Bill Ford – Woodbine Entertainment Group

“There’s a bit of a weatherman in me.”

So quips Bill Ford as he examines the meteorological outlook for the Toronto area in late July. Heat and smog had him possibly postponing races at the two tracks owned and operated by Woodbine Entertainment Group.

Just as Toronto’s Blue Jays, Maple Leafs, Argonauts and Raptors have a vested interest in not subjecting their players to undue risk, so do Ford and his colleagues. Only their concerns include horses as well as jockeys.

It’s all part of Ford’s wide-reaching role as general counsel since January 2011 and, for the past year, chief racing officer of what’s Canada’s premier horseracing operations. Woodbine, formerly known as the Ontario Jockey Club, dates back to 1881 and operates separate tracks for thoroughbred and harness racing. However, as Ford emphasizes, it can’t rely on yesterday’s business model. It can’t be just the so-called sport of kings—the track must appeal to a much broader segment that’s younger, of more modest means, faced with more choices for the entertainment dollar and, to boot, mindful of equine and human safety.

“We’ll only be able to do it if we invest in the safety of all involved,” he tells Vanguard. “The owners, breeders, trainers, track workers—it takes a whole ecosystem to have a healthy horseracing industry.”

Safety first

Ford is proud to say that Woodbine has been setting an industry example since 2006 with its investment in synthetic tracks, first Polytack in 2006 and then Tapeta in 2016, fashioned from silica sand, wax and fibers that simulate the root structure of turf but doesn’t need irrigation or mowing. Tracks worldwide are switching for good reasons, according to the Jockey Club Equine Industry Database.

Two years ago, that database recorded 1.44 injuries per 1,000 races on dirt tracks and just shy of 1 on turf. According to Jockey Club’s numbers-crunching, synthetic tracks are 3.5 times safer than dirt and 2.2 times safer than turf and provide a consistent, all-weather surface that doesn’t require much maintenance. Perhaps some old-timers miss the clouds of dirt being kicked up by hoofs, but as Ford emphasizes, change is as responsible as it is overdue.

“Racing comes with a social license, and there are times when that license gets jeopardized,” says Ford. “We’re trying to ensure it’s as safe a sport as possible for equine and human athletes. That’s got to be our priority.”

Another priority is attracting a new generation of racing fans while sustaining the old loyalists, and for years, Ford was busy on multiple fronts. The provincial government having canceled the slots at racetracks program in 2013, Woodbine had to scramble to stay financially afloat, and Woodbine worked with Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) to arrange for a partnership with One Toronto Gaming—itself a partnership of entities called Great Canadian Gaming Corp. and Brookfield Business Partners—to operate the only casino allowed in Toronto.

That took a complex commercial agreement, with horseracing and casino gambling regulated by different levels of government, and the deal also needed local approval. The plans came to fruition last year with the opening of the Great Canadian Casino Resort Toronto, complete with a 5,000-seat performance venue and a trackside hotel.

Race to the finish

Such investment needs customers, and Ford is working on several projects to bring them in. When he spoke with Vanguard in July, he was finalizing details for the provincial government to connect the Metrolinx railway system with the 680-acre Woodbine property. Woodbine would be supporting the station with significant private investment and partnering with the Provincial government in a way that has yet to be done in the province.

Everything seemingly on track, Ford says he expects the city to rezone the property to be designated a Transit-Oriented Community and fit into Ontario’s larger plan of placing high-density housing, jobs, entertainment and recreation near public transportation. There are details to satisfy, so he hopes construction will begin in 2025.

“One reason we’re so focused on property development is because we want our horseracing to be in the middle of a big and exciting project,” he says. “We’re not naïve. We know racing is expensive, so we’re leveraging our property development to support racing for the long-term at both Woodbine and Mohawk facilities.”

Other racetracks across North America haven’t been so enduring with, at last count, 41 U.S.  operations shuttered since 2000, including in Los Angeles and San Francisco, and around a dozen Canadian venues no longer active. Such is the case when large tracks are, like Woodbine, situated in urban areas with big-ticket developers eying the property for other uses. Woodbine, however, survived the loss of the slots at racetracks program and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic that had Ford and colleagues hastening the switch to digital wagering with grandstands closed.

“The future was thrust upon us,” he says. “We always knew the wave of the future was digital. It happened sooner, but thanks to the amazing work of frontline people, we operated safely and had no bad outbreaks. Our safety and COVID committees met daily, and with our horsepeople’s partnership, we survived.”

Strong horse

The worst of the pandemic is hopefully over, Ford sounds upbeat about Woodbine’s direction. It’s got its award-winning broadcasting department, an online wagering arm that can accommodate wagering remotely and, with the new lavish casino, another way to connect with the all-important young demographic. The company brand seems healthy, with the TOC zoning and Metrolinx connections also falling into place.

And the Montreal-born Ford seems to be enjoying his second in-house role, for which he came prepared after a 2003-to-2010 run at Magna Entertainment Corp., the predecessor company to the Stronach Group with horseracing and parimutuel gaming at its core.

A McGill University undergrad with degrees in economics and education, Ford studied law at the University of Detroit Mercy and the University of Windsor and honed his skills at the Toronto office of McCarthy Tetrault. While business law always appealed, there was something unfulfilling about firm life.

“You’d do the deal and move on to the next one, but I was always curious about what happened afterward,” he says. “I wanted to be part of how the business is run.”

He’s been part of it now at two racing and entertainment companies for the last 21 years and literally knows how they’re run. Above all, with all due consideration for the safety of horses, jockeys, and harness drivers, While horseracing will never be risk-free, he says Woodbine mitigates danger with its investment in key racing-focused capital projects and a never-ending focus on integrity..

He and his wife also have a 9-year-old daughter who spent a week in July at a riding camp. Perhaps someday, she’ll have her own horse and ride competitively. And Ford, well, he gets wistful when the thoroughbreds charge from the gates.

“I love horses and one day would love to own a racehorse or two,” he says. “But right now, I’d be in a little bit of a conflict of interest.”