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Tis the season to adopt a greyhound. Though D.C. isn’t near any dog tracks — the closest racing outposts can be found about five hours away in Wheeling, W..V. — the city is a hotbed of greyhound adoption. (My favorite adopted greyhound of all time, Craig Brownstein’s Scout, is pictured here. Here’s their story.)
Adoption’s a real big deal right now, because the sport, or whatever you want to call greyhound racing, is dying fast. As 2009 ends, a lot of these 40-mile-an-hour couch potatoes will need new homes.
Several greyhound tracks are shuttering within days. Raynham Park in Raynham, Mass., is closing Dec. 26. Phoenix Greyhound Park in Phoenix, Ariz., and Dairyland Racetrack in Kenosha, Wisc., will end live racing by Dec. 31.
That means hundreds of dogs are being put up for adoption.
Voters in Massachusetts, where racing thrived for decades, banned dog tracks as of 2010, joining Vermont and Maine among states that have put prohibitions on the books. Two New Hampshire tracks went out of business earlier this year. That leaves Twin River in Rhode Island as the only dog track in New England, and its owner is in bankruptcy and has asked to shut down its live racing operation.
The demise of greyhound racing has caught some two-legged victims around here, too: Andrew Beyer, who in his years with the Washington Post became arguably the most important horse racing writer of all time, lost a lot of money when Hinsdale, a New Hampshire tack, went under this year.
From a report in early 2009 in the Daily Racing Form, an equine publication:
Andrew Beyer, the popular handicapping expert, book author, and columnist, had $20,441 in his Hinsdale account at the time of the bankruptcy. Beyer, who frequently has columns published in Daily Racing Form, said on Thursday that he had never considered that the account could be wiped out by a bankruptcy filing.
For anybody still wondering what Beyer’s been up to since he took his buyout from the Washington Post, let me try to explain something: HE HAD MORE THAN TWENTY GRAND IN A BETTING ACCOUNT AT AN OBSCURE NEW HAMPSHIRE DOG TRACK!
Good God.
(AFTER THE JUMP: Tommy Amaker bails on Falls Church High, loses to Georgetown? Can anybody explain why the Desiree Jennings crippled-by-a-flu-shot story died so fast? Can anybody explain why the D.C. Armor died so fast? Want to collect debts for Dan Snyder?)
***
A long time ago, Tommy Amaker, a Falls Church guy, was supposed to attend my alma mater, Falls Church High. But Amaker somehow weaseled his way out of attending FCHS and got himself enrolled at W.T. Woodson, an outside-the-beltway school with a better basketball program (and a better everything else, truth be told) than Falls Church had. He had a great run at Woodson, then went off to Duke and had a fabulous college playing career. Falls Church continued losing 16-20 games a year.
Amaker came back to town yesterday as coach of Harvard. He got whupped by Georgetown in a rare weekday day game at Verizon Center. I’m not sure how his coaching failures at Seton Hall and Michigan and yesterday’s blowout are related to his bailing on FCHS all those years ago, but I’m sure they are.
***
I only got into this stuff this week, but I’m stunned at how fast the story of Desiree Jennings went away. Jennings became world famous overnight this fall as the Redskins cheerleader who was crippled by a flu shot. She set up a web site, desireejennings.com, just as her story went viral and it was used by leaders of the anti-vaccination movement (including Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy) to promote their cause.
But mere months after it went live, Jennings’ site is dead. Visitors are now redirected to godaddy.com. The anti-vaccination crowd doesn’t mention her anymore. Jennings quietly put a video on youtube indicating that the incurable disease brought on by the flu shot has been cured.
This is weird stuff.
***
The body hasn’t yet been recovered, but there a few more clear signs that the D.C. Armor really is lifeless:
Why won’t Armor owner Corey Barnette just come out and say the game’s over? If he’s even whispered it, I haven’t heard such a thing.
There’s no longer any shame in an arena team folding. If the Armor are indeed muerte, they’ll have tons of company: One report has the AIFA killing off six of the 14 teams that played in 2009, and the DC franchise is listed among the fatalities.
But more suckers prospective franchise owners stepped over the bodies, so the league will add five new teams for 2010: New Jersey Revolution, Richmond Raiders, Wenatchee Valley Venom, Yakima Valley Warriors, San Jose Wolves.
Lest you think our town’s Mr. Potter has changed his stripes, however, the job Snyder is looking to fill is a start-up position in… collections!
And not collections in the curator sense of the word, like somebody to work with art collections. No, this is collections in the pay-for-your-premium-tickets-now-or-we’ll-sue-your-ass-like-we-sued-that-broke-grandmother’s-ass sense.
We at Cheap Seats Daily are not usually in the business of giving Snyder free advertising space. But, he’s filled so many thousand digital column inches for us in 2009, and, what the hell, it’s Christmas, so:
Collections Coordinator – Washington Redskins (Landover, MD)
The Washington Redskins are seeking a highly motivated, energetic professional to join the organization on a Full Time basis as a Collections Coordinator.
Job Responsibilities:
• Oversee the collections process
• Coordinate with Legal and Finance departments
• Make calls to customers
• Process payments
• Set up payment plans
• Assist with customer related needs
• Transfer contracts
• Assist on game day
• Assist in preparation of legal correspondence
• Prepare reports for management
Requirements:
• Knowledge of FDCPA guidelines
• At least 2 years of collection experience
• Basic computer knowledge
• Strong communication and negotiation skills
• Must be able to work a flexible schedule
• Experience with Archtics database a plus
The Washington Redskins offer a competitive salary and an excellent benefits package. If you wish to become a part of this exciting, fast paced organization AND you meet the requirements listed above, please reply with a resume, cover letter and salary requirements or fax your information to (703) 726-7172. Apply Now NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer.
