Eclipse Awards good show for racing fans, Broward tourism
Caught between the spectacle of the college football championship and talk about the push for stadium improvements to remain viable as a Super Bowl host is another event getting overshadowed this week that is enhancing South Florida’s big-event reputation.
The Eclipse Awards are horse racing’s Oscars, and the spotlight is on Broward County for the gala presentation Saturday night at Gulfstream Park as well as related events.
While it won’t match the 30,000 visitors who spent $25 million in Broward for the BCS National Championship, the Westin Diplomat in Hollywood is packed with horse-racing royalty from around the country.
“We’ll have a full house of more than 500 people [for the ceremony]. Many of those individuals are relatively affluent. They’ll be staying two to three days here in the South Florida area and shopping and entertaining themselves here for the next several days,” said Keith Chamblin, senior executive producer of the awards.
Obviously, a welcome post-holiday boost for tourism, but also a rare opportunity for racing fans.
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CRAIG DAVIS In more than 33 years at the Sun Sentinel, Craig Davis has written about a wide variety of sports topics from baseball to yachting, fishing to triathlons, and also worked as a copy editor and page designer. Recently he reported on local sports, including running, swimming, cycling, equestrian and beach volleyball. He enjoys sports as a participant as well as a spectator, is active in the South Florida running scene plays in the curling club at Saveology Iceplex. This blog offers a glimpse at the business side of sports in the interest of enhancing enjoyment of the games and sporting options as a spectator as well as a participant.
