We are proud to offer this beefed up stakes schedule to our horsemen for our 41st-consecutive season in southwest Louisiana and feel it is certain to be the best ever.

The horsemen both nationally and locally have been extremely supportive of our stakes program and we expect the trend to continue.

With Hurricane Katrina, our schedule was very hectic. But our guys battled through all of those times this season. After the hurricane, we became a closer football team and we rallied around each other.

I just think to try to put Miami in a 13-week season, our schedule is tough enough as it is. If there are 14 weeks, that gives you another open date to play with there. That's why we did it. I think the series is good for the state, and so does Paul Dee. But it's just not a series that's going to work out on a regular basis.

We've had some of our season-ticket holders call this year's schedule 'eclectic' - and I like that.

All the horsemen I've spoken to, don't have a problem with it.