Speaker Series: Greg Stiles, Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority
Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority’s (HISA) Racetrack Accreditation Manager Greg Stiles visited the University of Arizona’s Race Track Industry Program (RTIP) in April to meet with students in the Race Track Organization, Structure, and Financial Management class. In preparation for his visit, students read through the accreditation rules identifying those that fall under the responsibility of track management to understand how they impact the management of a successful racing operation.
Stiles provided students an in-depth conversation about these rules, the self-audits completed by track management each year, what a typical visit from the accreditation team looks like, and the overall accreditation process.
It was emphasized by Stiles that his goal, and the goal of the entire team, is to help every racetrack succeed and achieve accreditation.
"We have a diverse group of industry experts on our Accreditation team," said Stiles. "We prefer not to take the 'gotcha' approach to assessing a track's compliance with HISA safety rules. We would rather come in, explain the rules and partner with each racetrack in order for management to take the steps necessary that maintains a track's safety accreditation." As a life long fan of racing, the importance of safety for all participants was clear in the conversation he had with students.