Cal Expo betting on a big Derby crowd

Cal Expo officials encourage people to arrive early today at the state fairgrounds' simulcast facility, where an overflow crowd is expected for the 134th Kentucky Derby.

But you won't catch Nelson Smigel among the masses with cash in one hand and a Daily Racing Form in the other.

He'll be watching the race at home in Elk Grove, having already placed his bets Friday on Derby entries Court Vision and Visionaire.

"Today, a lot of people come in and get their Forms," said Smigel, 48, who was one of an estimated 350 people at Cal Expo on Friday. "But tomorrow it's a zoo."

It's the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, one of the most celebrated sporting events in America.

And because online wagering on today's Churchill Downs program is limited to two Web sites, Cal Expo and other simulcast centers are expected to do big business.

"We're lucky," said Cal Expo racing director David Elliott. "We'll have the grandstand open for overflow seating so everyone can get a seat."

General admission is $4. The facility also offers a $30 Derby Day special including breakfast and lunch buffets, admission, clubhouse seat and program.

Cal Expo, which draws an estimated 400 people on an average day, expects today's crowd to exceed the turnout of 2,430 people on Derby day last year. The simulcast doors open at 7:30 a.m. The first race from Churchill Downs is at 8 a.m., with the Kentucky Derby to be run at 3:04 p.m.

A near-record $118.3 million was wagered on the 2007 Kentucky Derby, won by favorite Street Sense. Churchill Downs' stakes-filled program drew $175.1 million nationwide.

While fans were free to place bets on the 2007 race from home via online wagering, also known as advance deposit wagering, that is not the case this year.

TVG (Television Games Network), Youbet and other online services are locked out of races from Churchill Downs because of a dispute between horsemen and Churchill Downs management. The horsemen want a larger share of the quickly growing online pool.

No solution appears likely before today's race.

Online wagering accounts for about 10 percent of betting in the United States.

Through a prior contract, Churchill Downs' twinspires.com and partner Magna Entertainment's xpressbet.com are allowed to accept online wagering on today's Derby and Turf Classic, but no other races from Churchill Downs.

With a large turnout expected today, Elliott says Cal Expo will see more betting because of the limits on online wagering.

"(Online wagering) has really impacted us substantially," Elliott said. "Sacramento County always ranks among the top three or five counties in the state for ADW (advance deposit wagering). Those are dollars that went right out our door."

Cal Expo and other simulcast facilities such as the ones at Golden Gate Fields, Bay Meadows and fairgrounds facilities in Vallejo, Stockton and Pleasanton have been hurt by online wagering, with attendance and on-track betting down.

"This place is a ghost town compared to what it used to be because of online betting," said Smigel, who has been betting the ponies for more than 25 years.

Besides a big day at Cal Expo, Derby parties will be held around the region.

Among the largest will be the gathering at Lucchetti Ranch in Wilton, where more than 700 people are expected for a Derby-themed fundraiser.

Started in 2002, the biannual event is expected to raise more than $600,000 for local charities, said organizer Megan Vincent, who lives on the ranch with her husband, Don, and parents, Dave and Chris Lucchetti. Among the highlights will be a dachshund race, hat contest and mint juleps.

"The first year we started, I wasn't sure if people would even watch the race," Vincent said. "But they really got into it. Now, they can't wait."

Regardless of the online dispute, a significant chunk of change will flow through Sacramento on the Derby, thanks to Scientific Games' state-of-the-art data center in Natomas.

Centralizing bets taken from throughout the country, the facility opened in early 2007. It processed more than $19 million on Derby day last year, including about $9 million on Churchill Downs.

"We've grown so much. We do four times the business we did last year," said Ted Shaine, general manager of the Western quantum data center. "We'll do at least $19 million on Derby day."

The data center processes wagers from all California tracks and simulcast facilities plus Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Arizona, as well as TVG online wagering.

Shaine expected the lack of online availability for the Derby to force fans back to the track.

"People used to sitting around and betting from home better find a place to go," he said. "Head on over to Cal Expo."

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• Call The Bee's Debbie Arrington, (916) 326-5514.