Union
\nAvenue track. The clamor was such that the
\nNew York Racing Association (NYRA) capped attendance at 50,000, but thousands more watched
\nat Travers parties all over the area. The effect on
\ndowntown businesses was overwhelming, officials
\nand business people said.<\/p>\n

On Friday before the race, an estimated 15,000
\npeople went to the track to catch a glimpse of the
\nhorse during a brief workout.<\/p>\n

“American Pharaoh’s appearance at Saratoga
\nenergized the already-exciting Travers weekend
\nto a fever pitch, filled our hotels and got anyone
\nwith even the slightest interest in horse racing
\nto participate in the sport,” said Pete Bardunias,
\npresident and CEO of the Chamber of Southern
\nSaratoga County. “Everyone seemingly wanted
\nto know more about the horses, the race, the
\nnuances of betting. ”<\/p>\n

He added, “It was a banner week not only for
\nNYRA but businesses of all kinds and fans of all
\nages, and I’m proud that if someone was going
\nto beat him it was a horse part-owned by one of my members, Steve Bouchey.”<\/p>\n

Bill Donovan, who has ownership of both
\nMaestro’s at the Van Dam on Broadway in Saratoga
\nSprings and nearby Harvey’s Restaurant and
\nBar on nearby Phila Street, said “absolutely” the
\nappearance of Pharoah made a big economic
\nimpact.<\/p>\n

He said the Travers Week numbers for both
\nrestaurants were 22 percent higher this year than
\nlast year. He noted that in the past, the Alabama
\nStakes has had higher numbers (this year run
\non Aug. 22) than the Travers. He surmised that
\nperhaps–in other years–the anticipated large
\nTravers crowds kept local diners away.<\/p>\n

“But this year the Travers numbers far exceeded
\nthe Alabama and last year’s Travers.
\n“When you have a super star horse like that, it’s
\na once-in-a-lifetime thing,” Donovan said. “You
\ncould definitely feel the excitement. The race was
\non the top of everyone’s conversation.”<\/p>\n

Marianne Barker, owner of Impressions
\nSaratoga on Broadway, which sells all manner of
\nSaratoga merchandise among its many speciality
\ngifts, said the week leading to the Travers was very
\ngood for business, but “it was especially noticeable
\non Friday … It was well above what we expected.<\/p>\n

She contracted with T-Shirt Graphics in
\nBallston Spa to print and sell #pharoahtoga
\nt-shirts that were so popular they had to reorder
\nmore.<\/p>\n

She added, “the enthusiasm, the excitement, the
\nlevel of ‘happy’ was just great,” with the champion
\nhorse being in town. We noticed a lot of new
\npeople from out of town who were here for the
\nfirst time, or who hadn’t been here for many years.
\n[American Pharoah] got people excited and got
\na lot of people who aren’t racing fans interested.”
\nOverall, Barker said the 2015 race season “has
\nbeen a good meet all across the board.”<\/p>\n

Harvey’s, which has a sports bar-type
\natmosphere with several TVs, “was a watching
\nspot for people who didn’t have tickets. That
\natmosphere drew a lot of interest Saturday
\nafternoon and early Saturday evening,” said
\nDonovan.<\/p>\n

The large outdoor porch at Maestro’s, he said,
\n“was the best watching spot on Broadway. From
\nthere you could see the excitement. It was a
\nbeehive of activity.”<\/p>\n

\n
\"american\n<\/div>\n
Fans flocked to the rail at Saratoga Race Course on Aug. 29 for the running of the Travers Stakes and the appearance of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, who was upset by Keen\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

According to NYRA, customers wagered
\n$157.6 million on track during the 40-day meet
\nand paid attendance was 1,064,093. Total handle
\nwas $648.3 million.
\nIt was the third time in Saratoga history that
\nannounced attendance went over 1 million,
\nbreaking the mark of 1,049,309 set in 2003.<\/p>\n

Todd Garafano, president of the Saratoga
\nConvention and Tourism Bureau, said the impact
\nof American Pharoah “could really be felt at the
\ntrack and downtown.”
\nWith ticket sales capped at 50,000, the bureau,
\nthe Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce and
\nthe Downtown Business Association created and
\npromoted a website that listed all of the viewing
\nparties at area bars and restaurants for fans who
\ncouldn’t get tickets to the track.<\/p>\n

“We haven’t seen final numbers but any
\ntime you can extend the party from the track
\nto downtown, it’s a great thing,” Garafano said.
\n“We learned from Ed Mitzen at Fingerpaint
\nthat after American Pharoah worked out in the
\nmorning before 15,000-plus people, that his
\nhashtag trending number-one nationally,” said
\nTodd Shmkus, president of thee Saratoga County
\nChamber of Commerce.<\/p>\n

The #pharoahtoga hashtag was created by
\nJason Verbick at Fingerpaint and was promoted
\nextensively by NYRA, the Saratoga County
\nChamber of Commerce, and the Saratoga
\nConvention and Tourism Bureau, as well as
\nthe Saratoga Springs Downtown Business
\nAssociation.<\/p>\n

“The initial launch of this marketing effort
\nusing this hashtag was a #pharoahtoga rally
\nwe organized at the Saratoga Race Course, on
\nSaturday, July 25, when ESPN was broadcasting
\ntheir morning “Sports Center” from the track,”
\nShimkus said. “We took this opportunity to
\norganize a rally just like “College Gameday,”
\nwith people in costumes and with signs cheered and chanted right behind the anchors on live
\ntelevision, making it clear to the world how
\nmuch all of us in Saratoga wanted to welcome
\nthis amazing horse to our community.”<\/p>\n

He said the range of people using the
\n#pharoahtoga included Gov. Andrew Cuomo,
\nAmerican Pharoah owners Ahmed and Justin
\nZayat, NBC Sports and ESPN.<\/p>\n

Photo by R.J. DeLuke<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

American Pharoah approaches the starting gate with jockey Victor Espinoza aboard at the recent Travers Stakes. He was upset by Keen Ice, part owned by local businessman Steven Bouchey.BY R.J. 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