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Canterbury Park Requests 65 Race Dates For 2022

Canterbury Park officials intend to offer 65 days of live horse racing in 2022. A request for a meet that would run Wednesday, May 18 through Saturday, Sept. 17 has been submitted for approval to the Minnesota Racing Commission. Purses are projected at $225,000 per day, similar to the 65-day 2021 season.

In 2021, all-sources wagering reached a record $90.9 million with racing conducted Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings and Sunday afternoons, surpassing the $68.4 million record set in 2020 when 53 days of racing were conducted. The 2022 request would replace Tuesdays with Saturday evening racing programs while continuing Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday programs. Racing would begin at 1:00 p.m. on Sundays and 5:00 p.m. on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Sunday afternoon out-of-state wagering in 2021 exceeded company officials' expectations with an average $894,736 in off-track handle, nearly triple the pre-pandemic 2019 figure when the Shakopee, Minn. track last conducted Sunday programs. The success in maintaining wagering levels with the shift to Sundays in 2021 leads to optimism amongst track officials about the possibilities regarding the return of Saturday racing, absent since 2019.

“Canterbury Park has been successful over the past two seasons in drawing the interest of the national horseplayer through running a race schedule focused on the less competitive days of the week and by providing a strong value proposition for the wagering dollar,” company president Randy Sampson said. “In 2022, we plan to continue to offer a strong wagering proposition at opportunistic times in the weekly calendar while making it easier for our passionate on-track fan base to return to the races by adding Saturday evening programs,” Sampson said.

Canterbury first experimented with weeknight-only racing in 2020 when pandemic restrictions caused a delay to the start of the race meet with severe limitations on attendance. National handle soared as a result. Mondays were eliminated last season in favor of Sunday afternoons.

The 2022 schedule also includes a nine-day break from July 18 through July 26 to accommodate Twin Cities Summer Jam, an annual multi-day music festival held in the racetrack infield.

The Minnesota Racing Commission, a nine-member panel appointed by the state's governor tasked with overseeing the integrity and safety of horse racing at Minnesota's two pari-mutuel racetracks, is expected to consider Canterbury's race date request at its December meeting. Minnesota Administrative Rule 7872.0100 requires Canterbury Park to submit its request for 2022 racing dates no later than November 15, 2021.
Canterbury Park's 24/7 card casino and simulcast racebook remain open daily. For more information, visit www.canterburypark.com .

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Backside Learning Center Fundraiser, Online Auction Set For Nov. 19

The Backside Learning Center (BLC), an organization dedicated to building community and enriching the lives of equine workers and families at Churchill Downs, will hold its largest annual fundraiser, Benefit for the Backside: A Day at the Races, Friday, Nov. 19 at Churchill Downs.

This is a sold-out event. However, the BLC is hosting an online, silent auction consisting of many unique horseracing and other hard to find items and experiences including a year-long membership to Louisville Thoroughbred Society, a private tour of Spendthrift Farm, AirBnB experiences, top-shelf bourbon packages and much more. In addition, The BLC will conduct a “Thurby Suite for 40” raffle drawing including food and drink (a $9,000 value.)

“We are thrilled to have our event back in person this year, and to be able to share all of the wonderful work and growth that has taken place over the last two years,” said Executive Director Sherry Stanley. “It will be emotional to be able to finally thank so many people who have allowed us to fulfill our mission of standing beside this amazing community through such a tough time.”

You can still participate in this event by joining the online auction, purchasing a raffle ticket for a Thurby Suite for 40, or donating by visiting the following website: www.benefitforthebackside.com.

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HISA Publishes Initial Draft Of Proposed Anti-Doping, Medication Control Rules

The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's (the Authority) Standing Advisory Committees, comprised of experts from inside and outside the thoroughbred racing industry, and the independent U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), have published initial drafts of proposed rules on hisaus.org for public comment.

As prescribed by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020 (HISA), USADA has led the drafting process for the Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program. Three of the six documents pertaining to the Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program, including the proposed Equine Protocol, Prohibited List and Definitions, have been posted for public comment. The remaining documents, which include Equine Arbitration Procedures, Testing and Investigation Standards, and Standards for Laboratories and Accreditation will be published over the next two weeks.

In addition, and separate from USADA's work, the Racetrack Safety Program, which is made up of expanded veterinary exam protocols, enhanced racing and training requirements, minimum standards for surface maintenance and testing, and uniform reporting requirements has also been posted to the Authority's website for public review.

USADA and the Advisory Committees will review and incorporate relevant public feedback on the recommendations and submit them to the Authority's Board of Directors for approval. Following the Board approval process, the Authority will present its final proposed rules to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in early December. This will then initiate a formal notice and comment rule-making process during which stakeholders and the general public may once again weigh in by submitting comments for a 60-day period, after which the FTC will publish final regulations.

“We are honored to be involved at this stage to help draft and ultimately finalize gold-standard rules on anti-doping and medication control for the equine industry,” said USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart. “We are excited with where this process is headed and with proposed rules being published for two additional rounds of public feedback.”

“The rulemaking process is still underway, and we encourage experts, other industry stakeholders, racing fans and the general public to review and comment through our website. Although the final decision on which regulations will be approved and implemented ultimately lies with the FTC, we want to ensure that any interested party has the opportunity to offer their perspective and input,” said Charles Scheeler, Chairman of the Authority's Board of Directors. “While the FTC will authorize the final set of rules for the official launch of the Authority in July 2022, it is the Authority's full intention to continue to work with the industry to evolve and improve the rules beyond that time.”

Please visit hisaus.org to view and weigh in on the proposed regulations and follow the Authority on Twitter and Facebook to keep up with the latest developments.

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Ireland: Banned Substances Seized At Equine Therapy Operation, Two Trainers Caught Up In Investigation

Ireland's Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, acting on their own investigations and information received, seized a number of substances banned for use in racehorses in Monasterevin, County Kildare on Tuesday, reports racingpost.com.

The location is reported to be the operation of a widely-used equine therapy practitioner, who was not identified. Both Thoroughbreds and sport horses were on site during Tuesday's raid.

The DAFM had four representatives on site, with three gardai, and the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board later sent four representatives to the location as well. The IHRB elected to take hair and blood samples from two licensed trainers whose horses were on the premises, but both trainers reportedly believe themselves to be inadvertently caught up in the situation and innocent of any wrongdoing.

A statement from the DAFM read: “On Tuesday ,Nov. 9, 2021, authorized officers acting on behalf of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine carried out an enforcement operation supported by Gardai attached to the Kildare/Laois drug unit and officers from the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board. This Department-led operation involved searches and seizure of products as part of an ongoing investigation into equine doping. As this is an ongoing investigation, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment at this time.”