Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track
part of region for more than 50 years

By Evangelia Ganosellis
© Ft. Myers News-Press
Saturday, February 20, 2010

A horn blares to signify the beginning of a race, and a voice booms from the loudspeaker, "Here comes Sparky!"

Eight dogs are then released from the gate, appearing as a blur as they sprint after the mechanical rabbit.

After one lap around the track, the race is over.

For 21 years, Mary and Clifford Bodenhafer have come to the Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track to watch the dogs race.

"Some people are only here for the gambling," says Clifford Bodenhafer, 78.

"I enjoy watching the dogs run."

About three times a week, he and Mary Bodenhafer, 74, make the trek from their North Fort Myers home to the track in Bonita Springs.

Mary Bodenhafer had racing horses while living in Canada, but she says she prefers dog racing because the pace is faster."I love it," she said. "I really do."

The track, a family-owned business that employs 300 people, has been a part of Southwest Florida for more than 50 years. It hosts between 10 and 14 races six days a week, depending on the season, and patrons can watch from one of three floor levels.

For 30 years, the track has belonged to the Havenick family, who rebuilt it in the mid-1970s.

"We provide a different source of entertainment that nobody else really offers," said Izzy Havenick, vice president of the track.Havenick operates the track with his mother, Barbara, the track's CEO, and his brother and fellow vice president, Alex.

In addition to greyhound racing, the track has a poker room, which opened in 1996 and has since become just as popular at the track as racing.Even if the track isn't showing a live race, the poker room is often filled. Some people, such as 76-year-old Charlie Sottile of north Naples, play nearly every day.Sottile plays Texas hold 'em at the poker room. He prefers the track to the Seminole Casino in Immokalee because the former is not only closer, but smoke-free as well. "I can't stand the smoke," he said.

And if poker isn't your thing, the track provides live simulcasts of other horse and dog races around the country, on which people can bet just as they would a live race. For any race, the minimum bet is $2, with no cap on higher amounts. On an average day at the track, $35,000 is wagered on the live races - a far cry from the nearly $1 million in wagers the track saw in the 1980s.

Increased competition from untaxed, unregulated gambling venues, such as the Seminole Casino and the Seminole Hard Rock casino-hotels in Tampa and Hollywood, has significantly affected business at the track, Havenick said.

The track, however, answers to the state.

In 2007, Gov. Charlie Crist made a deal with the Seminole Tribe of Florida that allowed it to offer Las Vegas-style slot machines, blackjack, baccarat and other table games. The deal was invalidated by the Florida Supreme Court because it allowed casinos to operate games that are illegal under Florida law. But Crist continues to push the proposal to lawmakers.

Havenick said the track should be afforded the same liberties if the deal is sealed. "We're hopeful that the Legislature this upcoming session helps an industry that's been a part of Florida since the '20s," he said.

The advent of the Florida Lottery in 1988 has also caused attendance to dwindle.

But if some people had their way, they would do away with the track altogether. On Feb. 6, members of the group Grey2K USA, a national organization that promotes greyhound protection, protested the treatment of greyhounds outside the track. But Havenick maintains the dogs, which are not owned by the track but by individual owners, are treated well. "These people really love their dogs, and I don't think people realize that," he said.

And when a greyhound can no longer race, the track strongly encourages its owner to place it for adoption. More than 96 percent of the dogs that race at the Bonita Springs track are adopted when their racing careers are up.

But despite accusations of greyhound mistreatment and other available casinos and forms of gambling, some people remain faithful to the track and the industry.

Eric Carroll, 37, of Indiana, was at the track Feb. 10 for the first time in more than 10 years. Carroll was in Southwest Florida to work at the Collier County Fair. He makes elephant ears, just as his father did when he would come to the area to work local fairs. And whenever they made the trip to Florida, Carroll's father always stopped by the track.

"We didn't go fishing," Carroll said of his childhood activities. "We went to the horse track or the dog track." So naturally, being back at the Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track reminded Carroll of his father. "It brings back a lot of memories," he said.

Sharon Skunes, 61, of Minnesota, also visits whenever she's vacationing in Fort Myers. She enjoys the track's cheap prices and flexible hours. "And you got to think a little bit," she said, scanning the list of dogs participating in the next race. "You're not just sitting here watching TV."

Havenick believes the track provides something not only for its customers, but for the state of Florida, too."By being here and being in business, we're employing people and paying taxes, which the state needs both of," he said.

And for Havenick, the track provides a job that allows him to work alongside his family - which makes it less like work and more like fun."You celebrate your victories together and mourn your defeats together, and it's nice," he said.