difficult trying to convince the track
managements that this thing, ultimately,
will help us all: the one big day, the me-
dia interest, filling that tremendous gap
in the public acceptance of racing after
the Triple Crown."
Even the horsemen were reluctant.
Bassett addressed a big meeting and
found his audience courteous but cold.
So he told them, "We will never move
this thing forward unless each of us gives
something. Each of us: the breeders, the
tracks, the horsemen."
So Bassett reprised his tried-and-trust-
ed police methods. Instead of stewing
in the Breeders' Cup office, he took the
show on the road.
"As simplistic as this sounds, it's
about believing in your m i s s i o n , "
h e says. "And it's absolutely es-
sential to your success to get
your team, your people, be-
lieving in it too. When I did
the state police thing, I was
laughed at. Not so much by
the men. But other people
said, 'Look at Bassett go-
ing about trying to promote
himself.'
