HARNESS RACING
Raceway set to open 67th year
Winter sports in the Western New York snow belt? Don’t overlook horse racing.
Buffalo Raceway, the half-mile harness racing track at the Hamburg Fairgrounds, opens the gate on its 67th year Wednesday at 5 p. m. — weather permitting, of course.
The Jan. 14 opening day is a month and a day earlier than last year and marks the earliest date for Hamburg racing since the track presented a December-through-February winter meet in 1996-97.
“C’mon out, the racing is going to be good,” said Bruce Tubin, president of the Western New York Harness Horsemen’s Association. “We’ve got good quality horses, good horsemen and we’re ready to go.”
For the first two weeks, racing will be held Wednesdays at 5 p. m. and Saturdays at 6:30 p. m. Fridays (6:30 p. m.) will be added Jan. 30 and eight straight Sunday matinees (1:05 p. m.) will begin June 7.
Tubin’s association — which represents owners, trainers and drivers of the approximately 550 local horses which regularly compete at Buffalo Raceway and Batavia Downs — recently negotiated a three-year contract with management. It provides for 90 days of racing (up from 84 in 2008) from Jan. 14 through July 26, between-season winter stabling and training at both tracks, and an increase in the cut (from 8.5 to 8.75 percent) of slot machine revenues that go for purse money.
Purse money is expected to total about $60,000 per 13-race night, an average of about $4,600 per one-mile dash, said Raceway General Manager Jim Mango.
“Eighty percent of our purses come from slots. . . . Last month the slots were up 11 to 12 percent [from the previous year],” Mango said. “People like this facility. It’s safe and clean and fun. . . . People like coming here. They are treated nice. . . . No other facility offers everything that we have here.”
In a departure from previous years, the Raceway will present some of its best races on Wednesdays, the night when it faces the least competition from other tracks for national simulcasting attention.
“We’re proud that Wednesdays at 5 p. m. have worked tremendously,” Mango said. “On opening day we have [simulcasting to] every jurisdiction in the country except California and Las Vegas. . . . We’re pretty much dominant at 5 p. m. on Wednesday.”
The opening night card features a $9,000 Open Pace featuring Smarty Merit, the Pacer of the Year at the Batavia Downs summer-fall meet, which ended Dec. 6. There also are six $4,000 divisions of the Niatross Knockout Series. The best-finishing horses in the series keep advancing until the top eight meet in a $10,000 final Feb. 4.
The Niatross — named for the Grand Island- owned two-time Horse of the Year (1979-80) — is one of seven Late Closer series of stakes races scheduled this season. The other finals are scheduled to have added money of between $7,000 and $15,000.
“We’ve tremendously upgraded the stakes program,” said Robin Burns, race secretary and announcer. He said the biggest purses of the season (although exact prizes have not been announced) will be the traditional New York Sire Stakes races in June and July.
The Raceway has also revamped its Web site (buffaloraceway.com) which contains schedules, free programs, video replays, statistics and other information.
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