Chris Brown is an owner and breeder based in Maryland. Maribeth Kalinich is senior editor for Past the Wire. This post originally appeared on Facebook and is reprinted with permission.

When Laurel Park released updates to its 2025 Condition Book, the response from horsemen and fans echoed a familiar refrain. “Finally, someone is listening!” some cheered. Others grumbled, “Where are the restricted Maryland-bred N2 and N3 races?” Many others went the route of, “What a sinking ship.”

Each tweak to the condition book seems to stir the same frustrations—horsemen airing personal gripes but offering little in the way of unified, practical solutions for a sport they clearly love. After weeks of conversations with trainers and breeders, one truth stood out: complaints abound, but consensus is scarce. It’s no wonder major sports rely on commissioners to lead rather than leaving fixes to the crowd.

Can horsemen and track management unite for a cause that’s objective, fair, and forward-thinking? Modernizing the condition book with 21st-century technology could be that cause—and it’s long overdue.

Imagine you’ve just added four new horses to your barn. In the past, you’d haul out a paper condition book, flip through pages of fine print, and scribble notes to spot races. Today, the process is “digital”—a PDF downloaded to your device, still requiring hours of sifting through irrelevant conditions. Adobe’s PDF, launched in 1993, was revolutionary for its time. But in 2025, it’s a relic for racing. Why hasn’t the condition book evolved?

What if you could simply enter your horse’s name and instantly see tailored race options? What if algorithms matched horses to conditions—and conditions to horses—slashing an eight-hour chore to one? The technology exists. Horsemen already use apps to track stables, manage vet records, and monitor barns. The Jockey Club and HISA maintain vast digital databases on registered horses. The data is there—we just need to harness it.

The current system is clunky and outdated. Racing Secretaries labor to fill races, often spending eight hours to schedule eight races, while trainers struggle to match horses to rigid conditions. It’s backwards—the cart before the horse. Software could reverse this, assessing available stock and trainer priorities to craft smarter conditions. Trainers could set alerts for horses needing races; racing offices could build schedules around those needs. Text alerts for changes are already standard—why not take the next step?

Top trainers already wield technology far beyond what racetracks offer. Does it make sense for employees to outpace their employer in tools and data? Some argue “Super Trainers” and “Super Owners” guard their tech as a competitive edge. But that self-serving stance stifles growth. Leveling the playing field with better tools for all—especially smaller trainers and owners—fosters competition and strengthens the sport.

How do you solve problems without data? Some owners who logged over 150 starters in 2023 now have fewer than 10 in 2025—yet who’s tracking this collapse? What’s being done to keep them engaged? Writing races is a guessing game without a clear picture of the Mid-Atlantic’s horse stock. Even basics like microchip scanning falter, with weak bands forcing slow, manual checks. Off-site stabling, increasingly common, turns a racing secretary’s job into a logistical nightmare. The industry’s overdue for integration and innovation.

The racing industry isn’t starting from scratch. The Jockey Club offers AI-driven naming tools and free, updated race records for foals born in 2025 onward. Equibase delivers daily entries, results, and condition books. InCompass, a Jockey Club subsidiary, streamlines racetrack operations with tools like Track Manager and Horsemen’s Bookkeeper. Private companies like Equine MediRecord and Horcery provide cutting-edge stable management and monitoring. FanDuel Racing’s app offers live streaming and handicapping for over 300 tracks. HISA, created by Congress, unifies safety and integrity data across the sport. The foundation is laid—racing just needs to build on it.

It’s time for horsemen to rally. Racing Secretaries struggle to fill races, horsemen grow frustrated, and fans crave a thriving sport. Before HISA, digitizing horse data seemed impossible. Now, top trainers use software that outstrips racing offices’ capabilities. A modern condition book could be the rare fix that unites horsemen, fans, and bettors. When a February 24th social media post from Hall of Fame nominated trainer Kenny McPeek in response to this idea drew 24,000 views and near-unanimous support, it hinted at real momentum.

The condition book doesn’t need another tweak—it needs a revolution. Let’s bring racing into the 21st century, together.