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Staging a successful horse race on Atlantic City beach is a longshot

New Jersey pols want to bring a second-rate version of Italy's Palio di Siena to the resort town.

Horses gallop in Palio di Siena, an Italian race pols want to replicate in Atlantic City.
Horses gallop in Palio di Siena, an Italian race pols want to replicate in Atlantic City.Read more

IL PALIO DI SIENA is not a day at the beach!

Il Palio di Siena is a brutal, spectacular horse race. Three times around the Siena, Italy, town square, running on tuff and dirt and grass hauled in to cover the cobblestones. Mixed-breed horses, bareback riders. Horses blessed at the church the day before. Riders dressed in the colors of the contrade (district) they represent, rivalries older than Machiavelli and just as devious. Spectators packed, you should excuse the expression, like sardines, in the middle of the square. Mattresses taped to the buildings that jut out into the square, cushioning the impact when horse and rider slam into the bricks. Rowdy, raucous, reckless. Been run since 1656. Pomp and pageantry and provincialism. And, you can bet on it!

Some Atlantic City folks, inspired by Il Palio thought it would be a terrific idea to stage a horse race on the beach around Columbus Day. Plop it in front of Boardwalk Hall. Start with 50 horses, one representing each state in the union.

Narrow the field to 10 the day before Columbus Day. Run the championship the day after Columbus Day. Crown the winner America's Palio champion. Lure tourists and gamblers and thrill-seekers. Momma mia!

"Our concern is with the safety of the spectators and the horses, that's foremost," said Assemblyman John Amodeo, who co-sponsored the bill to legalize betting on the event. "We've cut the field from 50. We're thinking that each of the 12 casinos would sponsor a horse and it would become a one-day event, not two."

It passed the legislature, 76-0, and it is sitting on the governor's desk for approval. They plan a test run for thoroughbreds on the sand before they announce any details.

They thought about 6 furlongs on packed sand, a straightaway like the legendary Widener Chute at Belmont. And if you remember the Widener Chute you probably voted for Harry Truman and still think Citation is the best racehorse you've ever seen.

"Uh," Amodeo said recently, "there's a pipe on the beach at Illinois Avenue and it's visible at low tide, so that rules out the straightaway. We can create a horseshoe-shaped track in front of Boardwalk Hall. That's where the horses will be stabled because the rodeo is scheduled the week before and that space will be available. Right now, it [the event] is a work in progress."

A work in progress? It sounds like a nightmare, a good idea gone terribly wrong. What will they do next, import a painting of Mona Lisa, this one scowling? Celebrate with imported champagne, minus the bubbles? Stage a Formula One race with rolling chairs?

"We have been in touch with the mayor of Siena," Amodeo said proudly. "And invited him to attend."

Lady Godiva riding a Budweiser Clydesdale sidesaddle might not draw a crowd on that stretch of the boardwalk, so how many gamblers and ramblers will be lured by the mayor of Siena, even if he's carrying the palio, the hand-painted flag that goes to the winner?

Staging a drab facsimile of a legendary race might sadden John Zancolli, who is ordinarily sunnier than Lake Como in July. Zancolli is the manager of the lively Di Bruno Bros. operation in the Ardmore Farmers Market. I go there for the fresh mozzarella and Johnny Z's take on all things Italian.

He majored in medieval history at Penn State and has spent enough summers abroad to speak fervently about Palio di Siena and its rich traditions.

"They have been running the race for 500 years," he said, "and the rules, there are very few rules, have not changed through the centuries.

"My grandfather was the horse doctor in his little village. The anvil is still there, in the backyard. He would change the horse's shoes and people would bring him sick horses and he would tell them what was wrong with them.

"I'd go to Siena and study the castles and cathedrals and they'd tell me about this famous race. They run once in February and again on Aug. 16, in honor of the Assumption of Mary. It is a national holiday. Nobody works. Ten horses, representing 10 contrade, drawn by lottery. There are 17 contrade, so the ones that don't get in this year, are automatically in next year.

"The horses are blessed the day before the race. And that night representatives from the various contrade get together, plot strategy, perhaps collaborating to block another horse, deals done, money probably exchanged.

"There is pageantry before the race begins. And then, nine of the horses line up behind a rope. The 10th horse stands alone, the rider eyeing the pack. And then, whoosh, he gets a running start and at that moment the restraining rope is dropped and the race is on.

"Riders get tossed, sometimes trampled. For years, a riderless horse could win the race, but that may have changed. There are betting shops all over Italy, and people bet on this race."

Johnny Z. thinks bringing Palio to the shore is "awesome" but he won't be tempted to gamble. "When I go, it's for people-watching," Zancolli said. "There's the art of doing nothing. Far niente. To do nothing."

They held Palio last week in Siena, as wild and dangerous as ever. We won't be seeing anything like it on the beach in Atlantic City. Not in broad daylight anyway.