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Prairie Meadows Approved for 84-Day Season

Prairie Meadows will host 84 days of live racing during its 2021 meet following approval by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission Thursday. Racing at the Altoona, IA oval will begin Friday, Apr. 30 with 26 days of Thoroughbreds only, followed by 58 days of mixed cards also featuring Quarter Horses until the conclusion of the meet on Sept. 25. Racing will be conducted on a Friday to Monday schedule, with first post times of 6:00 PM CDT on Fridays and Saturdays, and 4:00 PM CDT on Sundays and Mondays, with exceptions for special race days, events and holidays. Prairie Meadows will offer 32 stakes with purses of an estimated $2.92 million.

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Iowa Commission Approves 84 Live Race Dates For Prairie Meadows In 2021

Live horse racing returns to Prairie Meadows Casino, Racetrack, & Hotel on Friday, April 30 when the Altoona, Ia. facility opens its 32nd season of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse action.

On Thursday, Jan. 21, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission (IRGC) approved an 84-day 2021 race meet for Prairie Meadows.

The season begins with 26 days of Thoroughbred-only racing from April 30 – June 14 and continues with a mixed Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse schedule for the remaining 58 race days through Sept. 25.

Live racing will be offered on a Friday – Monday schedule, with post times set for 6 PM CDT on Fridays and Saturdays, and 4 PM CDT on Sundays and Mondays, with exceptions for special race days, events, and holidays.

Horsemen should note that Condition Book 1 and stall application for the 2021 season will be posted online in the Horseman's Information area of Prairie Meadows' website at www.prairiemeadows.com/racing/horsemens-info and is also available in hardcopy form via mail or at Prairie Meadows Racing Office.

Condition Book 1 will include the first 18 days of the 2021 season (Thoroughbred-only racing). Stall Applications will be due in the Racing Office on Wednesday, March 24.

The barn area is scheduled to open for horses on Friday, April 2 and training is set to begin on Sunday, April 4, weather permitting.

Prairie Meadows will offer 32 Thoroughbred stakes races in 2021 (including overnight stakes) worth an estimated $2.92 million. The highlights of the Thoroughbred stakes calendar are the Iowa Festival of Racing on Friday, July 2 and Saturday, July 3 and the traditional Iowa Classic stakes races on Saturday, Sept. 25.

In addition, the track will offer 23 Quarter Horse stakes races in 2021 worth an estimated $1.6 million, highlighted by the Bank of America/Prairie Meadows Regional Challenge Finals on Saturday, Aug. 14 and Sunday, Aug. 15, Prairie Meadows Quarter Horse Championships on Friday, Sept. 24, and Iowa Classic stakes races for the Quarter Horses on Saturday, Sept. 25.

Quarter Horse connections are reminded that Futurity and Derby nomination forms are available online, by mail, or by request through the Prairie Meadows Racing Office.

Payment schedules begin March 1 for the Prairie Meadows Gold Futurity and Derby, Hawkeye Futurity, Cyclone Derby, and Iowa Quarter Horse Stallion Futurity and Derby.

Payment schedules begin April 1 for the Valley Junction Futurity, Altoona Derby, Jim Bader Futurity, and Polk County Derby.

The post Iowa Commission Approves 84 Live Race Dates For Prairie Meadows In 2021 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Sky’s Not The Limit For Jockey Marcus Swiontek

Jockey Marcus Swiontek became interested in horse racing really by chance. He grew up in Jordan, Minn., just 14 miles down Highway 169 from Canterbury Park, yet the racetrack was never on his radar. Marcus happened to be flipping through TV channels on a Saturday afternoon in the mid-2000s and stumbled across the Kentucky Derby.

“From that moment I said 'Hey, I'm going to do that,'” he recalled during a 2017 interview.

His professional race riding career began in 2011 aboard a Thoroughbred at Turf Paradise in Phoenix, Az. He gravitated more to the Quarter Horse side of the industry over the years at Remington Park, Prairie Meadows, Canterbury, and Phoenix earning a living race riding and galloping in the mornings.

Swiontek won the Gopher State Derby in Shakopee on Zoomn On Bye July 7. He suffered an ankle injury three weeks later during a race and has not ridden since.

“I got on my first horse three or four days ago,” he said, admitting that the time away left him a bit muscle sore as he strives to get back in shape galloping for trainer Sandi Gann.

All along though Marcus has had a plan: prepare for his next career and be ready without delay. That career would be as an airline pilot. He studied in Minnesota, at Flying Cloud Airport, just across the Minnesota River and up the bluff from Canterbury, earning his student pilot license in June of 2017 and his private pilot license in March of 2018 while still race riding.

Last month, he made another stride toward the goal, getting a commercial license. He will still need additional coursework and 1,500 hours of flight time before the major airlines or cargo haulers come knocking. Marcus explained that those hours for many pilots, come through flight instruction, teaching others to fly. He can begin doing that in Phoenix in short order.

The racetrack still has an allure that is hard to walk away from. But unlike many athletes, Swiontek has an exit strategy taking him seamlessly from one world to another.

“I'd love to [return to Canterbury] this summer,” he said, but time and circumstances will dictate.

For the time being however he can have one foot in both worlds, flying and instructing while also preparing for opening day at Turf Paradise January 4.

The post Sky’s Not The Limit For Jockey Marcus Swiontek appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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ITBOA Hosting Stallion Season Auction

The Iowa Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners Association is conducting an online auction of seasons to more than 100 stallions from 12 states. The auction begins Dec. 5 and closes at 7 p.m. (CDT) Monday, Dec. 14. A list of the stallions donated and details of the auction can be found here.

Proceeds from the online auction will fund three stakes races for all 2022 offspring of stallions whose seasons are sold at this auction: The 2024 Stallion Futurity and two 2025 Stallion Stakes races for 3-year-olds, one for colts and one for fillies. A $5,000 bonus will be paid to the winner of any of the three races if the foal is conceived from a breeding season purchased at the auction. Donators of stallion seasons are also eligible to receive a $5,000 per race bonus.

Stallion donations are still being accepted. Contact the ITBOA Office at itboa@msn.com to donate or visit their website at iowathoroughbred.com.

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